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If you stay on 63rd St. going north crossing HW 119 (Diagonal Highway) heading away from Gunbarrel you really start getting in the country. The scattered homes and farms along 63rd are isolated yet really close to Boulder, Longmont, Gunbarrel and even Lyons.

There are alot of horses and open pastures in the area and for someone wanting country living but to be close to the city this is ideal. The views of the mountains just a few miles to the west are spectacular. The cost of living is very reasonable but the cost of land is still BOulder County prices but not as high as the city of course.

Red Cliff is a tiny town of about 300 people in Eagle County south of Vail along HW 24 on the way to Leadville. This is a pretty valley along the Eagle River and named after the red quartzite cliffs.

The town was a silver mining community early days. This is an amazing valley area with lots of property for the adventurous souls looking for mountain property or land for horses. Average household income is about $50,000.

Estes Park is one of the most touristy places in Colorado due to Rocky Mountain National Park...however it is also a great town and I have several friends who live there and really love it.

Estes Park is great for nature lovers and those who want to take advantage of the world class hiking trails (but that by no means is only found here, that is throughout most of the mountainous part of the entire state!)

Thinking about buying real estate in Estes? The price of property is especially high though there are some areas that have "normal" neighborhoods and high but not extraordinarily high prices considering it is "Estes". The National Park really gives Estes Park a unique market and the tourism in summer is rediculous.

There are many pros and cons of Estes, but if you are a people person, a mountain person and want to buy property in an up and coming town that will only get stronger check out Estes. As of late 2013 the flood in the area really threw the town for a loop and destoyed a lot of property but the community has bounced back and seems to be back to normal for the most part, the community got stronger!

Drake has a population of about 1,000 folks. For most Drake is the little summer town about half way between Loveland and Estes Park along the Big Thompson River road--HW 34.

There is a campground along the river appropriately named, Riverbend Campground close to town. If you take HW 43 just west of Drake there are some county roads and homes up the North Fork of the Big Thompson and eventually you get to the little town of Glen Haven. This whole area was seriously flooded during the recent 2013 floods.

North out of Drake there is Storm Mountain Road and a set of roads where there are beautiful properties and homes. This is pretty area and would be a great spot to buy land or build a cabin, not far from Estes nor Loveland really if you did not have to commute on a regular basis. There are a lot of tourists in the area sight seeing and camping in the summer months mostly because of the proximity to Rocky Mountain National Park.

The area has plenty of hiking trails and whitewater rafting/kayaking and fishing spots.

Glen Haven is a tiny town with only a few handful of people who live in the town, there are residents around the town. There is the famous Bed and Breakfast Inn with a restaurant room and Victorian style rooms. The Inn has been called "One of the Most Romantic Places Ever".

This little sleepy mountain town north of Estes Park is along the North Fork of the Big Thompson River. In September 2013 a "1000 year flood" rages through Glen Haven on its way down the North Fork as it made its way to the The Big Thompson River just about 10 miles down stream to the east. The Big Thompson River was the famous site that also historically flooded in 1976. The 2011 flood all but destroyed the businesses and homes of the town and as of a month or so after the flood everything is in the process of being repaired and rebuilt.

Not to deter the hardy mountain folk and for anyone looking for a pretty mountain spot to live that is not far from the front range towns of Fort COllins/Loveland, Glen Haven may be a perfect place, especially now, to invest in land and property. Considering the devestation from the flood there may even be some folk who are selling their properties in order to avoid future flood events.

Just 10 minutes east of Castle Rock is Franktown, this is a very small town of only about 400 people. The average household income in town is high relative to the average for Colorado, it is about $60,000 in Franktown.

The little town has an historic cemetary and is really a fairly short commute to the Denver area to its north, especially for those commutting into the tech center of south Denver. There are some businesses in town but there are some really amazing homes (big properties) outside of town. This would be a great place to invest in land/property if you needed to be near Denver but wanted a country feel and view of the mountains.

There are many many resorts of course, but also some condos and nice homes up on the hills around the ski area. This place is great in the summer and also in the winter if you can take the tourists you will love it.

Conifer is a small unincorporated town not far west of Denver along HW 285. This is a beautiful area that is commutable to and from Denver if need be. It is close enough to Denver but is still deep enough in and through the foothills to feel like the mountains. Many people who have dreamed of living in the mnts but still work in the front range live in Conifer. The price of land and homes is more reasonable than many other comparable places.

The area has some ranches and cattle range still in the southern realms and there are many homes and neigborhoods that are still growing. There are minimal but adequate amenities such as groceries, services and restaurants. Firefighter? Conifer might be a great place to get a job, or if you are in the construction industry too. Schools have a great reputation too.

Highway 285 can get kind of crazy due to tourism traffic especially in the summer but the roads are great and well maintained in the Conifer area.

Louviers is a very small town SW of the Denver metro area right along the foothills area. The town is along HW 85 south of Highlands Park and Chatfield State Park before HW 85 reaches I-25 at Castle Rock.

The population of Louviers is only about 250 people and the average media income is $40,000 or so. This is a pretty area but more of a wayfar for travelers, luckily the nice little town is just west of HW 85 on the other side of Plum Creek so it is protected from the traffic. There is a park with a nice baseball diamond and the neighborhoods have trees and are rather pretty. And if you work in Denver this area is not a bad place to checkout for country lovers, the commute wouldnt be too bad at all.

