Where to work and live out west?

[Dlambright]

Hey guys,

I figured I would throw this out here on the Rokslide. Ill try not to make this to long. Ill start with a little about myself then ill get to the point. I am 29 and a journeyman Pipe fitter with about 7 yrs exp. and take ALOT of pride in a job well done. I have been married 9 yrs. to my wife which I met in Thailand while competing in Muay thai Kickboxing, we have 3 boys together. I grew up with very little and had to earn everything we have. Ok to the point we are always looking for a new adventure.My wife is a stay at home mom and I travel for work mostly anyway just have never been out west. I am planning my first diy solo elk trip this year in Colorado. With all the recent research I have done needless to say I have fallen in love with the west without even going yet lol. So I guess I am asking if there are any pipefitters out there that are able to make enough to live as well as have time to play. If so where would be a good place to live for a while if not forever. I am open to about anywhere out west with good paying work and close to plenty of adventures for me and my family. From what I am seeing anywhere near most cities where my work could be found the cost of living is pretty crazy as we will not live in anything without a yard. For you guys living in the country out there what is the cost of living like(we dont eat out or go out at all strictly outdoors stuff for us so not much expense there). For you pipe fitters on rigs out there. Is it worth my time to get hired on out there, will I have time to hunt/fish. Ill go crazy if not LOL. I also have other skills since I started working at 15 I can roof houses, Lay brick and block, Install replacement windows and trimwork, Climbing and trimming Trees, And I am a part time nuisance trapper here in NC. Any help or advise will be great I am usually just a lurker but I know there is a great group of guys on here. I want to say thanks again for all the knowledge I have gained just from reading from all of the roksliders experiences.

 

[Titan_Bow]

I'm not a pipe fitter so no advice specific to that. I moved to Colorado 10 years ago from SC. My wife and I both have pretty high tech jobs, she's a chemical engineer and I run a tech support team for high accuracy GPS systems used in construction and build. For us, Colorado provides good job opportunity, great schools for the kids, and a days drive from endless hunting and fishing opportunities. That said, CO is expensive! I have a remote employee in LA, who we were trying to get a COLA adjustment for. In my research, we found that cost of living in LA was only a slight difference than Denver! It's a terrible time to finance a house anywhere on the front range of CO as prices are just insane compared to just a few years ago. There are just too many people moving here also. I love Montana, and go up there several times a year to hunt and fish. In fact, just got back from the NW corner, north of Libby. The problem in places like that, for me and my wife there is just no job opportunities. I have a daughter that is deaf, and those small isolated communities have no services or assistance for her either. Schools usually, not always but usually, are far behind larger more urban/ suburban areas. As soon as my kids are grown, I'm heading to either Montana or Idaho for sure. I'd definitely look that way as opposed to CO. Wyoming might be an option for you as well. It's kind of like CO, but without people! We fish up around Casper three or four times a year and go up there to shoot antelope every year. Seems like the oil/gas boom is over up there but I understand it's a fairly cyclical industry.


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[Dlambright]

Thanks Titan I appreciate the feedback. If you dont mind me asking. Did you move out there because of work? Or did you look for opportunities out there and then went? As a pipefitter I jump around alot but make 65-85k depending on how much overtime and time I take off to hunt lol. I have found jobs out in Colorado would pay on the higher end. I just feel like that would be pretty tight living out there depending on where I stayed. Meaning I would have to work to much to play. I have been looking in Wyoming some.

 

[justinspicher]

I make a living as a season forest service employee six months out of the year in SW Colorado. I don't think it's a matter of can or can't make it, but more of a will or won't do it. You can ask all the questions and get all the advice and recommendations from the forum you'd like, but in the end it'll depend on whether or not it worth the risk for you and your family to be happy out here.

 

[Dlambright]

Thanks Justin,

I am not worried about making it anywhere really I know I can (Trying not to sound cocky here) I just need playtime. The risk like you said is what I am trying to find here. I can get a good idea if it is worth the risk by simply getting the opinions of those who have done or are doing it. I would love to be able to relocate the whole family and live there working only 6 months a year as a forest service employee. That is what I am looking for. What are some of the things you do to make it work? We are a very simple family and the hard work to make it work does not scare us. With that said I cant just close my eyes and go for it ya know.

