Why I left the city and moved to Northern Idaho
There I was living with my young family in a rented 4-level split house in a suburb of Denver, Colorado. I realized that I would never be able to afford a house to fit our needs because the area was exploding with growth. Soon after that realization came to me, a smell started waffling in our open windows. That distinct burning smell that seems to linger much longer than tobacco. Just to be clear, I’m not judging anyone here. I don’t smoke marijuana and never have, but I will express my frustration that I can’t even open my windows to cool my house down without being inundated with what seemed to be plumes of smoke coming from both neighbor’s back yards.
That was my personal breaking point. I knew that this was not going to workout long term. So Denver, why don’t we call it quits, and just be friends? We had some good times (I miss you Pho restaurants!), but we don’t have a future together.
Two things changed for our family, that made a move possible. We adopted the last two of our four children, and I started consulting with clients who were throughout the USA. All I needed was somewhere to set up a workstation and a relatively good internet connection, and I could provide for my family. That was a huge blessing in itself.
As I contemplated where to raise my children, and build my future, my mind reflected on two things. First, that my wife who grew up in the Inland Pacific Northwest, had always said “We need to get back there”. I had never lived there, but what she meant was we need to be closer to her family, and to her center. We had met while working in the US Virgin Islands and had lived there for a year followed by Utah, Louisiana, and Colorado. It was time to put down some really strong roots.
The second thing I had reflected on was a trip we took to visit family that included a quick jaunt up to Sandpoint, Idaho where two families we knew very well in the Denver Metro had moved. We spent an afternoon with them and got to experience the area. I went to work doing my research.
Operation Sandpoint
That’s what I called it, “Operation Sandpoint”. I started by researching the housing and rental market and found it very scares. This was 2017, and it is exponentially more difficult at the time of this writing. I also explored the employment market, and what major companies were in this area. But what was most valuable was grilling my friends who had been living there about their experience. Though they were very bias, wanting us to move up there too, I feel that they gave me an honest perspective.
The goal of this whole site!
With all this in mind, I wanted to create this site. The ultimate goal is to give those considering a move to Northern Idaho, or anywhere that is closer to nature, a helpful and honest perspective on what it’s like and how to avoid the pitfalls.
So please, check out our other blogs, and content!
And if you have questions or want to connect you can reach out here!
About the author:
My name is Troy, and I am the founder of City2Forest. I love living in the forest and love writing and creating. Moving to Northern Idaho helped me take courage to do this. I hope you enjoy what we have created.