Pagosa Springs and Unrealistic Expections???

VISITOR COMMENT:

I hunted every year from 1975 to 1993 just south of Pagosa, camping near Buckle’s Lake above Chromo. Sometimes staying in Harvey’s Motel. My intention was to come to Pagosa Springs upon retiring, buy a cabin, & live out my days. I came to town last summer to look for a place & was quite surprised! I’m sure the land speculators & Real Estaters have done well, but the charm is gone. Sorry, too crowded & I’ll look to spend my days elsewhere. Not for me anymore.
Joe

ANSWER:

I can relate to Joe’s frustration a little. Joe evidently had not visited Pagosa Springs in about 15 years. While the rest of the country was growing and expanding, Joe must have thought that Pagosa would just stay the way he remembered it. Small, quaint, funky, etc. But while the rest of the country was growing, more and more retirees like Joe began to settle in the Pagosa area.  They bought property and built their dream homes. Along with the incoming retirees, came the builders and sub contractors to build those dream homes. Our population grew from about 5,000 population in 1977 (when I moved here) to about 12,000 today (county wide). Along with the people came a bigger grocery store, more really nice restaurants, and a lot of other shops and stores. Back in the “Good Old Days” Pagosa’s residents had to drive to Durango or Farmington for almost everything. We usually made a monthly trip to stock up on groceries and everything else we needed. Now, most of what our residents need is available locally. I remember when there was only one really “nice” evening restaurant (Old Miners Steak House) to go to for a fine dining experience. Now there are a number of really nice restaurants for fine dining – either for breakfast, lunch or diner.

So is the charm gone? Pagosa Springs may used to have been “charming” – but it was also pretty boring and very hard to make a living in. Now it is more prosperous and fun and convenient – maybe a little less charming and quaint. But I have lived here for over 31 years. There is still a lot of charm I think and it is not quite so boring as 30 years ago. Progress is happening everywhere and the sometimes the unrealistic expectations of would be “settlers” of the Pagosa Springs area clash with that progress. However, I would like to remind the critics of progress that we are still a very small town and sparsely populated county surrounded by some of the most beautiful country anywhere. 2.5 million acres of National Forest surround us and a quarter million acre Wilderness Area is right out our back door full of adventure. I remember telling many of my customers that this is Huckleberry Finn country. You can do just about anything here from back packing to day hiking, from driving the many forest roads to 4 wheeling the back country, from fishing to hunting, from skiing to relaxing in the elegant Pagosa hot springs. Adventure! That’s still Pagosa. It is easy to leave the crowded highway and find solitude and adventure just 15 minutes from downtown Pagosa Springs. What more could you want? I guess that is why people moved here.

Have a Great New Year,

Jim Smith

Owner Jim Smith Realty – Pagosa’s Oldest and Largest Real Estate Firm

Short URL: http://pagosasprings.com/?p=249

Posted by Jim on Jan 3 2009. Filed under Pagosa Living. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. Both comments and pings are currently closed.