Alright guys looking to make a big change and wanting to relocate. Currently live in South Florida but I'm really into camping and going on adventures and it seems like the east coast has some good areas to go on adventures but it seems like the west coast is where it's at. I've done some research and I really like a lot of areas in Oregon but Colorado also seems like an amazing state also. If you guys had to pick one state or the other which would it be and why? I know this is for the Colorado region but I'm going to post this same thread in the Oregon region section also. Thanks guys
Would you choose Colorado or Oregon?
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Hahha I was there too, and took off from south FL soon as I could
Depends on what your interests are. Want snow, CO. Want redwoods, OR
I took off 5 yrs ago and went to NorCal. Wanted the city snow and water. Napa in Bay Area had all we wanted. Look at temps and climate. CO is city like and very upidy(sp?) OR is woods and lumber jack type with a cool town of Portland that’s all on its own.
Depends on what your interests are. Want snow, CO. Want redwoods, OR
I took off 5 yrs ago and went to NorCal. Wanted the city snow and water. Napa in Bay Area had all we wanted. Look at temps and climate. CO is city like and very upidy(sp?) OR is woods and lumber jack type with a cool town of Portland that’s all on its own.
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I have spent time in both states throughout my life. The two states are geologically similar, and both have a vast amount of explorable land. A few thoughts I can share...
Oregon offers more wet biomes, meaning ferns and moist soil. It's also lower elevation for the most part which impacts different people in different ways, and can also impact how you adventure in different ways. The western side of the Cascades in particular is going to offer a greener experience than anything in Colorado. Parts of southern and most areas east of the Cascades is more like Grand Junction, being high desert, red rocks etc...
Oregon has mud slides and is always at risk for the big quake. Oregon also has more congested traffic and communities, particularly in the Portland area due to zoning laws, natural barriers and lack of large growth planning which has basically left the area with no major throughways. Colorado has thunderstorms, flash floods, hail and tornados.
My experience is that both areas have been impacted by a large influx of California (and some others) evacuees which has had a disruptive effect on cost of living, job availability, culture, politics etc... Both areas have been impacted by a boom of homelessness and protests as well. Wildfires also plague both states, although the wetter areas of Oregon are usually not a risk it does create air quality issues everywhere.
For what it's worth, both states are pretty conservative outside of a handful of major population centers. This can be a problem if you do not like one or two cities making decisions for the whole state. One point on this however is that Colorado has state pre-emption law, so with the exclusion of Denver, cities are not free to create conflicting laws against the state or create a nightmare of legislation that changes at every town border.
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Oregon offers more wet biomes, meaning ferns and moist soil. It's also lower elevation for the most part which impacts different people in different ways, and can also impact how you adventure in different ways. The western side of the Cascades in particular is going to offer a greener experience than anything in Colorado. Parts of southern and most areas east of the Cascades is more like Grand Junction, being high desert, red rocks etc...
Oregon has mud slides and is always at risk for the big quake. Oregon also has more congested traffic and communities, particularly in the Portland area due to zoning laws, natural barriers and lack of large growth planning which has basically left the area with no major throughways. Colorado has thunderstorms, flash floods, hail and tornados.
My experience is that both areas have been impacted by a large influx of California (and some others) evacuees which has had a disruptive effect on cost of living, job availability, culture, politics etc... Both areas have been impacted by a boom of homelessness and protests as well. Wildfires also plague both states, although the wetter areas of Oregon are usually not a risk it does create air quality issues everywhere.
For what it's worth, both states are pretty conservative outside of a handful of major population centers. This can be a problem if you do not like one or two cities making decisions for the whole state. One point on this however is that Colorado has state pre-emption law, so with the exclusion of Denver, cities are not free to create conflicting laws against the state or create a nightmare of legislation that changes at every town border.
Private message for more specifics if interested.
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I'm two years late but I just made this exact decision myself. I chose CO with ease. With job offers between CO and OR, I chose CO. More money in OR but also more antifa terrorists.
