searching for....

[otowi]

You might look at Canon City/Florence area, maybe Fountain, Pueblo, maybe Montrose, etc. Getting a house under 350k may be possible if you're not demanding something new, large, etc.

[davebarnes]

Greenville, SC

[otowi]

I wonder if there are some places in Wyoming perhaps....

[NW Crow]

There are several keys to refining your search.

How big / small a city or town do you prefer? Colorado has 120 places over 6,000 people and surely hundreds smaller.

https://www.city-data.com/city/Colorado.html

How much snow do you want / can you tolerate? There is a wide range from 30 inches per year to way over 100.

Are you looking for 3 bedroom / 2 bath for your budget or would you take a 2br?

You want separated / paved biking trails. Some communities will have one, possibly more. Most bike "routes" will be city streets. Separate lane or not? You'll have to dig for most info. I am doing a quick search. Here are a couple of resources:
https://www.bicyclecolorado.org/ride...aps-resources/

https://walkrideusa.com/states/colorado/

A general problem is that communities with dedicated bike paths tend to be expensive relative to your budget.

Canon City has 2 major trails but they are unpaved.

Montrose has 30 miles of paved bike paths and is near top of your housing price target. You might see mountains in distance from some homes but you'll need to drive 20 - 60 miles to get into them.

Delta has some paved bike paths and is cheaper.

Fountain has a bike path connecting to Colorado Springs options and is at the top of your price range.

Fruita might be barely within price reach.

Fort Morgan is pretty affordable and has a park with a dirt path that goes a few miles by river.

Laramie WY has about 6 miles on paved paths and is comparatively affordable.

Smaller places, check city government park pages. I think Meeker CO has 1-2.

Decent schools should be doable. But it is subjective.

[Dogmama50]

I've been watching home prices as an investment in Fruita and Palisade, there are a couple in your range, not sure about schools, that would be a bigger concern. Might look at Idaho too

[zenith32]

Originally Posted by bluescreen73

ROFLMAO. Watch out for altitude sickness. It'll sneak up on you quickly at 2,000'. I-35 over Honey Creek Pass (elev. 1200') is a white knuckler that makes the Million Dollar Highway look tame. It's amazing what passed for mountains before explorers ventured west of what is nowadays the I-35 corridor. Beware of Taum Sauk Mountain. At 1772', it's the Everest of Missouri.

There's no need for snark. The mountains around the south central US are far older than either the Rockies or the Appalachians (which I doubt anyone serious would have a problem classifying those as mountains and people would be pretty hard pressed to travel west from the Atlantic states without passing over them at some point). I pointed those ranges out because, surprise surprise, most people who don't live in the region or frequent it probably aren't even aware they exist aside from perhaps the Ozarks. A good hike doesn't also have to include thousands of feet of elevation change, assuming that's even what the OP really wants.


For anyone reading this who is unfamiliar with the old ranges of Oklahoma...


The Wichita Mountains



The Ouachitas



The Arbuckles


Honorable mention to the Black Mesa region off in the panhandle near the CO/NM border.

[BreadSprings]

OP, your future lies in FARMINGTON, NM. They have some bikes lanes, but it you want something longer, just ride the frontage roads for the acequias (water ditches). Lots of folks use them for exercise. Housing is within your limit. Close to mountains. Take a look at it. Also, you might also take a look at Cortez, CO.

[pikabike]

Originally Posted by BreadSprings

OP, your future lies in FARMINGTON, NM. They have some bikes lanes, but it you want something longer, just ride the frontage roads for the acequias (water ditches). Lots of folks use them for exercise. Housing is within your limit. Close to mountains. Take a look at it. Also, you might also take a look at Cortez, CO.

She listed school quality, crime rate, wildfires, water shortage among the criteria. Not just house prices. And the road biking PATHS she speced are short and few, while on-the-road biking is not safe for someone riding with a toddler.

Also, the rightwing feel of both areas doesn’t match her criterion for safety, not when the variant of rightwing loves to flaunt guns just because a peace march is walking. That doesn’t mean everybody is rightwing, but she’ll have to walk on eggs about politics. The goal apparently is to scare “others” from coming to the area, let alone moving in.

I don’t think the lack of value placed on education fits AT ALL!!! The Montezuma County school board actions this past year give a good indication of the control with which the righties strangle attempts at real diversity, not to mention health precautions. Those who disagree with them become targets of lies and false accusations. The very local Ute Mountain Utes started a charter school on their reservation in response to a long history of treating Ute students poorly.

Maybe the OP has no concern over politics, but coming from the east coast, she should know what things are like.