The neighborhood around Rollins Drive is more affordable by far than any other neigborhoods in Boulder. This is the area and neighborhoods NE from the major intersection of Valmont?Foothills Highway in east Boulder. This is known as a more affordable option for folks who really want to live in Boulder but can't afford to do it west of 28th Street where the real estate climbs significantly steeper as you move west towards Pearl Street pedestrian area. Rollins Drive is one of many small courrts and streets that fishes through the area. Check it out, there are great schools and bike paths all around to get into town and to explore the countryside that is just to the north and east of the neighborhood.

Rifle Ct. has a few homes/ranches just off HW 36 north of where 36 starts heading towards Lyons and gets out of town. Longhorn Road describes the area even better (Rifle Ct. is off Longhorn). This is a great area if you want to live a bit in the country but be close to Boulder for shopping, schools etc... It is not cheap in this area but not as expensive as many areas in BOulder. You can buy larger acreage for about the same price of much much smaller plots of land in or nearer to Boulder proper.

Masonville is a very small area in the mountains just west of Fort Collins, all shopping and amenities etc are in Ft Collins for residents but they seem to prefer that! There is a general store but besides that not much besides land and country roads. If you love Fort Collins but want to be a little ways out of the city check out the land and homes for sale up around Masonville. It is a pretty tite little community, I had some friends that rented a home pretty close to Horsetooth and he loved to fish and she loved the country but they both worked in Ft Collins so renting in Masonville was a great compromise.

Mineral Road to me is better known as HW 52 which heads east from the Diagonal Hway out into the plains. HW 52 runs all the way east past I-25 and beyond. The part called Mineral Road near Boulder is directly across from the IBM facilities on Diagonal Hwy. There are some homes and farms on Mineral Road and for being so close to Boulder (5 minutes) it really does feel like the country. If you find a ranch or home along Mineral or its side roads and you like the country this would be a great place to live.

Habitat Dr is the turn off the main road 63rd, that goes into the Habitat apartments in Gunbarrel. This is a pretty complex and the nearby homes are very nice. There are bike/walking trails all around and off Habitat and the Twin Lakes are just across 63rd just to the east of Habitat.

This little mountain town of only about 100 people has amazing views and a high standard of living, the average household income is above Colorado's average at about $60,000. The town sits in a pretty valley at nearly 10,000 feet.The town sits in a valley a mountain from Telluride to the north. This is a truly beautiful place to visit and explore and there are great forest access roads (winter only) that cut between HW 550 to the east and HW 145 to the west of town.

Named after the gold rich Arabian city, Ophir did have a goldrush of its own thus lending the name. Ophir was also the site of the world's first commercial system to generate and transmit alternating current electricity.

Leadville "North" refers to an area north of the established, mining town of Leadville in central Colorado. Leadville North is commonly known as the West Park subdivision too. "Leadville North" is literally just north of town less than 1 mile from downtown. The area is quite, harsh but beautiful winters and perfectly warm and mild summers surrounded by ski resort not far to the north and south and wilderness/hiking/climbing all around. The Collegiate Range is just to the west and there are reserviors and lakes in the area for fishing and woods for hunting in National Forest land all around. Not a bad place to call home and schools are fair.

The population is about 2,000 and growing. The average household income is about $40,000 and the homes and land are nice and spreadout for the most part.

Lake City Colorado is a small town deep in the heart of Colorado's mountain country, surrounded by wilderness and some of the highest peaks in the state. This is a great place for adventurers with RVs, rafters, climbers and hikers and campfire enthusiasts --although with this fire season maybe skip that last one;(

Lake City sits up at almost 9,000 feet and has a population of about 400. This little town still has over 200 historic structures, a testament to the old mining boom days in the 19th century. The little town has faithful residents, nature and history lovers--the average household income in about $40,000 and there is one school.

At this elevation and placement in Colorado the July temperatures reach into the low 80s in the day and February hovers around zero degrees F for many days at a time. This is a surprisingly livable place offering wildlife, solitude, clean air and fair real estate prices.

As HInsdale County's county seat, this little town is isolated from surrounding communitites. Grand Junction far to the north and Durango far to the south. The Front Range is about 6 hours drive away to the east.

Ridgway (yes w/o an "e") is home to only about 700 souls, it was a railroad town founded along the Uncompaghre River in the northern San Juan Mountains. The town has the only stop light in Ouray County, at HW 550 and HW 62. This is a seriously amazing area of SW Colorado at around 7,000 feet it is surrounded by steep cliffs, water/lakes/creeks/rivers, cool nights and clear skies. The area is famous for its wildlife especially bald eagles.

A funny trivial fact about Ridgway is that the phonograph Grammy Award trophy is made and has been made exclusively in Ridgway by a little company is town.

The average household income in Ridgway is $40,000 bout average for CO. The town brings in a lot of tourists especially due to the popular clothing optional Orvis Hot Springs. This is a sweet little town worth the drive to check out this remote mountainous area of Colorado.

Lone Tree is a community just south of Centennial, so its also a southern Denver suburb. There are about 10,000 people who call Lone Tree home. With Parker and Castle Rock to the southish, Lone Tree is a great location to commute into Denver/Tech Center but not be in the heart of Denver.

The average household income is about 100,000 so this is a wealthy community with amazing well layed out neighborhoods, great schools and abundant shopping and restaurants. A real downfall is that it truly is still the city, not the mountains of Colorado or countryside further east, I-25 & 470 cross the heart of Lone Tree making this a serious commerically active and traffic heavy, sometimes congested area. For those who like to be close to Denver this is great but going just a bit south to Castle Rock gets you more into the classic Colorado vibe and much more affordable housing/living.

There are about 4,000 people who live in Basalt. Situated mid-way between Aspen and Glenwood Springs, Basalt is a bedroom communitity and affordable place for people who live, work and play in Aspen and its resorts and mountains.