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Having lived in both states, born and raised in Oregon, kids live in Colorado, I say neither...
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Orygun has the coast, sand dunes, mountains, and desert. Politics are funny in the I5 corridor. Don't let 12 sq blocks of down town PDX define the state.
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This is good to know. Wife and I took an impromptu trip from Boise to the coast over 4th of July weekend. Everything was closed along the way but we found some great backcountry camping spots. Just drive down roads and setup shop in a small clearing. Great peaceful camping.
Mount Hood was pretty stinking awesome too. I think it wasMt Hood. Just all of a sudden BOOM a giant mountain out of the middle of nowhere. Was an amazing sight to see.
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Unfortunately they run the whole state
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I’ve been in Oregon my whole life and if it wasn’t for the coast I would choose Colorado in a heartbeat. love the state , hate the politics , taxes and cost of living .
I love both states but I really love high plateaus so CO iscmy preference. Something about the the air and the sky at high elevations. Things just seem to open up.
But I think a hunter or fisherman might choose OR.
But I think a hunter or fisherman might choose OR.
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Are you serious? They don’t let you pump gas because COVID? I find it interesting that Chicago mayor told people they MUST cancel their thanksgiving plans. Politicians tell people to separate and wear masks then we see them in public without masks doing things they tel people not to do. Want to talk about privilege, that’s the definition. Wife and I are pretty sure we have the Rona right now, she’s going to get tested tomorrow. Lost sense of taste, smell weird things, she lost all smell, feel awful, chest pains, etc. Thankfully, we’re not in the very small percentage of extreme cases. I still wouldn’t have done anything different in how I live.
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Pumping gas here has nothing to do with COVID... we have never been able to pump gas in Oregon... in 2018 the laws were finally amended to allow us in the rural areas to pump gas on weekends and after 6:00 pm on weekdays... but none of the gas stations fallow the law; they stick to old traditions and no one pumps their own gas except at a card lock station (have to have a commercial vehicle for card lock).
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You beet the gas station attendant out... you can actually get fined and even vehicle impounded... if a law enforcement saw...
Indian reservations here you CAN pump gas, and you won’t get an attendant.
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Hmmmm, interesting discussion. I am thinking about moving West next year or the year after that, and spent some time on two projects in Seattle (yes, I know it is WA), and liked the Cascades a lot more than the Rockies, which were pretty tame IMHO - but I use the Alps as a comparison which might not be fair ;-)
I was surprised to see the real estate cost in all three states being on par with the DC/NoVA area...
I was surprised to see the real estate cost in all three states being on par with the DC/NoVA area...
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Yeah, cost of housing is ridiculous in CO and shooting up tremendously in ID. We’re building a home in Northern CO, if they ever get the permits approved. I’m just hoping the value stays and we don’t lose money, we plan on this being a very long term home, unless it gets a little too extreme deep blue where we’re building but I think we’re safe outside the large cities. The downside to building in CO these days are metro tax districts. The appeal to move to CO used to be the fact that property taxes were VERY reasonable. Now, they’ve implemented metro taxes on all new builds which doubles your tax bill. Well be paying approximately $400/mo on a 3000sq foot home (including full unfinished basement) on a .27acre lot, so nothing even huge. We would have stayed in ID perhaps but the jobs there are very lacking, tons more opportunity for a network engineer in CO than in ID.
ID was okay, definitely better than WI but we’re on to our next phase in our adventure of life and feel at home in CO. My opinion is for my lifestyle, ID, CO, OR, WA could all be great as long as I’m outside of the major cities.
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I'm a life long Oregon resident and have lived in western and central and eastern Oregon. Unfortunately as M Rose said, the I5 corridor runs the state politically. If you can get past the BS politics and moronic politicians, Oregon is a beautiful state. We have the high desert, mountains, forests and the ocean. Colorado is beautiful also but I think Oregon offers a little more terrain diversity. That being said, again I'm with M Rose, my recommendation would be neither due to the political climate. We are looking at Wyoming, Idaho or western Montana in few years when I retire.
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