BAMbrick

Hey guys,

Popping in from the high desert of California and I have been looking at a possible engineering job that would take me towards working somewhere near silverdale, bremerton etc etc. After taking a vacation up to Seattle and Portland, I've been contemplating the northwest more. We ended up on Bainbridge Island but not anywhere near Silverdale. So what's the scoop of that general area?

I live in an isolated city of 20k people that is roughly 1.5 hours from any "city" shopping. We have a wal-mart, 3 grocery stores and a home depot as far as big chain stores go. So 90 minutes to a big city wouldn't be anything new.

We get 3.8 inches of rain ANNUALLY, so that would definitely be different. However, I get tired of 6 months of wind and then 6 months of heat. That and you guys might kill me, but I am so tired of constant sunny days, my wife and I are contemplating a change in climate. Our trip to the pacific northwest was in May, so I would like to go sometime in the winter to get a feel for it then.

Any words of wisdom from my vette friends of that general area (silverdale/bremerton,neighboring cities)? Housing?
Anyone daily drive their vettes?



Here's some pics of my 1999 Nassau Blue FRC

ramcharger

I'm from Texas and I can sincerely say that while the weather here is novel for a few years, if you are from a climate that has regular sun, you will eventually be driven crazy by the incessant grey skies and cold weather. If the job is perfect and the compensation offsets the cost of living increase and is much more than you would earn in a place with decent weather, then do it. Otherwise, count your blessings that you don't live in this part of the world.

Oh, beautiful FRC, by the way. Very nice car.

Crabr1

Kinda harsh words to say about the pnw. Alot of us like living here. Want to come over and kick my dog also.

c4cruiser

Bremerton is a Navy town as you probably had noticed. Silverdale is near the Bangor submarine base. There is growth in the Silverdale area and there are malls and shopping areas. You can catch a ferry to Seattle and avoid the traffic.

Your avatar suggests you like track days. We have Pacific Raceways, Portland Int'l Raceway, Oregon Raceway Park, Spokane Raceway and a new track scheduled to open this September in Shelton (near Olympia). Thunderhill is an easy overnight drive.

Rain? Sure it rains here but IMHO, that's why there is so much green in the summer. Summer temps are usually mild (70-80) with maybe one or two 100 degree days. Summers are great especially if you are near water. And there is lots of water for recreation. There isn't a lot of lowland snow in the winter; typically a few inches that doesn't last for more than a few days. Then there is the hiking in the mountains, skiing, hunting, fishing, and the scenery.

Politically, the state is Liberal in the big cities, while eastern WA is more conservative. No state income tax, but there is a sales tax that can run to 10% in big cities like Seattle. Car tabs are cheap compared to CA. Gas is high, but probably colse to what you pay now in CA.

BAMbrick

I appreciate the replies and look forward to more. We thoroughly enjoyed our vacation up in seattle in late may and have been looking up general information about the area since then. From what I have been able to tell, the general area is very much like where I live now (Smaller City, Naval Base being a big employer, roughly an hour away from a large city, etc etc.) Just a lil greener
I've lived in San Diego, the coast 45 mins north of Los Angeles; my wife has lived in santa barbara and we would still rather try washington over moving back to something familiar. My wife and I are young and want to try something new for a couple years before we start a family. The running joke about where I live and work is that people come out to this desert town for a couple years of experience with the idea of moving somewhere nicer later. Then 20 years later, they find that they never left. I imagine with the naval base and city there, it might be something similar :P

I take it the summer time makes surviving the rest of the year worth it out there?

Thanks C4cruiser about the information about the tracks, I would love to still be able to do some track days when the urge takes over me

last901

Nicely and succinctly put. I would add that we typically get something like 37" in annual rainfall. Unlike other parts of the country, like the Gulf Coast, we don't get it all the same day. Still, we do get a lot of grey overcast days. Could be worse. At least we just go on about our usual routines, if covered with moss most of the fall and early winter months. I've lived here most of my life and, thanks to anti-depressents and a bright light I have attached to the underside of my Mariners' baseball cap I can live with it.

Think of Seattle (and or Portland) as Omaha, but with a mountain. And you will discover the wonders of "Gortex".

Looking forward to having you up here with us.

VIK TOY

we live 1/2 way between Portland and Salem. Raised in So Cal (Long Beach area) and then moved to Maui for 10 yrs. Been here since 1997 & still not used to it. It is June and still 60s&70s. But, it is beautiful in Oregon and WA-very green (and liberal). WA people come to Portland to see the sun!! We don't tan, we rust!

last901

Interesting. So tell us,how was life living on Maui? I've been there but twice and found it beautiful, but I became "Island Bound" or sort of marooned or trapped after a week or so.

I also found everything to be relatively expensive. Food at supermarkets and all. Is it true Hawaii has a 2-tier pricing system? One for the tourists and a lower one for the residents?

tomZ51

Whether the weather be good or whether the weather be not, the weather will be the weather, whether you like it or not.

