Where to live - Job Market vs. Skiing

Reno may not be your best pick. It is a warehousing Mecca and I am sure UPS is fine there. They have thouhg been hit hard with the recession

SLC, Denver, San Fran, Portland  and Seattle could be better options. Here is a couple sources on that:

http://www.cnn.com/2010/LIVING/worklife/05/12/cb.best.cities.new.grads/index.html

http://www.cnn.com/2008/LIVING/worklife/11/24/cb.best.cities.find.jobs/index.html

http://www.businessnewsdaily.com/top-hiring-cities-job-hunt-2011-employment-0883/

http://images.businessweek.com/ss/10/07/0715_top_cities/index.htm

It depends just how far you are willing to drive for skiing.

I live in Southern California.  The economy is big, so there is plenty of opportunity.  I ski about 40 days a year, 30-35 at Mammoth, 5-10 at Baldy.  Baldy is a great little mountain.  If the runs to the lot are open, you will be amazed you are skiing terrain like this in socal.  I love having the Baldy option when I don't go to Mammoth.  Some years, Baldy does not get enough snow to be worth it, but the last 4 have been good.

The drive to Mammoth is long.  My girlfriend and I make the drive at least 2, often 3 weekends a month.  If you leave at 4 am, iit is 5 hours 20 minutes from Orange County, driving conservatively.  It does wear on me, but it is worth it to ski.  In a season like last year(or the last 4 actually) when Baldy gets snow, it is possible to ski every weekend.  I skied at least one day per weekend this year from late December until early May.  People just don't get how great of a season you can have living in Socal, you can ski just as much as someone in Denver(with an office job) can if you are willing to drive.  I know other people in socal who get 30-50 days a year, most of them at Mammoth.  Mammoth does have a long season, from the beginning of November to the end of May, and often July 4th.

The other issue with what I do, other than the drive, is the price of a ski share.  If you want to go to Mammoth 2-3 weekends a month, you will need a ski lease.  Expect to pay 250-350 a month for that.  The passes at Mammoth are chearp if you get an MVP pass, but those are no longer available.  Now it might be 800, which is still not bad if you are going to ski 30 days at Mammoth.  The driving/ski lease situation makes it quite a commitment to do what many of us do at Mammoth, but it is worth it.  I get to surf southwest swells every weekend in the summer, live in a great area, and ski one of the best mountains in the country during the winter.

I somethimes wonder if I would prefer a place like Seattle, where you are close to skiing.  San Francisco too, as the bay is only 4 hours(without traffic) from Tahoe.  The extra 1.5 hours each way does wear on me, there are sometimes I think I would prefer the bay area.  Overall I prefer the sunny weather and summer surf of Orange County, but I could see the pluses in Norcal.

As I said before, you CAN ski alot(and get great skiing) in socal, you just have to be willing to drive, and prepare.  Norcal is similar, although not as bad.  You will still need a Tahoe ski lease.

As for places like Denver, keep in mind that you are sill a long way from skiing.  You can do day trips, but it probably would help to have a ski share in, say, Summit County.  I don't know if those are common in Colorado.  The only nice thing about the distance we drive, is that we get two days every Mammoth weekend.  If the mountains were two hours away.....That is still 8 hours of driving for a two day ski weekend.

Other places I would suggest, Portland, Seattle, Denver Salt Lake.....I don't know how far Taos is from Santa Fe.  I would not live anywhere back east.  I grew up there, and will never go back.  The skiing is much better out west, and the quality of life is too, IMO.

Like many have mentioned, Seattle!

So much to do, you dont have to be in the city just near by to enjoy its beauty and many oppertunities here.

Then you have access to The summit of Snoqualmie, Stevens and Crystal. Even Baker.

The OP wasn't asking where to live for a good job market and no skiing. He wants to know where to live with skiing. I respect your choice because not everyone loves skiing to the same extent, but it seems like your more just looking for an argument.

To OP though. I just graduated from college with a degree in business from OSU and am starting my career outside Reno next week. Closest mountain is 30 mins away and I have a job. I really don’t think the market is that great there, but it just requires some effort just like it does anywhere else in the country. I hope you find the perfect combination for yourself.

To the OP:

Your not going to find a good response on NS.  Since this is a major life decision you should probably put in a lot of research which is going to be a lot more valuable than NS.

I would find which major cities are the closest to the mountains, I think SLC is like THE major city thats closest to the mountains.

Depending on what type of job your girl is looking for, overall job market isn't really going to have a big effect on whether SHE will find a job or not, you realize those are big picture numbers and this is one instance.  She should start sending out her resume, contacting companies, etc. but honestly whether you move to SLC or Denver or Reno, that's not going to be the deciding factor in whether she gets a job or not, its going to be her credentials and what she does to get the job and she should start looking and try to line up a job BEFORE you move.