College Towns
- February 2011
- Hi Steph Simple Living
Hi Steph, my name is Jessy and I really admire all of the things that you have done and stand for. I am currently reading your book and noticed that you lived in both Boulder, Colorado and Moab, Utah. It is about time for me to decide what colleges I am interested in going to as I will be a senior next year. I was just wondering what both of these towns are like. How far away/good is the climbing in both cities? What are both cities like in terms of both people and the city itself? I know that there are several climbing gyms in Boulder, but was wondering if there are any in Moab? I am also curious as to what the weather in Moab is like.
I know this is a lot of question, and I am by no means asking you to answer them all. Any information would be extremely helpful!
Thank you so much, Jessy.
Dear Jessy,
Boulder and Moab are both great towns, but I think if you are looking for a college town, your choices would be Boulder versus Salt Lake City (for Utah). Boulder and Salt Lake both have loads of outdoor activities. In Salt Lake you will need to drive more for recreation, but it seems like there is always a really motivated group of climbers or skiiers around. Boulder is more expensive, and it is also more liberal–Salt Lake can feel conservative due to the strong Mormon influence.
Personally, I’ve lived for short stints in both places and love them both, so it’s hard to say which is better.
And of course, I think Moab is the best place to live on the planet, but would not be a top contender for a college student unfortunately.
I hope that helps a bit!
🙂 Steph
Living in SLC now since August (after graduating college in Ohio) and not Mormon, I like it here. It’s a good time with a strong community of hardcore climbers who are always looking for climbing partners. Plus with Little Cottonwood (trad and bouldering) and Big Cottonwood (sport) only 30 mins away, its awesome! BUT I’ve never lived in Boulder… just my 2 cents.
Salt Lake is great! My brother lives there, so I get to pretend I do now 🙂
Jessy – might I suggest; for a college town with a good climbing community and close to other climbing/skiing/rafting areas: Boulder, Lander, Jackson Hole…. The nearest climbing is a place called Vedauwoo; 16 miles East of town ; the University has a Very Good Outdoor Program, learn much – connect with others ALOT…
Plus, the University of Wyoming has Many excellent academic dept./programs
That is a great location, I spent a lot of time in Wyoming when I was in Fort Collins, and I loved it there.
I am a climber, a beginner vegan, and a college senior student here in Laramie Wyoming. University of Wyoming has amazing programs, and even though we do not have a massive climbing gym, we have pretty tight community of climbers. Vedauwoo Ft. Collins for bouldering Lander Ten Sleep and many more great spots for sport climbing, and of course Vedauwoo offers amazing fat cracks. the best thing about this place i think is people.
i love wyoming 🙂