Basalt is a highway community and there are some mobile home parks and small scattered homes in neghborhoods along the highway, there are also some homes and properties up in the county roads mostly off roads leading north out of town. It is a pretty valley where Fryingpan River and Roaring Fork River converge, it is green and has pretty views and really is much more affordable than Aspen and Glenwood. The views are amazing but the downfall is the transient, touristy nature of HW 82 that flies by most of the time. Its named for basalt rock formations in town. There is an indy and interesting subculture in Basalt that is more real and more rough than polished flitzy Aspen feel. The average household income however is not low it is well above the average in Colorado @$67,000 a year.

Pritchett is a two horse town about 30 miles from Oklahoma and Kansas. This is the dusty plains of southeast Colorado. The town is directly east of Trinidad, the closest Front Range town to the west. There are farms and ranches out in the grassy farmland country around Pritchett.

The average household income is about $20,000, far below the average in Colorado, there are only about 150 people who call the area home and it is a quiet spot away from any major interstates or even big highways except HW 160. New Mex is no far to the south and a bit of the rodeo/southwest flare is found in Pritchett. Land is cheap but the summers are hot, dusty and dry and the winters are no better.

Montrose rocks! There are a lot of rocks, canyons, a desert and high country mountain feel that combines with the quiet and remoteness of the SW and found in abundance in this neck of Colorado. Uncompagre National Forest to the west and Gunnison to the east this is a unique spot in Colorado and definitely in North America.

Montrose offers amazing land and culture, views and shopping options for half the cost of higher end ritzier (and busier) mountain communities in Colorado. This is no Aspen but the views are just as spectacular and the people are down to earth and friendly. There is no much land and county roads to explore. Ranches and some farm land abound, and lots of tucked away mountain properties for the rugged.

There are about 15,000 people who call Montrose home and the average household income is about $33,000. this is a chill mountain community that you should check out if you want to live in the heart of Colorado, with a bit of the southwest flare that comes with the area.

Elizabeth is a small town of about 1,500 people less than 20 minutes east of Castle Rock. Elizabeth feels isolated because there are no major interstates but really it is within 30 minutes of most of Denver and not really that far from Colorado Springs to the south and DIA up to the northeast.

The average household income of Elizabeth is $50,000 a year, so above the Colorado average. It is a nice and quiet community and many who live there have been there since the 1960's when a large influx of residents took root. There are some interesting shops and restuarants and most who live there commute to Denver.

Foxfield is a nice little community south of Denver just east of Centennial and south of Cherry Creek Reservior. There are only about 800 people who call Foxfield home, it is an area only about 1 square mile straddled between Arapahoe and South Parker Road. However, there are seriously nice homes and big properties in Foxfield. The average household income is just over $100,000 and the homes go for around 1 million. This is a great area if you work in Denver and have the means to invest in a gorgeous big home. The schools are great and everything in the Front Range is within a short drive including the mountains to the west:) There is also a lot of recreational possibilities such as lakes to hike and boat in and golf courses all around Foxfield.

Carbondale is in site of the lovely Mt. Sopris and just about 20 miles from Aspen. Carbondale is just south of Glenwood Springs on the way to Aspen. There are about 6,500 people who call Carbondale home and the average household income is about $52,000 which is less than Aspen's $60,000. This is a bedroom and more affordable community than living in Aspen. There are so many beautiful properties around Carbondale and there is affordable homes and apartments in the town.

The town was names after Carbondale, Pennsylvania where some of the early Colorado settlers came from. Many of the early settlers were part of the silver boom in Aspen and many early settlers also farmed the pretty wet valley. Until the 1980's Carbondale was in the coal business from mines mostly up in the nearby coal Crystal River Valley. There are natural hotsprings up in that regions not far from Carbondale. There are also many trails and county roads and amazing places to explore in the area.

Berthoud is a town of about 5,000 situated just east of the Front Range between Fort Collins and Denver along the Little Thompson River. This is an old agricultural town and becoming more and more a bedroom community of Front Range towns to Berthoud's west.

There is a pretty view from Berthoud and this small town. The average household income is $70,000, a high average for Colorado, even for the Front Range. There is a farmer's market each week and a nice community feel to this community and a great place for kids to go to school. Berthoud offers great country living that is close to the major centers of the Front Range and easy access to the mountains. Berthoud is a spot to check out to find a nice new home at a reasonable cost with a big yard and a great view of the mountains to the west.

Less than 10 miles west of Glenwood Springs the pretty location of New Castle is an agricultural area in the Colorado River valley on the way towards Grand Junction. There are about 2,000 people who make New Castle their home.

Most of the town of New Castle lies to the north of I-70. Lakota Canyon Golf Course is a pretty area north of town and the course is fairly long. Shopping is not great in town but Glenwood is close, the schools are also great and associated with Glenwood. The average income per household is reported at $55,000, above the average of Colorado.

Silt is about 50 miles east of Grand Junction and only about 10 west of Glenwood Springs. Silt is in the pretty river valley of where the Colorado River is broad and full of green meadows in the summer months. Although Silt is right off Interstate 70 it still has a quaint feel and not a highway feel.

There are less than 2,000 people that call Silt home and there are some great county roads and beautiful homes and large acreage mountain land up and around Silt mostly to the north of I-70. Up to the north there is the pretty Grass Valley Reservoir and more farmland. The Silt area has a lot of farmland and interesting crops, not just traditional monoculture, pesticide ridden farming methods.

