Okay, I don’t know if this has already been covered lately, but I am possibly going to be having a change of scenery. I’m a young guy, with a teaching degree and if i don’t end up getting a job around here, i’m going to seriously think about going somewhere else. I’m currently in the Chicago area (western suburbs) and it’s a great place to train, but hey, young people are supposed to move, right? Anyway, I’m looking for a place to teach and get some good training in. I’ve looked into Bend, Oregon…Flagstaff, AZ and other such places as that…what does everyone think? Thanks.
As a teacher you can work anywhere, right ? How about Japan ?
I would go live in Lake Tahoe area. To me, that place is heaven on earth, but yet close enough to lots of big cities :-). You gotta like winter sports though, which should not be in issue if you come from Chicago.
IMO, you can’t beat a small town/rural area as long as it’s not in the heart of redneck country. I love our miles of country rural roads with very few cars. Not to mention low real estate prices. I could never have this kind of a home office relaxed lifestyle in a large city. Could never go back to the urban rat race now.
As a teacher you’ve got a lot of options. Don’t over look small towns.
Bend and Flagstaff are both worth considering. As great as Bend is, I’d opt for Flagstaff between the two. Too much rain in Bend and growing way too fast.
Austin is wonderful, but growing awfully quickly as well. I chose Corrales New Mexico, just north of Albuquerque. There are other interesting villages in the mountains just east of Albuquerque. Teachers’ salaries are terrible in New Mexico, but this is one wonderful place to live. Miles and miles of traffic free trails and roads. Great climate, great scenery, low housing costs, and exceptionally nice people.
Perhaps the best choice, if you could afford it would be $edona AZ.
Chicago is a far superior place to visit than to live in. I’ve done both.
Flagstaff rocks, it’s like Eugene, only cleaner and not as wet.
I think Wrightwood, CA is an untapped resource. Lake Tahoe is a definite gem as well, when I’m disgustingly rich someday I’ll certainly have a pad there. Wherever you go, I’d try to get up above a mile high, the air is better.
Wait what about places in COlorado. I can name a FEW thats cause I have lived several places in COLORADo. Lets SAy Durango is the best place on earth, good, descent winters, perfect summers, lakes, flats in the valley good climbing, 38,000 population. You might get a tough time teaching in the town but definitly outside the city limits. I lived there for 4 years + my wife stole me away, But its the best place ever. I promise. plus you have an awesome College, with the best cycling team in the country Thats no lie, A few pro’s live there Like Ned Overend, he says he knows how to bike, He has about the worst running form but he ran right past me in a race when I was running in college, and he was winning exterras anyway. Its got a few pools, both inddor and outdoor. Running trails where you can run 2hrs + never see a paved road and never hit the same trail twice, no lie! Mtn biking is big and your respected as an athlete not looked at as weird, because in durango your not the minority!
Though teaching jobs in some small towns can be hard to get if you didn’t grow up there. Too many kids who did grow up there want to come back home and live near family.
Lots of teaching jobs available in Florida right now because of population growth and the class size ammendment phasing in. Central Florida (Gainesville, Orlando, Tampa, Space Coast, etc) is worth a look. Very reasonable cost of living, and great training for 11 months of the year. Yeah, August gets a bit toasty, but the Great Lakes area can get hot then too. And as the saying goes, “At least you’re acclimated for Kona weather” if that opportunity presents itself. And New Year’s swim practices at the outdoor pool are pretty sweet. You can race a tri or du somewhere in the state pretty much every weekend from early March to early November, and spend the off season marathoning.
I’d avoid South Florida though. Wages don’t match the cost of living, and too high of a population density.
I’ll second Austin. I have lived within 3-4 miles of downtown for the last 3.5 yrs and as for riding… within 5 miles and 3 traffic lights (less of course if you hit them green) you are out into the hill country with no development around you at all. Running- 10 miles of trails around town lake. Swimming- numerous pools and year round wetsuit training in 1/8 mile long natural spring fed pool downtown.
Now that’s a winner… now if i can just get back there myself.
Rain in Bend? Isn’t it in a semi-arid area? It looked pretty desert-ish to me…
Here’s my list, approx. two places per state:
Idaho: Sandpoint or Boise (very different)
Wyoming: Jackson or Lander (very different)
Montana: Missoula, Whitefish, Bozeman
Oregon: Bend
Wash: Don’t know enough to say (Also applies to CA, NV)
Colorado: Gunnison, Durango,
Arizona: Flagstaff
Those are some places I investigated when deciding where to go. Make sure to compare teacher salary to cost of living. My wife’s salary dropped significantly when we moved here but compared to cost of living, she’s still making more $.