 

[Titan_Bow]

We moved out here for a job opportunity for my wife, but I was able to quickly get a good paying job myself, and have been with that same company now for 10 years. This is a very subjective thing, and I'm sure everyone has their own opinions and views, but like Justin said, in the end you gotta decide to take the plunge. I'm sure like anywhere, the spectrum of what you consider a good living is probably extremely broad. For me, I am living the stereotypical suburban lifestyle in Broomfield. However, my job affords me with pretty good amount of days off, the wife and kids really like it here, and the salary allows me to buy the gear I need and go places I want to hunt. I just got back from a week DIY bear hunt in NW Montana. I hunt Nebraska, Kansas, Wyoming, CO, and Montana every year. Usually a week here, a three or four day weekend there, but in the end, I spend a lot of time in the backcountry, and am fortunate to be able to do so. Where we are at in Suburbia, you'd be hard pressed to make it on 85k and still have funds to do a lot of hunting. Not saying it can't be done, but I always frustrated with how much it costs just in gas and tags to go chase something. If I were on a strict budget, not sure I'd be able to swing what I do. Perhaps living closer to an area in the rural mountains, or having a job that puts you directly in the habitat would make that easier. I think I read the average rent in front range Colorado was well over 2k a month, and I think average home prices are north of 400-450k


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[sneaky]

Living out here is a double-edge sword. Good paying jobs are near the bigger cities mostly, and cost of living is high. Rural areas have all the cool outdoor activities but no jobs, or lower paying jobs.

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[colersu22]

Is your fitter card recognized in other states? I know if I was to move with working in the trades myself I would want to make sure I don't have to go through an apprenticeship again.

 

[justinspicher]

We bought a house because renting was ridiculous. I like to hunt and I'm learning to like fishing. I have deer in my yard and elk close by so it was a win for me. The schools are pretty good here and there's a lot to do. I moved between two tourist type towns (durango/pagosa springs) so there's that to deal with, but I rarely go east and only go to durango when I have to. I make just enough between my retirement and the FS job to live comfortably, even through the winter. We made some decisions as a family to allow us to live here so that everyone is happy. I visited here once last spring with the family, and everyone really liked it. That made things a lot easier to take the jump. Work six months, hunt for four and chill for two, it can be done on a budget if you want it to.

 

[highside74]

The ship yard in Bremerton Wa. is hiring all the time. For an experienced guy it should be a piece of cake to get a great paying job with excellent benefits and hours. It's on the Kitsap Peninsula of WA. State and you would be not far from elk, blacktail, bear and all the salmon and steelhead fishing you could ask for. It is across the puget sound from Seattle and has a lot of rural area less than an hours drive to work and mainly conservative in nature.

 

[Felix1776]

I'll throw in my two cents on this. I moved to Colorado from the midwest about a year ago. I moved out here with no job but I had a pile of cash in the bank from selling my house. I signed a 6 month lease for the crappiest little apartment I've ever lived in which ran me about $950/month. I had a job, albeit a low paying one, within two days. I got lucky and landed a really good job within three months. Since then, I've bought a house and just bought my wife a nice used car. Life is GREAT right now. My wife and I are as happy as we've been in years, maybe ever. It is a direct result of being in Colorado and the outdoor/adventure opportunities it provides. I absolutely have to have (relative) adventure in my life. It's the main reason I got burned out on the midwest. Between hiking, mountain biking, camping, fishing, hunting (haven't got to hunt yet), I'm completely set. There's not enough hours in the week to do everything.

The main downside for me is the cost of living. Coming from the midwest, it is very pricey compared to what I'm used to. I had a really nice place back home that cost me several hundred dollars a month less than the POS apartment I had. I'm now paying more for my new place than I've ever paid for anywhere I've lived. It's pretty nice and I'm very content but it ain't THAT nice and it's pretty small compared to what I had before. While waiting to get my current job, I burned through a ton of my savings making ends meet until things turned around which luckily they did. It was a real struggle for a few months with lots of uncertainty but it's been completely worth it.

Another thing I've experienced is that there is a growing resentment towards "transplants" that for me has bordered on hostility a couple of times. I've never seen anything like it. I've met a TON of great people but there's been more than I care to count that treated me like a non-English speaking illegal that crapped on their lawn. Everyone assumes you moved to CO for the MJ no matter what you say. I'm a full blown resident at this point: drivers license, cars, house, income tax, sales tax, property tax, the whole deal. I'm earning it and it doesn't bother me much anymore but it's something to take into consideration.

I would absolutely recommend CO to someone considering moving out west but there are some caveats that come with that recommendation. The main one being you better have some money in the bank or an immediate high paying job lined up. You can PM me if you'd like to know more.