There are about 700 people who live in the little town of Hugo, Colorado. The town in about 60 miles east of Colorado Springs and is only about 10 miles south of I-70. This little agricultural community mostly employs farm/cattle industry and trucking industry as well as the local city government positions and the public school district folks. The school district is the Genoa-Hugo School District as there is one elementary, middle school and high school that serves the town.

The average household income per year in Hugo is about $30,000. One of the notable things about Hugo is its vintage swimming pool from the 1930's, this is a favorite spot for town folk in the summer months. The facility also offers a picnic area, playgrounds, volleyball court and basketball court. The area is pretty and the parks in town are as well.

Telluride is a unique and beautiful ski town in southern Colorado. There is the famous Telluride music festival and the ski hills, but there is also a vibrant town with neighborhoods with character--even though the cost of living is prohibitive to most unfortunately.

While the first gold claims were made in the area in 1875, Telluride ultimately became famous as a silver camp and a lot of the town's old time mining history can still be witnessed and seen if you poke around a bit in the surrounding hills. The San Miguel River flows through town against the beautiful western San Juan Mountains that surround the small tucked away community of Telluride and its little neighbor Pandora. In the surrounding mountains there are crystal clear blue lakes and amazing hiking and fishing as well as hunting opportunities.

While many many tourists come and go year round the town only has a standing population of about 2,000 people in the little box canyon at 8,750 feet elevation. The town's airport is the highest commercial airport in the US. The average household median income in Telluride is a bit over $50,000/year, this is not a cheap place to live nor visit but it well worth checking out for a ski trip or summer getaway. There is a lot of great camping and forest roads in the area as well to explore and experience Telluride in a more rustic, real and less expensive way than staying downtown.

There are also some famous people that make Telluride their home, or at least did or do for some of the year. Most notably Tom Cruise, Oprah Winfrey and Ralph Lauren. You can guess that property is spectacular in both price and look and feel. When I started looking around online about real estate in Telluride there were many many website and most of the featured properties had amazing lots and large homes and went for around 3 million! I looked at land for sale without structures and found a 1.3 acre lot for 1.3 million, then a 0.1 acre lot for $225,000, wow this place makes downtown San Fran look like the suburbs of Sacramento.

Walden is centered in the green headwaters of the North Platte River valley that gently flows through North Park. There is the famous South Park in southern Colorado but there is also Central and North Park. Walden is the center of North Park, the large open space "park".

In Walden there is the the Walden -Jackson County Airport as well as Walden Reservoir just west of town. Just 20 miles south of the Wyoming border, Walden is a true and unique northern Colorado mountain town. Routt National Forest and wilderness areas surround Walden.

There are beautiful properties and views all around Walden, farms, ranches and neighborhood homes are available. There are country roads and remote, huge beautiful homes also.

Ward is a "Home Rule Municipality" up at 9,450 feet in the high country of Boulder County. Tucked up near Peak to Peak HW 72 between Nederland and Estes Park-Ward has about 150 wild folks that call it home.

There are bikes, shacks, old trucks, fireworks, cabins, chainsaws and art and dogs, dogs, dogs in Ward.

Ward was established as a gold mining town back in 1860. The town of Gold Hill is a neighbor to Ward just a bit to the northish. Ward is near the top of Left Hand Canyon a canyon and road that heads west out of downtown Boulder. Silver was just as big as gold in Ward's boom history.

Ward's population is interesting and has fluctuated from the gold boom to where in WWII the population dropped to only 4 people. Then the hippies of the 1960's and so on grew the population quickly to 100plus. There is a restaurant, little store and a coffee shop "downtown". It is a funky little republic of its own and famous for being its "own country".

Delta is the town where HW 50 meets the mountain HW 133. This is a gorgeous town of about 9,000 people. The town is literally surrounded by national forest including Uncompahgre, Grand Mesa and Gunnison National Forests.

The Delta area is a green mountain valley carved out by where Gunnison River and Uncompahgre River intersect. The Uta Indians also used this as a crossroad and meeting area, it has been a highway of sorts for a long long time.

Because it is remote there are a lot of independently wealthy or self-emplyed people in the valley. There are two private airports for pilot to come in one and this area would be ideal for a pilot who wants a remote, mountainous, hunting or camping property to someday retire on and build upon slowly. The land is amazing!

Wellington is along I-25 north of Fort Collins in northern Colorado. Considering the town is along an interstate it is still a pretty place, with lakes and farms especially to the west of the interstate. The many Poudre River Reservoirs lie to the west and the mountain views give Wellington a feeling of the country even though the city is only 10 minutes away to the south.

The cost of living is significantly less in Wellington compared to Fort Collins and it is a great place to get away from the city but still be close to the action. There are about 6,000 people who call Wellington home and the average median income is about $47,000, a bit higher than the average in Colorado.

Interestingly in 2000, a woolly mammoth was unearthed when a construction crew was digging home foundations. Nearby CSU analyzed the find but the tusks and much of the body was shattered or disintegrated before they could study it.

West Pleasant View is basically an extension of Golden geographically. Colorado's largest school district, the Jefferson County Public Schools, has its headquarters in West Pleasant View. Denver West and all the jobs and activity that it holds is just to the neighborhoods eastern door.

The average median household income is about $40,000, pretty average for Colorado and the Denver/Front Range area. Many of the homes for sale in the neighborhood are between $250,000-$500,000.

There are some interesting properties in West Pleasant View, some ranchettes with more land than others. There are also what many would consider to be traditional middle class neighborhoods. Golden is close by and all the restaurants and shops along the I-70 corridor that lines its southern boundary.

