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Denver suburbs locals! I need some advice

8K views 90 replies 16 participants last post by  Skinny Bam 
#1 ·
So my best friend and I are moving just outside of denver around end of december/january 1st from Arizona for a couple reasons:

1) Our closest mountain in AZ is 2 hours and kinda sucks so we end up driving 3.5 hours to our slightly better mountain which is still as you can imagine not the best. The worst part is most of our 30 days we got in this season were day trips, which means 7 hours in the car for 7 hours of riding and work the next day. Ya, you could call us dedicated.

2)We have both lived in AZ for almost our whole lives and are ready to experience summer where you can go outside and actually have more than 2 seasons.

So our first priority for our apt/condo is access to the mountains( we both already got epic passes) and 2nd still within range of lots of work opportunity.

With my research I am leaning towards moving to lakewood as its on the west side of denver but still relatively close to possible jobs and the rent is pretty cheap from what ive seen (right now we pay 1000 for a 3 bedroom condo)...my roomate will be xfering to Pf changs which there is one right in lakewood and i will probably be looking to work at Charles Schwab or some retail bank since thats where my experience is.

So I guess what im looking for is suggestions from people familiar with the west side of denver and what areas you think would be best so I can ride as much as possible but still not be too far from work.

Riding is my #1 priority but unfortunately need to make money at some point as well


BTW I am saving enough $$$ so i can just ride and chill the first 2-3 months while i get settled so job availability right away is not a concern. :thumbsup:
And i would be interested in possibly sharing rides to summit since im sure i will be driving by myself a decent amount in the first 2 months cuz my buddy will be working while im just kicken it


Any tips or suggestions you guys have is appreciated
 
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#2 ·
No one living in Lakewood or surrounding areas?

I guess the reason im asking for what its like is because i was planning on taking a few day trip in november to check out a coupe different apts and what not but would like to just save the $$ instead...
 
#3 ·
It sounds like you've done your research. Lakewood/Golden area is good because you are right next to 70 and can ride it straight the mountains.

Is there anything else you want to know? I live in Golden right now, actually moving to central Denver.

I think you are making a good move, assuming you can find steady employment. I came here from the midwest and it was the best decision I ever made. I love it here: plenty to do, plenty of groups to join for nearly any activity and the people here are very laid back and generally upbeat.
 
#4 ·
I guess i was just trying to get a general feel for lakewood since ive never been and here in AZ sometimes a few blocks can make a big difference. accessibility to denver area? hows the nightlife? any ghetto areas i should stay away from?

thx for the advice
 
#5 ·
Hopefully others will chime in because I've been here little more than a year. Lakewood is nice, it has it's old development and new development parts. It's really contiguous with Denver.

So any nightlife concerns should be put to rest. 10-15 drive and you are in downtown Denver. 45 mins and you are in Boulder, very relaxing place to be.

Nothing against anyone living on Colfax but most people would tell you to stear clear of Colfax as you move closer to Denver. There seems to be quite a few "incidents" very close this street.

Other than that, you'll have to wait for others to chime in. Lakewood is nice enough and so is Golden. They run into one another so either will work for you and both will dump you on 70 relatively quickly.

I wish I had specifics but I don't really hit the nightlife. I'm more oriented towards hanging out with a few friends rather than raging all night. Best of luck
 
#7 ·
Actually anywhere along i70 or 6th Ave from Morrison all the way east to downtown, if you are near those arteries, zipping up the hill is almost as accessible as any other part of town. I live in south Littleton, I love the area, pretty close to 470, 15minutes and I'm at the bottom of the hill heading up i70.

On the flipside of that, if you can get near the interstate in Evergreen, you are even closer to the mountains, and you can commute all the way to the middle of downtown quickly on i70 and 6th ave (this is a 6lane divided "street" 65mph u can go 80 on).

Fuck Boulder.
 
