I was born in Eugene and have been back a lot over the years. My perspective is that it is a "small" town, lots of hippy types and very "earthy"...If you love nature, mountain biking, and lots of green, Eugene is the place. If you are looking for night life, not sure Eugene is the place. (any other opinions on this?) Is the weather your only concern?

I remember on one trip in the 90's, I was *shocked* to see beautiful girls will furry legs (YUCK). That was pushing it for me on the whole "natural" approach. I saw lots of this in Europe, but not in the 'ole USA...at least not in Missouri (but hey, we don't wear shoes!)

One thing that is nice about the Oregon coast is that you can't build on it. The coast is quite beautiful.

Thanks again everyone. Although I'm with you Andrew, I haven't a clue as to what USNR is talking about. I have actually found a lot of information about taxes, cost of living, etc., all over the web: http://www.realestatejournal.com/cit...rtland_or.html.

It's people's personal opinions and perceptions of the area that I'm concerned with, and yes, especially the weather. But I do appreciate all of the other information that you all feel are important for those of us who are considering moving to Oregon.

Cheers!

I live in Eugene and I agree its small and not a lot of night life- in fact I would also rather live in Portland but you get locked into a job and its hard to leave.
However I will say that I do enjoy living here- there is easy access to many of the beautiful recreational areas of Oregon- just a short drive to the McKenzie River area, to the beach, mountains, short drive up to Portland, Bend - so I like that part of it.
I have been here 15 years and there are less and less of the hippy influence all the time - the Oregon Country Fair was on this weekend and did not see the usual streams of Volkswagon vans coming into town.
I think good jobs are not easy to find -and Eugene is reported as having one of the highest costs of housing PER INCOME in the country.In a newspaper article about why people left Eugene one person was quoted as saying " we were paid in scenery."
The winter gloom does get to me at times- especially in June when I am still wearing winter clothes. The good thing though is that if you just drive over to Bend its usually sunnier over there.
Bend is a place you might consider- I think it has more going for it than Eugene- and is growing fast.

You have gotten lots of great comments about Oregon and weather. I have lived here my entire life and the weather does affect me. Sometimes it seems the gray goes on forever but then it will clear up and we'll have pretty days just to keep things even. As much as I dislike the rain, it does make it so beautiful, I just have to remind myself of that occasionally. Then spring comes and we have such appreciation for the sun and to get outside.

It gets drizzly but it never really gets that cold so you can still get out, just have to wear rain clothes.

Do research the differences in personality between Portland and Eugene. I think they are very different types of cities. Portland is more metropolitan, and Eugene feels like a smaller town and it is still hippy-ish, even if that is decreasing. I love to visit Portland but would prefer Eugene to live.

Welcome to Oregon, be prepared to recycle and enjoy the rain and green!

Sara

Hi, I just moved to Oregon from California and I love it up here. My boyfriend and I live in Bend, which is a very unique location in Oregon because they average about 300 days of sunshine a year. they do get snow in the winter but from what i hear its not much. The mountains get 300 inches and Bend is only a 20 minute drive from to the top of Mt. Bachelor. Bend is east of the cascades and about 3 hours from Portland and 2 and a half hours from Eugene. Its a very small city but it has most of what you need right here. And its growing so much new stores and restaurants are opeing all the time. If you are concerned about the weather I would recommend checking into this area. Another friend of mine moved here from Arizona and she likes it. And she is Mexican and says the mexican restaurants here a very good! And there are a number of them to choose from. The housing is going up but you can still find a good deal in this area. Good luck with your move.