Near the heart of Grand Mesa National Forest, Collbran has about 700 residents. The little mountain town is along Plateau Creek and in the Plateau Valley famous for cattle farming, and there is also a fair share of farms, hay mostly and horse farms as well. The average annual income for a given household is about $33,000. Many people are ranchers and some commute to Grand Junction which is a little under an hours drive to the west.

I saw a hunting property for 3 million dollars near Collbran with 1000 acres, there are many large properties in the area like this. It is a gorgeous location with mountains all around. Then there is a 5 acre lot with a classic Colorado log cabin in a great spot for $350,000. For those with dough this area is worth checking out, to live where most dream of vacationing in would be nice, huh...

The little town of 3,000 is close to I-25 to the west and Frederick and Firestone to its north. To the east is Fort Lupton and probably the closest bet for shopping, food and entertainment. The neighborhoods of Dacona are a mix of ranches, traditional homes, trailers and industrial shops. The trucking industry because of the interstate is big here and there are a lot of truckers who live here. Coal and gas have a long history in the town and still dominate the work force and economy as well as agriculture. This little plains town is hot and dusty in the summer and desolate and cold in the winter. The mountains are barely visible to the west.

The town was settled in 1901 and most if not all of the first residents moved there to work in the coal mines. The median household income for Dacona was just under $40,000.

So the parks and recreation for Granby gets a 5 star! Granby is the backdoor of Rocky Mountain National Park and the front door of beautiful Lake Granby. This area is spectacular and touristy. There are some homes that line the lake that are amazing and expensive. At about 8,000 feet in elevation this is a clean, cool change from Denver, especially lovely in the summer when the Front Range is so hot. This area would be a perfect investment property whose value is closely tied to the ever present and popular Rocky Mountain National.

The town of Granby started in 1904 along the Denver, Northwestern & Pacific Railway. Earlier, the Homestead Act of 1862 gave individuals a chance to own land and the scattered homesteads eventually became centered around the town once the railroad came in. Today, the average median household income is about $45,000, a bit higher than the average for Colorado.

Rico is a beautiful little town of about 200 along Colorado HW 145 north of Cortez. The town is an old mining community that struck it "rico" back in the Pioneer days. At nearly 9,000 feet the town is definitely in the mountains and surrounded by mountains and the San Juan National Forest.

There are some classic historic buildings in the "downtown" and the area is worth checking out. For those looking for land in a remote mountainous area with lots of forest access properties around Rico could be worth the visit.

Wonderland Hill is a great great neighborhood that I would love to live in. Some good friends of ours live along the lake (lucky!) and we have been spending some time over there lately. The area seems so quiet and safe to me and the homes are an interesting mix of architecture, big and "normal" for Boulder.

I think home prices are pretty pricey but if I had the money I would invest there now while the buying is still relatively low. I also like the Hungry Toad restaurant and we all waked from a home on Wonderland Hill all the way there the other day and it was a blast. Downtown is a bus or bike ride away and Ideal Market and Lucky's MArket are really close too, so no need to drag into Safeway or busy Whole Foods.

Mountain View has a population of about 500 people and is northwest of Denver. Average household income is a bit over the state average at about $40,000. There are only 12 blocks that make up the community/neighborhood known as Mountain View. Just southeast of where I-70 & I-76 and north of downtown Denver.

Mountain View is notorious for issuing traffic tickets, supposedly the police gave out 7,200 tickets in less than 3 years! There are lots of homes and townhomes in Mountain View and prices range form $200,000 to about $450,000. Denver is close by and obviously an easy commute, even though you still have to fish your way through Denver's often crowded roads and interstates. Public transportation is good and it is fairly close to DIA for those who travel. This would be a good place to check out when moving to Denver. All modern conveniences and shopping options, restaurants and medical facilities are close by. The recreational opportunities of biking and hiking trails abound in Denver and the mountains and all they have to offer are not far to the west.

Larkspur is a nice little town of 200 people just south of Castlerock in Douglas County. Castlerock is were locals go for shopping, restaurants and work, though some commute to either Denver or Colorado Springs. Larkspur is in a pretty rolling hills area between the cities and offers really nice forested areas with great properties and ranches. I would love to live in the area.

Looking at land to buy in the area looks promising, while it is not the most affordable place in Colorado it is certainly not the most expensive either. You get what you pay for and a lot of the lots for sale are gorgeous, with outcropping rock, pine and piñon forests and amazing views of the nearby mountains and even glimpses of Denver lights on the far northern horizon. Some nice lots without structures go for around $250,000. A 35 acre lot I looked at with a really nice 5 bedroom home and landscaped lawn goes for $895,000. There are some other very interesting, big custom homes on fair sized land for $500,000. The area is well worth checking out for those who are willing to commute or are looking for investment/retirement property in Colorado's Front Range--but who still want to feel remote and in the mountains.

The Colorado Renaissance Festival is in Larkspur in a great forested setting not far from I-25, but once you are there is feels like a little medieval town:) The festival takes place throughout June and July each year and has been going strong for almost 38 years.

Hotchkiss is a town of about 1000 people in Delta County on the west slope of Colorado where the desert meets the mountain. The land where Hotchkiss sits is a green oasis in the surrounding desert because of the North Fork River. There is an alternative vibe to the town and the surrounding area and there are a lot of unique properties and ranches. There is a wide variety of people and incomes, it is an eclectic group! I have friends that have some fruit orchards in the area and love to grow things.

The little North Fork Airport is perfect for those who own a private plane. There is some shopping, a City Market and some local shops in town making it possible to hunker down and stay through the seasons in the little town without needing to leaver you can really get lost (in a good way) in this town surrounded by wilderness. Sister towns of Peonia and Delta are not far away, but to get to "the big city" you would have to drive for over about an hour NW to Grand Junction or Montrose to the SW a little closer.