#18 ·
Actually anywhere along i70 or 6th Ave from Morrison all the way east to downtown, if you are near those arteries, zipping up the hill is almost as accessible as any other part of town. I live in south Littleton, I love the area, pretty close to 470, 15minutes and I'm at the bottom of the hill heading up i70.

On the flipside of that, if you can get near the interstate in Evergreen, you are even closer to the mountains, and you can commute all the way to the middle of downtown quickly on i70 and 6th ave (this is a 6lane divided "street" 65mph u can go 80 on).

Fuck Boulder.
I'm so glad you said this. I honestly think it's a beautiful place but the people are something else. I've never seen so many "trustifarians".

I like hiking around there, Chautauqua was one of the first places I hit when I got here (after Red Rocks).

I'm glad more people chimed in, I was going to mention Littleton but I've only been down there a few times.
 
#8 ·
Thanks for the replys guys, ya like I said riding is by far #1 priority so nightlife isnt that big of a deal just dont wanna be in the middle of nowhere where we cant go out every now and then, and by going out i dont mean like club scene, a chill bar is good for me.

And i was looking at evergreen a little bit as well because of the mountain access but it kinda seems like there would be less employment opportunities/less businesses which eventually may mean id have a farther drive to work, anyone know if this is true?

Ill have to look at what kind of banks are in that area...

Other thing i was thinking too, has anyone moved to denver area in the winter like were about to? Im hoping the drive wont be too sketchy in the U-haul if we go through new mexico instead of the i-70 route
 
#10 ·
And i was looking at evergreen a little bit as well because of the mountain access but it kinda seems like there would be less employment opportunities/less businesses which eventually may mean id have a farther drive to work, anyone know if this is true?
The thing is, if you can be near i70 in Evergreen (some people in "Evergreen" live 35 minutes from that exit) you are as close to downtown as any of the suburbs, that exit, to the bottom of the hill (Golden) is 8miles. So working downtown from Evergreen is a mellow commute. I work in Evergreen and drive 60miles rt on my work days, and usually further into the mountains on my days off. Getting a Loveland pass this year, my work in Evergreen is near i70 as well, I can get back to work in 35 minutes from the Love.

Other thing i was thinking too, has anyone moved to denver area in the winter like were about to? Im hoping the drive wont be too sketchy in the U-haul if we go through new mexico instead of the i-70 route
Yea it will be sketchy if you are in a hurry. Otherwise try to wait out storms and its mellow, they manage the passes on all the interstates well.

The effectiveness of modern snowtires cannot be understated or undervalued. Good snowtires>chains

snowklinger how are far is your place from the vail resorts?

I think when i mapped it out from lakewood it was something like this:

A-basin and keystone - 1 hour and 15 mins

Breck - 1 hour and 30 mins

Beaver Creek and Vail - 2 hours
Accurate considering you ride weekdays like myself, and no weather. Weekend warriors can add 4-6 hours :cheeky4:, however there are some tricks to beating the weekends.
 
#9 ·
snowklinger how are far is your place from the vail resorts?

I think when i mapped it out from lakewood it was something like this:

A-basin and keystone - 1 hour and 15 mins

Breck - 1 hour and 30 mins

Beaver Creek and Vail - 2 hours


Granted all these seem easy to me since im use to doing 3.5 hours each way on day trips but every mile counts right?
 
#11 · (Edited)
If your white and don't want every sign in your neighborhood to be in spanish then don't move near 6th & federal, or 6th & sheridan. Anywhere else in Lakewood is quite nice. I was born at Littleton Hospital and spent most my life growing up in the Lakewood/Littleton area. Its a lot nicer and easier to get around because the roads there where actually designed for cars instead of the horse & buggy roads of some downtown Denver streets.

My choices for living in the Denver area in no particular order would be Littleton (aka littletown) , Lakewood, Englewood (aka englehood), Golden, Morrison, Evergreen, and Genesee. There are some pretty affordable places around 285 (hampden) & Wadsworth/Kipling. I was in a 3 bdrm townhouse last year for $1,000 as well.

