Moving to BC

[undercoverbrother]

Originally Posted by Northendzone

^ I would assume that in a city like Calgary there is more stuff for kids to do like the trampoline park, zoo, etc.

does not matter where you live there are positives and negatives.

personally, I'd like to live somewhere in-between like fernie - but hwo knows, I may hate it after two yrs of living there.

I can see why an adult would want to move to a smaller place, and I can also see why a kid could hardly wait to leave.

I love Sylvan, as do my wife and kids.

I think there is just as much to do in a small town as a city.

I will say the one thing I notice is education, while the schools are excellent, and my kids know their teachers/principals on a personal basis, there could be more offered.

[steve9981]

Nm

[Locke]

So...small towns are only any good if theres a lake and a beach and all your family and friends and little to no work or responsibility.

Hmm....

[DylanScores]

Originally Posted by Northendzone

Dylan - are you a politician - lol. this sounds like a classic non answer that could not offend anyone......

anyways, from what I have read, it can't be an easy decision

Not at all! Lol! I'm just having a difficult time making some decision. I wish it is easy! I just don't want to start all over again and hate it after couple of years. I guess if things don't work out, another option is to keep moving west, lol!

[troutman]

Spokane is 3 hours from Trail - I thought it was closer than that.

[KootenayFlamesFan]

Originally Posted by troutman

Spokane is 3 hours from Trail - I thought it was closer than that.

It's closer to 2 or 2.5

[squiggs96]

Originally Posted by troutman

Spokane is 3 hours from Trail - I thought it was closer than that.

The most direct, driving route is about 200 kms, depending on where you are in Trail, and where you're going to in Spokane. It takes my mom about 2.5 hours to make the trip. It takes my grandma about 3.5 hours. I know people who've done it in under 2 hours. Sometimes I'll stop in Northport and get an RC Cola, so that will take a little more time. One time my dad drove me and my brother to Spokane, and it took about 4 hours. We went to the Waneta border first, but it was closed. Then we had to drive to the Patterson crossing. On the way home our car got a flat, so the return trip was long too. The point of my excessive rambling is the distance between two points is not measured in time. If someone asked you the time, would you respond that it was 90 kms past noon?

[troutman]

Originally Posted by squiggs96

The point of my excessive rambling is the distance between two points is not measured in time. If someone asked you the time, would you respond that it was 90 kms past noon?

Huh?

People measure travel time, in hours.

Distance does not include speed limits, traffic, road conditions, border crossings, etc.

[Locke]

Originally Posted by squiggs96

The most direct, driving route is about 200 kms, depending on where you are in Trail, and where you're going to in Spokane. It takes my mom about 2.5 hours to make the trip. It takes my grandma about 3.5 hours. I know people who've done it in under 2 hours. Sometimes I'll stop in Northport and get an RC Cola, so that will take a little more time. One time my dad drove me and my brother to Spokane, and it took about 4 hours. We went to the Waneta border first, but it was closed. Then we had to drive to the Patterson crossing. On the way home our car got a flat, so the return trip was long too. The point of my excessive rambling is the distance between two points is not measured in time. If someone asked you the time, would you respond that it was 90 kms past noon?

Well I will now...

[blankall]

Originally Posted by indes

The airport is horrendous from november-january. Even air canada calls it 'cancelgar'.

As for restaurants Trail is pretty brutal but Nelson has a bunch of good places to eat. I'm still not entirely sure what everyone means about having nothing to do in a small town? What activities is there to do in a city as a kid? Growing up in Calgary I spent my entire childhood playing street hockey in front of my house or walking to the school/park.

The issue is more what happens to kids as they get into their teens and grow beyond the street hockey/playground phase. I didn't grow up in a small town myself, but met many people who did during university, and visited several of them in their home towns. There, I met their gangs of friends of who didn't make it out of the town for university, and I'd be concerned raising children in that kind of environment.

This is more than just anecdotal speculation as well. The rates of teen pregnancy, drug abuse, and high school drop outs are all much higher in rural areas than urban ones. It's objective and there's a very stark difference in these rates.

I'm not trying to crap all over small town living, but it's something anyone who wants to move to a small town should consider. Your children are going to lack exposure they might gain in a city. Many of the people I know who did grow up in small towns were quite well adjusted. However, I'd say proportionally though that kids who grow up in small towns were more likely to end up in some kind of trouble. So I'd take extra precautions to make sure your children get exposure to things outside the small town: highschool exchange programs, travelling, living in a dorm for college/university, etc...

[squiggs96]

Originally Posted by troutman

Huh?

People measure travel time, in hours.

Distance does not include speed limits, traffic, road conditions, border crossings, etc.

People measure travel time in hours, because hours is a correct measurement of time. Distance is not a measurement of time. Hours are not a measurement of distance. Saying two points are closer implies distance. The correct way to answer the question is:

Q: How far is it from Calgary to Red Deer?
A: It's about 150 kms

When you ask how far something is from something else, you are asking what is the distance. Distance is not measured in time. A minute, hour, day is not a measurement of distance, because, as you pointed out, the are variable factors of what can happen on the journey from point A to point B. If you want to know how far it is between points, the mode of transportation is irrelevant. Driving or cycling between the two points does not change how far the two points are from each other.

It is more correct to phrase it as:

Q: How long does it take to drive from Calgary to Red Deer?
A: About 90 minutes.

It may be semantics, but a lawyer should be all over semantics.

[squiggs96]

I just did a brief survey in my office. Not one person agrees with me on answering how far something is in distance versus time. We have people born in Canada, France, UK, Malaysia, Jamaica, and China. They all answered how far is it from our office to Seattle, by saying about 2.5 hours.