There are ranches, farms, commercial properties and private residence properties for sale (it seems like) in abundance in the Hotchkiss area. For a someone looking for a beautiful mountain town, remote and affordable in western Colorado this would be a great place to grow traditionally (funny how traditional anymore means using chemicals and genetically modified terminator seeds!) or for someone wanting to go organic. Living off the land and off the grid is a popular idea in these parts, and old and new technologies seem to mesh well here. This is a small town but it is not boring! I saw a gorgeous big ranch for sale, big 4 bedroom home, shelters and barns and lots of land for 1.4 million. Also, a smaller ranch but nice for $400,000.

Bow Mar is a tiny community that is part of the Denver metro area in Jefferson County just west of Littleton. There are about 1000 people that call Bow Mar home and the most dominant feature of the area are the lakes. The area is named for the two lakes in the area Bowles Lake and Marston Lake named for two farmers who pioneered the land. The neighborhood homes were built in the 1940's and 50's and reflect ranch prairie-style architecture with big lots and wide streets. Today some for the homes are being replaced or seriously renovated.

Bow Mar Lake is a center for the community especially in the summer months when they have boat races. There are also trails popular for runners, hikers, bikers and strolling.

The average household income is over $100,000 so you could say this is a well to do neighborhood. The community is small, clean and offers great “little” schools. Bow Mar Public Schools are part of the Little Public Schools school district offering 15 elementary schools, 6 middle schools and 4 high schools in this relatively small district! There are also 2 charter schools in the area.

100 lucky souls call the community of Westcreek their home. Just less than an hours drive to Colorado Springs, Westcreek sits in a mountainous, wooded area above the Front Range at 7,500 feet elevation.

The Westcreek mining boom of the mid 1890's saw the flooding in off people laying mining claims. Once word got out that there was abundant gold in the local ore, it is said that so many people flocked to the area that the campsites with their tents resembled a forest. In February 1896 the many miners decided to unite and under the name of their mining district the town of Westcreek was born. Westcreek became the second incorporated town in Douglas County, second to Castlerock. It ended up that the ore of Westcreek yielded very little compared to the gold rich veins of Cripple Creek 40 miles to the south. But the town had its hayday and false reports of untold riches drew in investors in the late 1890's and there was such an in pouring of money and merchants that for a bit the town was the most economical growth of any town at that time in the United States. Shortly after when the hardrock mines continued to yield nothing the miners and merchants packed up their bags and left. Today you can still see some of the historic mining buildings and cabins that littered the area over a hundred years ago.

Today the area is rich in forest roads and access to camping, hiking, fishing and four-wheeling. The beauty of the area is a refuge for the residents. It is reported that about half of the residents commute 50 minutes or more to work, it must be worth it! About 20% of the residents rent. The average household income is about $70,000.

The first of the homes framed in Gunbarrel Estates was started in the subdivision in 1964. By the 1970’s, the neighborhood was well established and not just people who worked at IBM lived here. There is no more room for new buildings but the area is very near the Gunbarrel shopping center and not far from Boulder and Longmont.

Technically part of Boulder, the neighborhood is one of the more affordable housing divisions in Boulder, but it is not within walking distance of town like so much of Boulder. The county, high plains feel of Gunbarrel is more like Longmont than the mountain feel of Boulder.

Homes are nice with yards and a fair amount of privacy, most go for around $300,000--$350,000. There are also some apartments available in the area too.

Woodland Park is a cool place that tourists should visit as well as Colorado residents just touring our beautiful state. To live here...that would be nice! The average household income is reported to be $53,000 and while less elaborate and high end than the neighborhoods of Woodmoor to the eat, Woodland Park is not cheap. Homes in the "City Above the Clouds" at about 8500 feet are pretty and there are a lot of architectural style in the area. You can find nice classic Colorado properties with cabins for about $200,000 and amazingly elaborate homes in the millions.

There is a love of music and arts in Woodland Park and there is a dinosaur/fossil museum in town too. The 7,600 residents can hide away in their pretty little town or drive just 18 miles south to Colorado Springs for shopping and the benefits of the city.

The unique part of this neighborhood in North Boulder compared to may other areas in Boulder are that the yards are big, sometimes really big for being in town. Lucky's Market and a variety of local restaurants also make the neighborhood unique.

Just minutes from downtown via car, bike or bus the Moores neighborhood (I refer to it as the north boulder area around Lucky's) has a mix of old and new construction. There is real character to the area and a great place to raise kids. The cost of living is steep (typical in north Boulder) but it is one of the more average upper to middle class neighborhoods and is NOT a cookie cutter neighborhood at all.

Boulder's Chautauqua neighborhood sits at the western edge of Boulder's Mountain Parks. Historically the neighborhood grew up as a community around the Colorado Chautauqua that was founded in 1898. It is the only Chautauqua west of the Mississippi still in continuous operation since the Chautauqua heyday of the 1920's. The Chautauqua Auditorium has live music throughout the summer months especially offering big pop names as well as orchestra and jazz. The Chautauqua Dining Hall is a restaurant with a gorgeous wrap around porch for breakfast or summer night dinner in the open air and they cover and heat it in the winter months.

Needless to say, living in the neighborhood is historic and beautiful as well as unique. The homes are owned and operated by the Chautauqua so owning a home their is a whole different ball game than traditional real estate. I rented a home there in the summer months years ago and it was the best summer I ever had when going to the university. The entire plot of land known as the Colorado Chautauqua is 40 acres, many of the homes are small cabins but there are some large, historic homes on the land still. This is a great place to visit.