In reality though, there aren't "too" many bad places in Denver compared to say, Detroit?
 
#15 · (Edited)
Either you don't go out on the right nights, have no game, or you've never been to Cactus Jacks. Evergreen has a Plethora of medium to high quality women....

SkinnyBAm, you will likely be having to rent a small house depending on your budget etc.

There are only 2 apartment complexes in the Evergreen vicinity, both of which cost entirely too much for a lack of REAL apartment benefits like a pool etc.

My advice is look for a small shitty house for rent near downtown Evergreen, the cops are abundant here and you DO NOT WANT TO EVER DRIVE DRUNK OR YOU WILL GET CAUGHT. Sorry to yell but it had to be done.

You will be close to the mountains. If you are above waking up at 5 or 6 am to beat traffic then go elsewhere.... I lived in Dumont and Empire and beating traffic was still an issue on a powder day or especially a weekend.

IF you aren't a priss and love snowboarding you should be fine here....

Oh and I might add.... stay as far away from Colfax as you can. Golden is the furthest East I would ever even consider moving again. Even Colfax and Wadsworth was more than I could deal with, Kipling isn't much better....

Golden or further west is my suggestion. It sounds like you could land a decent job, 1stbank in Evergreen has been trying to hire bankers for over a year....
 
#17 ·
Just move up to Edwards, Avon or eagle.... All have condos/apts for 2 people in the $1000 range. They are nice, under 30 minutes to the lifts and have a little night life when you know where to go. There are young single professional women up here with very few full time dudes that are single and not total douchers.....
 
#19 ·
If you are moving to the metro, I'd recommend looking for a place near Central Denver. Lakewood can work depending on where you are at. The main reason is that from that general area you are likely not more than 30 minutes from any job during rush hour. Not always true, but it's a good starting point. Once you find something then you can base your living decision easily enough on what you want to deal with.

Yeah, Boulder sucks. Well except for the amazing rockclimbing, mountain biking, hiking, and such right out the door. The college girls running around all over town doesn't hurt either. Especially during the summer swim season around Boulder Creek when they are in bikini's. It isn't nearly as convenient as the Golden/Denver areas and more expensive. It's a college town, you get a college town atmosphere fwiw.
 
#20 ·
I live in Lakewood now. Its a nice place. If you guys want to be in the "cool" area of Lakewood, try to get near Belmar (Alameda and Wadsworth). That's probably the PF Changs your buddy is transferring to, because I don't know of another one in Lakewood (there is one right downtown off of 15th and Larimer or around there).

Federal and 6th is not Lakewood - it is still Denver, and it is a very Spanish speaking area. Lakewood starts at Sheridan and goes West from there.

I moved here from the Detroit metro area and there aren't too many parts of Denver that are even close to Detroit in regards to safety. I agree with the concept that you want to be as far away from Colfax as possible.

In regards to riding - not sure what you're schedules will be, but weekend traffic blows coming from the Denver metro area up i70. So be prepared for that. If you can get a bank job... try to get one up in the mountains.
 
#25 ·
The statement about cops in Evergreen is dead on. The statement about Cactus Jack's is laughable. Hit it up if you like your women with half their teeth missing. LOL

I'm married, so I don't have to prowl these days. There isn't much of a young adult population in Evergreen. Lots of HS aged kids and lots of established families with not a whole lot in between. I've been up here for 4 years now. Love it, but if I was single I probably wouldn't be here.
 
#27 · (Edited)
Well to each their own. I guess since you haven't been "prowling" you haven't noticed the yearly wave of freshly 21 year old girls..... I agree with the cougar statement but damn, you make it sound like Alabama!

BTW, grew up here so, I know a -little- about the town and the people. There are good nights out and lame nights out like any small town.

Back on subject...

