Northern AZ vs. Reno NV areas??

mikefishes

mikefishes

New member
The girl and I are taking a trip west to look around, see the sights, and decide if we would like to live out West. We have narrowed down the dates to 29 October thru 2 November. We will either head for Northern AZ or Reno, NV. We aren't terribly interested in things like a trip to Vegas or shopping, but would rather get a taste for the land and the scenery

As we are trying to decide whether living there would be an option we are wondering about the following:

Which is better for wheeling?
Which is better for hiking and camping?
Which is better from a quality of life perspective?

We realize that this is just everyone's opinion, but we would love to hear from anyone that has something helpful to add.

Mike
 
NevadaZielmeister

NevadaZielmeister

Caught the Bug
mikefishes said:
The girl and I are taking a trip west to look around, see the sights, and decide if we would like to live out West. We have narrowed down the dates to 29 October thru 2 November. We will either head for Northern AZ or Reno, NV. We aren't terribly interested in things like a trip to Vegas or shopping, but would rather get a taste for the land and the scenery

As we are trying to decide whether living there would be an option we are wondering about the following:

Which is better for wheeling?
Which is better for hiking and camping?
Which is better from a quality of life perspective?

We realize that this is just everyone's opinion, but we would love to hear from anyone that has something helpful to add.

Mike
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As you can see, some people like MTG are a bit possessive. The reason is simple. Northern Nevada is an amazing place to live. I moved here from the Bay Area and love it.

My mother lives in Northern Arizona (Prescott area) and while I have not spent a ton of time there, I do understand the local area somewhat. There is no comparison. Living in Reno is great because you have access to the entire easter side of the Sierra Nevada mountain range as well as places like Lake Tahoe and Mammoth Lakes. The list of places you can access goes on and on.

I could go on and on as well, but that will give you an idea. I have no regrets moving here at all.
 
mikefishes

mikefishes

New member
MTG said:
Sorry. Northern Nevada is full. :grayno:
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LOL. Can we just visit then..? We promise not to move without a fully executed permission slip from You and your Mrs. We also promise to drive off any annoying neighbors if we are allowed to be their "replacements" on the northern Nevada roster.
 
mikefishes

mikefishes

New member
NevadaZielmeister said:
As you can see, some people like MTG are a bit possessive. The reason is simple. Northern Nevada is an amazing place to live. I moved here from the Bay Area and love it.

My mother lives in Northern Arizona (Prescott area) and while I have not spent a ton of time there, I do understand the local area somewhat. There is no comparison. Living in Reno is great because you have access to the entire easter side of the Sierra Nevada mountain range as well as places like Lake Tahoe and Mammoth Lakes. The list of places you can access goes on and on.

I could go on and on as well, but that will give you an idea. I have no regrets moving here at all.
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Thanks! We are excited to visit.
 
wayoflife

wayoflife

Administrator
Staff member
mikefishes said:
I missed this! See my response to MTG below. I'll add your names to our permission slips before we consider it.
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:cheesy:

It's a shame that you'd be coming during the week of SEMA. Cindy and I will be down in Vegas to cover the show so we won't be around but, if we were, we'd be more than happy to show you around.
 
mikefishes

mikefishes

New member
wayoflife said:
:cheesy:

It's a shame that you'd be coming during the week of SEMA. Cindy and I will be down in Vegas to cover the show so we won't be around but, if we were, we'd be more than happy to show you around.
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Damn! That would have been cool. We are about 99% sure that is our best weekend to both miss a few days of work. I always enjoy the coverage from Sema. Have a great time!
 
Speeddmn

Speeddmn

New member
I think both will have their perks, and downfalls. Something to consider is always housing market/value (Northern NV you might get more home for the price), also state taxes, property tax, etc. NV is pretty slim if I remember correctly. AZ can also be a great place and from the northern side you can get away from the city life also. Best bet would be to visit both then decide.
 
FastZach

FastZach

New member
I live near the Phoenix area and I have spent a lot of time up north hunting. Really pretty, good weather for the most part, and great places to hike especially with the Grand Canyon being so close. Most of the places to wheel are in the valley. But I don't think you can compare it with the Sierra Nevadas at all. You have the half dome area, Lake Tahoe, Mammoth, and the Rubicon so close you have endless places to explore. I would move there in a second if I could find a decent place to work.:crazyeyes:

Good luck with your choice.:thumb:
 
TLC Offroad

TLC Offroad

New member
I moved to the Reno area in 1977 when I was Young and this place has grown on Me, there is lot to do around here and lots of wide open space to Explore. The interior of NV has some nice places to wheel, fish, Hunt and Ghost Town hunt all depends on what you like to do.

The Only Down Side is Reno is So Close To Hell You Can See SPARKS :eek:
 
mikefishes

mikefishes

New member
FastZach said:
I live near the Phoenix area and I have spent a lot of time up north hunting. Really pretty, good weather for the most part, and great places to hike especially with the Grand Canyon being so close. Most of the places to wheel are in the valley. But I don't think you can compare it with the Sierra Nevadas at all. You have the half dome area, Lake Tahoe, Mammoth, and the Rubicon so close you have endless places to explore. I would move there in a second if I could find a decent place to work.:crazyeyes:

Good luck with your choice.:thumb:
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TLC Offroad said:
I moved to the Reno area in 1977 when I was Young and this place has grown on Me, there is lot to do around here and lots of wide open space to Explore. The interior of NV has some nice places to wheel, fish, Hunt and Ghost Town hunt all depends on what you like to do.