Wa state is all about the weather. Out side of that and the politics and taxes, this is a great place to live! I live against the Cascades and we get a lot more rain than other places. We average over 100 inches annually. This year is especially tough.

The tracks are great. I put on DE events for the Porsche Club and help with the Corvette Club. I also put on Tom's Track Day events for advanced drivers. We are blessed to be so close to many tracks with different personalities.

I lived in San Diego and My son is there now. That is a BEAUTIFUL place to live!

dugcyn

gotta be your choice but for thought. you can change what your hoby's are, you can change where you do it (in-out doors), you can change your mood, but you cannot change the weather. you are in control of much else.
I polish me car in the shop some times, i love to camp, hike boat etc. but either i do it when we have the short good weather, not or dress for it and go. its not far to snow or desert (few hours).
natures beauty is un matchable up here in my opinion.

Doug

duckvett

I am a long way from Bremerton / Silverdale, but I am on the wet side of the mountains. Like you I moved here from the high desert - hot & dusty in summer, cold, snow & wind in the winter. When it is raining (usually November thru April - this year has been exceptional) I just keep telling myself "you don't have to shovel rain".

You will find that you develop new hobbies and activities on the west side of the state, like salmon & steelhead fishing on some of the most beautiful rivers ever seen, snow skiing and volcano watching. And our summers are glorious.

gsport

i lived in calif for over 50 years and moved here four years ago when i retired... i only miss the weather and my son/grandkids....

BAMbrick

Enjoying the replies, thanks guys.
I definitely hear you about changing hobbies due to the weather. It's all about adapting. In the summer time out here, you do the fun stuff either before 8am or at dusk so you dont melt. That or you make friends with someone who has a pool
Yesterday i made the mistake of not putting my windshield cover on (mistake #1) and parking with the front of my car facing the west (mistake #2). I dropped into my seat and nearly burned my bare triceps on the leather. I had to drive and shift with my finger tips and lean forward to keep my back off my seat until the A/C really kicked in! Yesterday was a reminder it is definitely summer time.

I've bookmarked a couple news websites of the kistap and seattle area, as well as a site that has some pretty good webcams overlooking the sound and showing the weather. I've done my fair share of exploring the desert and other sites in california, and i think my wife and i are getting pretty serious about wanting to make the eventual move.

We have some obligations to stay in the area for at least 6 months, but with the more we find out, the more curious we get about wanting to try something different and move. I wish I had some more questions at the moment but I don't. I'm enjoying everyone's comments though, both good and bad

VIK TOY

It was fantastic. Would move back in a minute if we could afford the housing now. We left when jobs were down and got transfered here. Never had "Island Fever" too much to see! yes there are different costs for locals(Kamaainas) and tourists. 15% discount. Takes about one year to be accepted and then you are hugged and they are the friendliest people you can meet.(unlike when we moved to Oregon) Costs on fruit &vegs & beef were less than here,because neighbors just gave you their extra produce&cattle ranch on the Big Island. but gas OUCH! I would trade avocados from my tree for lunch!

Worthington

I was born and raised here so I think I'm allowed to be as critical as I'd like.

With that said, the rain/clouds are depressing and I often fantasize about living somewhere with more sunshine (however I won't leave family so I won't be going anywhere).

If you don't like overcast/rain the majority of the year this probably isn't the place for you.

Our summers are probably nicer than anywhere else. It's green and the temperature is perfect. We also appreciate it a lot more than most I imagine.

I made a recent trip to Az for the first time and we both noted that although the blue skies were great -it would be hard to leave all the green we have in the NW. It looked very dreary there and the 100 degree days caught up to us quickly

Considering we have the ocean nearby, mountains that have snow during the winter and great hiking when there isn't snow -there is a lot to do here.

As others have said too, there are many great sights to see. It really is a gorgeous state when the damn sun stays out. The overcast and rain part just kills me sometimes though.

last901

Don't know if this helps... (forgive me, but it does sort of give you an idea of what it must be like to live up here)

http://www.afsp.org/index.cfm?fuseac...C1494E2FADB8EA

Worthington

Wow, it's not as bad as I thought. I had heard awhile back that we were one of the top -obviously that's not the case

last901

Interesting to note, in terms of raw numbers, how high on the list the "sunshine" states are compared to us up here in moss country.

CPP1

I live in Vancouver, WA...just across river from Portland, OR. Living up in the Bremerton area would be awesome...consider yourself lucky to have the opportunity to live there!

MasterDave

It is absolutely beautiful here in the summer......but for me, the few weeks we get of sun/beauty/greenery is just not worth it anymore. I'm retired and moving out of state to sunny Tucson! The differences are miles apart from each other but there is beauty in high desert also, it's just different is all.