West of kipling but either north or south of colfax... I would prefer south because the North end of town is a PITA to navigate depending on where you end up. The c-470 corridor wouldn't be bad (littleton/lakewood) depending on how far south you go. Too far south and you are almost back tracking to get to I-70. The Green Mountain area would be sweet but houses themselves are a little pricey around there (but you won't have people digging through you car or your trash in the middle of the night).

It depends on if this move is more directed towards riding or actually just living somewhere with conveniences etc.

If I were moving here JUST to ride I would look in Clear Creek County. I had several houses there on THE CHEAP and I could hitch hike to Loveland (did it MANY MANY times). Clear creek is kinda ghetto too and if you think Linvllelljrklegorge (what?) had a comment about girls missing teeth, that is the place to find them lol. Summit county is pretty sweet and does have a number of options available for year round work. Keystone for example does mountain biking and much more in the summer. Outside of Winter Park would be sweet too.

The closer the better if you're dedicated. Traffic sucks!
 
#26 ·
Wells fArgo, 1st bank, US bank are 3 big ones. There are others. Tons of restaurants. In Avon theres some decent apartments called buffalo ridge that are $1000/month for a nice 2 bedroom with a garage. Just look at craigslist/high rockies for more exmples or vaildaily.com

I'm in an all bills paid condo on the river in vail, 2 bedrooms and higher end finish interior for $1700/month there are places for $1000 if you keep your eyes open but you have to look between June and sept/oct or the prices go a lot higher. Frisco and silverthorn in summit are nice and relatively inexpensive. If yo go down to eagle it's a lot less but 30 min to vail, 20 to beav.

There's free buses within summit county, within vail and within Avon. There's an eagle county bus but it's a little $ to ride, most businesses give free bus passes for the eagle county bus though.
 
#29 ·
I'll echo the sentiment about Boulder. I haven't been living around here for too long, but it doesn't take long to completely get the Boulder vibe. Awesome parks (Can't beat the access you have to Chautauqua), also a pretty good food scene, but man the people are something else. The housing prices are also extremely wack due to their crazy anti-growth policies to keep Boulder "Boulder" as they say.

I really like Golden actually, I can't comment too much on the nightlife scene or anything, but it gives you good access to the resorts, not to mention Clear Creek Canyon and Golden Gate Canyon Park are all really awesome. It's also really good access to Denver, so plenty of opportunities for jobs. It's a good compromise location imo.
 
#30 · (Edited)
Damn you guys are making me want to move to the mountains so bad now that i know its actually affordable! We are probably gonna end up on the westside of Lakewood somewhere since my buddy is transferring jobs, but thanks a lot for the info. Once our first lease is up I know where ill be looking :D

Another question which maybe should be another thread is:

for people that have epic passes and ride during the week, have you noticed any certain weekdays that are better for each resort? such as a-basin is good on mondays, Breck tuesdays etc..Or as long as its not the weekend are they all about the same?

Feel free to PM me if you dont want to share this with the rest of world lol
 
#33 ·
Last year it was busy on weekends almost all winter. The last two weeks of December and march 10-25 or so sucked for crowds. during the week was pretty dead nov 15- dec 20 and Jan 2- march 10.

Typically the crowd thinned out a lot after 12 and even more after 2. Beaver creek was the same just on smaller scale..... If you have to park in vail you should get here early and park on the west vail north frontage road and grab the red or green bus line to town... Like a 10 minute bus ride but saves you $25
 
#34 ·
Thanks for the info, very specific! :thumbsup:

Damn is it really that much no matter where you park at Vail??
I heard it was expensive but DAMN!!
Is it the same at Beaver creek?

Does breck, keystone and a-bay all charge for parking as well?

You would think they would hook up season pass holders...
 
#41 ·
snowklinger, whats the secrets to the weekend! I hate the traffic on I70 and hate having weekends off out here!!

To the OP, you about to make the best decision of your life! I just packed up and moved out here last february, no job, nothing, just got the wife and we came out here.

I LOVE THIS STATE :)

You will too!
 
#47 ·
Yea the boys have already told you most of it.