The Only Down Side is Reno is So Close To Hell You Can See SPARKS :eek:
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Thanks! Looks like Reno is the choice for our first trip out. I've seen the Sierra Nevadas before and I can't wait to again.
 
wayoflife

wayoflife

Administrator
Staff member
mikefishes said:
Thanks! Looks like Reno is the choice for our first trip out. I've seen the Sierra Nevadas before and I can't wait to again.
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What I can tell you is that I was born and raised in SoCal and up until recently, lived down by the ocean. I am an outdoor kind of guy and have explored and wheeled a better part of most every state west of the Rockies. I play with Jeeps for a living and when it came time for me to move, this is where I chose to be. The only thing you should know is that the Reno/Sparks area is growing like crazy right now thanks to Tesla, Switch, Amazon, Apple and a ton of other companies moving in.
 
mikefishes

mikefishes

New member
wayoflife said:
What I can tell you is that I was born and raised in SoCal and up until recently, lived down by the ocean. I am an outdoor kind of guy and have explored and wheeled a better part of most every state west of the Rockies. I play with Jeeps for a living and when it came time for me to move, this is where I chose to be. The only thing you should know is that the Reno/Sparks area is growing like crazy right now thanks to Tesla, Switch, Amazon, Apple and a ton of other companies moving in.
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Thanks Eddie! Being that I live just outside of DC, I am used to the "crowded" feel. I am sure it's a bummer for the people that have enjoyed all the wide open spaces for so long, though. We are excited about the trip and the only "bummer" is that you and Cindy won't be around while we are there. the good news, is that we didn't realize that that is where you lived, so we didn't know that a visit could have included that highlight until after it was too late. We wheeled with Coz, Jay and Alana, Andrew and Julie, this past weekend and the ones that met you on the Rubicon trip all commented on what a pleasure that was. We find out today whether Andrea's work will approve the weekend we chose for the trip. If the dates are approved we are booking tickets today. If the dates have to be changed, we will trade you guys dinner for your local expertise.:beer:
 
wayoflife

wayoflife

Administrator
Staff member
mikefishes said:
Thanks Eddie! Being that I live just outside of DC, I am used to the "crowded" feel. I am sure it's a bummer for the people that have enjoyed all the wide open spaces for so long, though. We are excited about the trip and the only "bummer" is that you and Cindy won't be around while we are there. the good news, is that we didn't realize that that is where you lived, so we didn't know that a visit could have included that highlight until after it was too late. We wheeled with Coz, Jay and Alana, Andrew and Julie, this past weekend and the ones that met you on the Rubicon trip all commented on what a pleasure that was. We find out today whether Andrea's work will approve the weekend we chose for the trip. If the dates are approved we are booking tickets today. If the dates have to be changed, we will trade you guys dinner for your local expertise.:beer:
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LOL!! Oh trust me, in spite of the growth, Reno/Sparks is far from anything like what you see in the DC area. That being said, a 20 min drive in any direction away from the development will take you back out to the middle of nowhere. Of course, we live about 40 min south of it in Carson City and live here for a reason.

Let me know what you're hoping to see and do and I might be able to point you in a direction or two.
 
Sharkey

Sharkey

Word Ninja
The growth in Reno/Sparks is fairly localized, and there hasn't yet been another major land grab or "sprawl" by large scale out of state developers. So, the risk of the open space disappearing anytime soon is not significant. The flip side of that is that home prices are climbing fast. At its low in 2011, my house probably lost $120k or so off of its 2005 original purchase price. It has since recouped that loss and climbed probably about $40k over the purchase price. That is about a +$160k market swing in the four years since 2011 and prices will continue to rise because demand is increasing at a faster rate than supply.

If you are looking to buy, time is of the essence.
 
wayoflife

wayoflife

Administrator
Staff member
Sharkey said:
The growth in Reno/Sparks is fairly localized, and there hasn't yet been another major land grab or "sprawl" by large scale out of state developers. So, the risk of the open space disappearing anytime soon is not significant. The flip side of that is that home prices are climbing fast. At its low in 2011, my house probably lost $120k or so off of its 2005 original purchase price. It has since recouped that loss and climbed probably about $40k over the purchase price. That is about a +$160k market swing in the four years since 2011 and prices will continue to rise because demand is increasing at a faster rate than supply.

If you are looking to buy, time is of the essence.
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Agreed. I think that was more my point than anything. There really is a shortage of inventory and so prices are really taking off.
 
mikefishes

mikefishes

New member
Sharkey said:
The growth in Reno/Sparks is fairly localized, and there hasn't yet been another major land grab or "sprawl" by large scale out of state developers. So, the risk of the open space disappearing anytime soon is not significant. The flip side of that is that home prices are climbing fast. At its low in 2011, my house probably lost $120k or so off of its 2005 original purchase price. It has since recouped that loss and climbed probably about $40k over the purchase price. That is about a +$160k market swing in the four years since 2011 and prices will continue to rise because demand is increasing at a faster rate than supply.

If you are looking to buy, time is of the essence.
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Thanks Sharkey. I keep looking at housing prices out there and I can see that they have been climbing. They would take a while to catch up with what I have become accustomed to in this area. Anything that costs less than my 984 square foot apartment with it's $2400 a month rent is gonna seem like a bargain!
 
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