I think it might stem from me cycling most places. When I look at two points, I look at the distance, not how long it will take for me to cycle there. It's more do I want to cycle there. Further discussion in the office thinks that if the place is driving or flying length, that you'd answer in time, because you aren't doing the work to get there. If it's a walk or a cycle, you'd answer in distance.

How far is it to lunch from the office? It's 3 blocks/Not that far, just up the road/It's a bit of a hike, maybe 1 kilometer.

How far is it to Seattle? 2.5 hours, maybe less if you're in the HOV lane.

Anywho, I'm alone on this stance, so I'll stop derailing the Trail conversation. I literally couldn't get one person to answer in kilometers.

[V]

Originally Posted by DylanScores

I know that I will be sacrificing a lot , i.e. Big league sports, shopping and other things available in big cities. I want to have both , peace and quiet and everything close by but I know that I can't have it all.

I don't know about that. I have 4 acres just outside of the city (Edmonton). 25 minutes into work (26 km for squiggs) downtown, and under 15 minutes to any kind of shopping. I have a nice quiet property in a quiet little subdivision with access to city living. That seems to be everything you're looking for.

[troutman]

Originally Posted by squiggs96

I think it might stem from me cycling most places. When I look at two points, I look at the distance, not how long it will take for me to cycle there. It's more do I want to cycle there. Further discussion in the office thinks that if the place is driving or flying length, that you'd answer in time, because you aren't doing the work to get there. If it's a walk or a cycle, you'd answer in distance.

Distance is a factor in travel time. Rarely though can we travel between two points "as the crow flies". Perhaps moreso when we cycle, less so when we are driving.

[Amethyst]

The small town where I grew up was in Saskatchewan, so I didn't have the mountains or beaches to entertain me. It was okay as a younger child - there were activities and groups to join. However, there wasn't much variety. So if you have issues with bullying or something in one group, there wasn't another one you could go to. You were also at the mercy of who came to the town. I took dancing for awhile as a kid, but once the teacher stopped coming to our town, there weren't any other options.

In high school it was quite different. The main activities people engaged in were driving up and down the main street or partying in the bush. Drugs and drinking are definitely a bigger issue in small towns.

Another thing one of my "big city" friends mentioned when I got to university, is that most people from small towns go into teaching or nursing, because those are really the only professions they are exposed to on a regular basis.

I also lived in a different small town as an adult, for about six months. I got to watch a lot of hockey because there wasn't much else to do and it was hard to make friends when I was the stranger and everyone else had grown up together. When that job ended, I decided I was moving to a city, packed my belongings in my car, drove to Calgary, and haven't looked back since.

[KootenayFlamesFan]

As others have mentioned, if you want to move to a town like Trail it all depends on if you're ok with living in a small town. There's no right or wrong answer, it's just what's good for you and your family.

The biggest assets in the area are mainly sports and outdoor activities. If your family/kids love that stuff you'll be fine. Hockey, soccer, baseball, mountain biking are all fairly big. Rossland also has one of the better ski hills in the province, if not the country. Lots of golf courses in the area.

But if your family is looking for nightlife/entertainment and shopping you'll be extremely disappointed. Just not much around. You'll have to drive to a place like Kelowna (3+ hours) or Spokane (2+ hours) for decent shopping.

Just know what you're getting into and make an informed decision. There are pros and cons to living in a small town, but as someone who lives in one with 2 small kids that are busy in all sorts of activities I'd say there are definitely worse places to live.

Any other questions just fire away.

[Flames in 07]

Originally Posted by DylanScores

The potential move will be in the Kootenay's (Cranbrook). I guess Im just having hard time wrapping my head around the pay cut. The job will give me more opportunities to grow and learn more about my current profession but I also have to be realistic ensuring that I adequately provide for my family as well.

Take the experience is usually the right answer. 20 percent really isn't that much and if you think this new job makes you more marketable later, I'd bet that worth this lost 20%

[Northendzone]

Originally Posted by undercoverbrother

.....I think there is just as much to do in a small town as a city......

for the most part I would agree with this; however, I would think if you are into some non-mainstream activities (I am thinking of that activity with an Asian sounding name that involves running up walls and jumping) you may have to drive to a larger city.

conversely, if you really like hiking or mountain climibing or water-skiing you may have to drive outside of a large city.

I hope the OP closes the loop and let's us know what his decision is, and if he moves his family, I hope he psots an update

[DylanScores]

Originally Posted by Northendzone

for the most part I would agree with this; however, I would think if you are into some non-mainstream activities (I am thinking of that activity with an Asian sounding name that involves running up walls and jumping) you may have to drive to a larger city.

conversely, if you really like hiking or mountain climibing or water-skiing you may have to drive outside of a large city.

I hope the OP closes the loop and let's us know what his decision is, and if he moves his family, I hope he psots an update

Thank you very much everyone for your input. I sincerely appreciate the Pros and the Cons. I'm planning on driving down there sometime and request a day to spend with some staff who currently does the job, ask questions, observe and hopefully make a decision from there. And of course, I will update either a go or no go for us. Thank you.

[bossy22]

Have friends who moved to Cranbrook from here and they love it. They are big mountain bikers and skiers. They found they were always going to BC to do the things they love, so they moved there. Longer bike season, and way better skiing. They spend a month at a time at cat skiing. Plus it's closer to Whitefish, where they have a cabin. They're pretty outdoorsy, and they hated Calgary life. They have been retired since their mid 40's mind you. People I know around my age used Calgary for opportunity, but as soon as they can leave, they do. We will be the same.