Our ongoing property search has brought us to Pocatello, Idaho. We have been here since last weekend and will probably stick around this area for another week or two. Most of our first week has been spent out looking at properties and the good news is, after an unsuccessful search in Utah, we have found a couple in this area that are very promising.
Just outside Pocatello in the southeast corner of the state is a town called Lava Hot Springs and that is where we have been focusing our search. The town is a cute little tourist town with a water park, floating river, and natural hot springs that bring in a lot of summer visitors. And surrounding the town are a number of green hills and small mountains covered in pines and aspen.
In those mountains and hills we have seen two properties worthy of a second look. My brother is coming to visit us this weekend (making the 9-hour drive from Bend, OR) and I’m sure we’ll take him out there to get his opinion while he’s here. And we’ll try to remember to bring the drone out with us next time we see them to get some pictures to share.
One of the things we really like about this area is how perfectly located it is for a lot of the things that matter to us. This area of Idaho is just a one-day drive away from both of our families and friends in Colorado and Oregon and it’s surrounded by a handful of national parks, national monuments, and national recreation areas that are all within about an 8-hour drive. Here are some of the drive times from the Lava Hot springs area…
Cities
- Salt Lake City – 2 hours
- Boise – 4 hours
- Denver – 8.5 hours
- Bend – 9 hours
- Portland – 10.5 hours
- Our property in Texas – 20 hours
Parks
- Craters of the Moon NM – 2 hours
- Grand Teton NP – 2.5 hours
- Yellowstone NP – 3 hours
- Flaming Gorge NRA – 4 hours
- Capitol Reef NP – 5.5 hours
- Arches NP – 6 hours
- Bryce Canyon NP – 6 hours
- Zion NP – 6 hours
- Canyonlands NP – 6 hours
- Great Basin NP – 6 hours
- Glacier NP – 8 hours
- Grand Canyon NP – 8 hours
- Black Canyon of the Gunnison NP – 8 hours Mesa Verde NP – 8.5 hours
We’ll probably take a break from the property search over the weekend while my brother is in town, but I wouldn’t be surprised if we start the process of moving forward with one of the two properties next week. I’m sure there will be more to come soon!
Patience is a virtue!
Sounds like you’re finding something that meets most if not all of your criteria. Hope you find something that you just can’t live without – then you’ll know it’s the right decision.