The neighborhoods just north of the ski resort are beautiful and expensive. The homes are scattered in big lots of the hillsides and some are exquisite, classic mountain homes like in glossy magazines. Steamboat Blvd is the main road up and through the neighborhoods and passes through the golf course.

Just to the south of the neighborhood there are shops and condos for rent associated with the ski resort, this area would be ideal for someone with money and a desire to ski! The Strawberry hot springs are not too far away (15 minute drive) and combined with the great restaurants and amazing snow and landscape, the Yampa Valley is such a great place to raise kids etc...if...you have money to support that lifestyle. Another thing about Steamboat...even though it is a high end type place there is a classic Colorado energy and real community in Steamboat--amazing place.

The neighborhood and businesses west of downtown Steamboat Springs gets away a bit from the more touristy vibe of downtown and the ski resort that is east of town. As you go further west on HW 40 you start to see the construction and agricultural side of Steamboat, there are warehouses, hardware and feed stores, gas stations and services that locals frequent. There are some pretty awesome trailer parks along the Yampa River area just west of town and considering that the cost of living in town is astronomical living or renting a trailer might be the only way to live near town for those with an average income.

The Steamboat airport, officially called The Steamboat Springs Bob Adams Field Stolport, is just west of town and is surrounded by some manufacturing and research park type businesses such as Smart Wool, Natural Choice, Elk River Farm & Feed and High Country Plumbing Supply. The road that leads to the airport, Elk River Road/County Road 129, also eventually goes to Steamboat Lake State Park and Pearl Lake--this is a gorgeous place to visit and would be a great place to buy property -be it just land or an existing home. The area is really green and the lakes are so pretty, I love to canoe on both the lakes and in most cases the area is quiet and not busy.

McIntosh Place is a 1/4 mile long road in the neighborhood NE of Foothills Pkwy & Kings Ridge Road. There are homes with their driveways coming on to McIntosh from the south side otherwise the homes on the north side are the backyards and there is a fence along the entire north side of the little side road that is McIntosh. This is a nice and private little road that dead ends to the west. Homes are fairly standardized and close to each other but it is kind of nice how only one side of the street has driveways so there is this sense of beings tucked away. I looked up a few home on the little street and they go for about $310,000.

Walnut is a great street that cuts across Boulder east to west. The eastern most part begins back in an industrial, business center of east Boulder then Walnut cuts through the 29th Street Mall, it is the main cut through the center of the pedestrian outdoor shopping area known as the 29th street "mall". Then Walnut gets good and makes its way through the pretty Whittier neighborhood, this is the part of Walnut that would be great to live by. Then Walnut is a one-way just south and parallel to the Pearl Street pedestrian mall. Walnut then ends as it turns into another street just before it hits the mountains at the west side of town.

Poncha Springs is a gateway are dividing northern and southern Colorado. Poncha Pass cuts over the very southern parts of Chaffee County (Collegiate Peaks and the headwaters for the Arkansas River) and into the expansive desert like environment of the San Luis Valley.

Monarch Ski area is about 15 miles west of Poncha Springs, there are two golf courses and endless hiking, biking, rafting and biking opportunities in the area. The Ute indians lived and camped out in the area and visited some of the areas 99 reported hot springs:) There are I think three public hot spring facilities in town.

I found real estate available in town with, for example, 3 acres, 3 bedrooms for $230,000. The cost of living is pretty decent considering that this is really a very beautiful, historically rich and diverse area to live in. Salida is not far for shopping as well as Buena Vista. There is a remoteness to the area but yet it is a crossroad of HW 285 and HW 50, but you can get away from the highways, out of town and up into the hills pretty quickly.

Pitkin is a tiny mountain town of less than 100 souls. Snug up to the west side of the Collegiate Peaks, the town of Buena Vista is a just 20 miles on the other side of the range but because of the mountains takes over an hour to get around on HW 50. Pitkin is not too far from Gunnison which is further west on HW 50.

Isolated and at 9,200 feet this old mining town has a lot of character and natural beauty. There is a high mountain pass that has a rugged four-wheel forest road called Cumberland Pass. From the Buena Vista/Cottonwood Pass area up past Taylor Reservoir the rough road brings you up to timberline and over the pass eventually into Pitkin. This is a spectacular area of Colorado and with the right car and equipment shouldn't be missed. There is a lot of camping up along the pass and the area.

Pitkin is surrounding by high peaks and Quartz Creek flows through the town site. Property is not especially cheap in Pitkin, two standard homes/cabins located "downtown" are listed for 250,000 and look pretty standard. But on another site they featured mining claims for about $17,000 (I guess that is good?) and a few cabins for small but good looking cabins for $80,000. For someone looking for a beautiful, isolated, high elevation place to invest in property the Pitkin area is very interesting.

Pine Street is one of the main "backstreets" in Boulder and connects traffic from the east of Boulder to downtown. The street is nice and wide and has some rotaries when it nears the pedestrian downtown part of Pearl Street, Pine runs parallel just two streets over from Pearl Street.

There are a lot of great homes on Pine, the Mork & Mindy house is on Pine around 16th I think it is. The grey victorian looking house is one of many unique homes on Pine. The streets running off of Pine are amazing locations but the price tags show it. This area of Boulder is one of the more expensive!

The convenience of walking downtown and Whittier Elementary school are probably the two best qualities of Pine Street and it surrounding neighborhood. Whittier school is the oldest continuously ran school in Colorado, my daughter went there through 5th.