-Get up EARLY and be in Summit for breakfast. Plenty of people will be there for first chair and 10 minutes after, but nobody is there 30minutes before. (This is relevant to traffic up, parking, and base area bullshit).

-get first chair, and don't take any breaks until 1, then leave. If you don't stop for beers or lunch or fucking around, thats 4-4.5 hard hours of riding. If there was fresh, its tracked out - go home and get the fuck out of Disneyland before everyone else gets the same idea.

-find "expert only" terrain. For example, if you are riding Copper, one of my favorite mountains, go to the SuperBee lift, which is a whole 2nd mountain, where there are signs EVERYWHERE that say NO BEGINNER TERRAIN(there are always plenty of easy blues in these areas, just no green runs). On weekends this scares off alot of tourons.

-Don't go to Keystone, Breck or Vail on a Saturday.
 
#48 ·
Ha thats exactly what we do, were on the road at 6am and gone by 130, no breaks, just riding! man i wish i had a job where i was off a couple weekdays instead of weekends! Never thought I'd say that :)

We moved from Tampa, FL man, wasted 6 years of life out there, SOOOOO glad to be here now.

The drive wasnt bad, we did get stranded in Hays, KS for 2 days tho cuz a blizzard closed down I 70 through the plains. All good, got some beers and chilled in the hot tub for a couple days :)

no breck, vail, keystone on saturdays? Is it that bad man? Dammit, just got my epic pass and was pumped!!
 
#57 ·
Ha thats exactly what we do, were on the road at 6am and gone by 130, no breaks, just riding! man i wish i had a job where i was off a couple weekdays instead of weekends! Never thought I'd say that :)

We moved from Tampa, FL man, wasted 6 years of life out there, SOOOOO glad to be here now.

The drive wasnt bad, we did get stranded in Hays, KS for 2 days tho cuz a blizzard closed down I 70 through the plains. All good, got some beers and chilled in the hot tub for a couple days :)

no breck, vail, keystone on saturdays? Is it that bad man? Dammit, just got my epic pass and was pumped!!
Haha nice thats where my best friend whose moving with me is originally from,
did you guys take a U-haul or just your own car?
 
#44 ·
Well typically speaking it's get up early on Saturday. You can risk leaving late on Saturday, generally speaking the slow downs are short lived. There are exceptions of course. Like a jack knifed truck.

Sundays, you can leave later and the drive up is easy. Though if you don't leave the ski area by 1, you can expect to sit it some traffic. Especially if you are coming from Summit. You're toast.

One thing to note. Evidently that re route around the East bound tunnel at Idaho Springs for the expansion is not going to happen this season. According to my buddy who is an engineer for CDOT. Looks like it's been delayed until the spring at the earliest. So at least that junk show shouldn't be a factor until next season.
 
#46 ·
Where have been? The East Bound tunnel is going to be widened to three lanes. Plus about a mile of the highway in front of the tunnel and three lanes all the way to Floyd Hill. That will be happening, just not during the ski season like they had originally said. It'll be an issue next season, no doubt. CDOT has started work on the redirect. The Frontage Road that goes from Idaho Springs to Hidden Valley is being turned into a one way two lane highway. Two year project I think. Yeah, it'll be ugly.

I am going to take some time this winter and do some exploring in RMNP. The terrain there is pretty off the hook. Unlike anything in Colorado outside of the San Juans. Might as well get to know it. I know my plans for this season were that anything I was going to do off of I70 on the weekend would be Saturday only. No way was I going to deal with the return traffic on Sunday.
 
#52 ·
Makes sense. I was wondering why they were paving the frontage road there. Honestly, I've just been avoiding the I-70 corridor like the plague. I swear that the summer traffic has gotten even worse than the ski season traffic. It'll be a big help once they get that work done but the process of getting there is gonna suck ass. If I'm still working M-F I probably won't even get a pass while they're working on it. It's gonna be BAD.
 
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