La Salle is a small farming community of less than 2000 just south of Greeley. Situated along the Poudre River the town is not really recreationally centered like Greeley. From what I know there are no bike paths along the river, just properties and some broken down cars in areas left on private property. There are also some really pretty farms in the area that are well kept. It is a mix of old and some new that is springing up or cleaning up what has become ran down in the area. Most who live in La Salle work or at least shop in Greeley, using the larger town as their resource.

The schools in La Salle are part of the Weld County School District and the community does have its own High School, even though some students living in the community go into nearby Greeley instead. La Salle has one elementary school, Pete Mirich Elementary School and one middle school, North Valley Middle School. The schools and the district have a pretty good reputation and are all housed in nice facilities.

Dove Creek is a small isolated town of about 400 just ten miles from the Colorado/Utah border in the southwest area of Colorado. At almost 7,000 feet Dove Creek sits in a small valley that waters to the agricultural crops to the south and west of the town. The place is known as the "Pinto Bean Capital of the World". On the eastern edge of the town is the Adobe Milling company processing and acting as a marketing hub for the locally-grown beans and southwest foods grown around Dove Creek.

Dove Creek flows eventually flows towards Utah and makes its way to the San Juan River.

The plateau was also inhabited by the ancient Anazazi Indians and there are prehistoric villages not far from town such as Hovenweep National Monument. The town of Cortez to the south is probably the best place to get groceries and buy or rent equipment. Basically, to get to anywhere around Dove Creek it is going to be a drive. The actual creek known as Dove Creek eventually flows towards Utah and meets the San Juan River. This system and area and its trails have been used for farming, water and trade since ancient times.

The farms and ranches of the area are very spread out and there is a lot of uninhabited desert land especially to the west towards Utah. There are homes for sale anywhere on average from 200,000--400,000, so homes are not amazingly cheap here but you can get a lot of land for your buck.

ah sweet Rose Hill Drive, I lived there once just for a summer when I first lived in Boulder. I still drive on the little road sometimes as a "long cut" to get up to Flagstaff Road through The Hill neighborhoods.

I had a friend whose little boy could walk from their home on Rose Hill to Flatirons Elementary School and they loved it! This is a sweet little neighborhood area up above The Hill, the homes are not the super pricey ones just streets away but a kind of middle ground/middle class street that anyone moving to Boulder should check out real estate wise.

The Hill is a funny place, funny in the sense that it has some of the raunchiest, college rentals and party houses near The Hill commerce area and on the edge of the CU campus and...The Hill just blocks away from CU have some of the most amazing architecturally stunning homes and properties in Boulder. Once you get up towards Baseline Road and you are hugging the mountain, there are the ultra modern homes you see in magazines, big historic stone castle like homes and old historic Victorian homes with sweeping porches. The Hill is steep, thus its name, and it is a great neighborhood. The souls that for some reason can't stand the students in Boulder should not live around the campus, but for those who love culture, history, architecture, wildlife and have some cash to lay down--The Hill is a great neighborhood. Plus Chautauqua is just on the other side of Baseline and that alone is great to live by.

Baseline Road is the 40th parallel and if extended out east it is the border between Colorado and Nebraska. The road is long but the last western mile of the road, before it changes into Flagstaff Road and goes up into the mountains, is the most scenic and famous part of the road. There are homes on the road that are gorgeous but the traffic up the mountain and to Chautauqua keep the traffic, bikes and hikers buzzing---living on the actual road would be too much. The neighborhoods to the south and north of Baseline are amazing, especially the upper Hill and the homes in Chautauqua.

I have always liked the sunny town of Blanca. The tiny, lovely town of 400 people is settled on the southern slopes of Blanca Peak, a 14er near the Great Sand Dunes. The location is beautiful and the town is not transected by the highway so it sits on the slopes and has a quiet peaceful spot under one of the most beautiful mountains of Colorado.

The town itself is gridded out very square, there are just a few shops, a few trailor park areas and standard affordable little homes scattered around in the grid. On the outskirts there are big sage brush lots, horses, some beat-up old cars. There is a definite southwest feel here and the homes architecture is often adobe or painted with southwest earth tones. There are county roads leading out of town where there are some seriously amazing big ranches with big lots, cattle or horses and gorgeous homes especially on the mountain slopes into the forested areas. There is some agriculture in the area but not much compared to the saturated San Luis Valley to the west.

For those looking for affordable, beautiful and isolated pieces of land for ranching or just building a home in southern Colorado, there are still pieces of mountain land for sale in the area. As far as recreation and natural beauty there are endless places to explore around Blanca. The Great Sand Dunes is literally around the corner/around the mountain from town. New Mexico and Taos is not far south and the town of Alamosa is not far for shopping and groceries.

Yarmouth Avenue in north Boulder has really came along way in the last 5 plus years. There is a great trailor park in the area and also new modern townhomes along the road. The shopping and business district at Yarmouth and Broadway area is getting better and better.

If I could cherry pick where to live in Boulder, and I could afford it, I would buy a mountain home on the slopes within the Olde Stage neighborhood. Old Stage is a road just "in the mountains" from the city area of North Boulder. The homes are on big lots for the most part, with a lot of great classic Colorado stone and wood architectural style with large decks and steep driveways. There is a nice sense of isolation because of the Dakota Ridge rock formations that acts as a natural boundary for the neighborhood, but the city it is super close literally right around the corner, only 10 minutes away.

Snowy roads are not really a problem here, if you can get out of those steep driveways you can probably get into town without problems. This area is also a great place to go on up the canyons or up into Nederland or even Rocky Mountain National Park (on a day trip).

I image the homes are expensive as well as the property tax for those large lots, to rent a typical home in the neighborhood costs between 1500-3000/month.