Hi all
I've found loads of info on BC and Alberta, Vancouver & Calgary, and some on Cochrane, but what is it like living in Squamish?

We LOVE snowboarding and that is one of the big reasons for looking at Canada (and job/finance of course), so we really want to be near the mountains, and not live in a big city on top of people (we have dogs and need a garden), but still be close enough to the good stuff a city has to offer. We are currently in a village and love it, and only 45 mins from a city

So then, what are the good and bad points of living in Squamish, and how does it compare to Cochrane/Calgary? (weather, frienlyness, crime, ferocious wildlife, etc)
And is it reasnable to live there if working in Vancouver?

I understand that there can be problems with the road closing etc, but i've read somewhere that here are plans to develop some of the areas in Squamish and that travel time to Vancouver & the Rockies is much shorter with the sea to sky road

Would love to hear from anyone with some Squamish experience, but all advise and opinions will be great! I'd be lost without BE and you lot!

thanks
spanky sparkle xx

I went to Squamish, just to stay over for one night, and glad that is all the time I had to stay there!! In my opinion it is a very bland place compared to other parts of Canada i have been to. There is nothing to do and the town centre is just a street. I stayed there on my road trip as I wanted to see Shannon Falls there and that was a disapointment as well!! A lot of lumber jacks use it as a stop off point whilst driving to Whistler.

oh dear! i'm sad to hear that, and that's probably why the housing is relatively cheap too. i guess it's Vancouver or nothing then, at least if we want to work in Vancouver

If you like to snowboard all winter and kitesurf/windsurf all summer in world class conditions with a bit of epic mt biking and rock climbing you have landed in heaven with squamish. If you want to anything else and I mean anything, including hacking out a living, it's rather wanting.

In winter it doesn't just rain in squamish it's more like that heavy western scotland rain where if you just nip out to your parked car 10m away you are soaked to the bone.


But for outdoor sports...

squamish is nice, housing is not cheap at all, unless u want a complete fixer upper, if there is a landslide then your stuffed as you wont be able to get to Vancouver downtown or other areas, also weather is another factor if it snows lots and you get snowed in then you will not be able to drive into vancouver, there is no shopping mall just a street with crappy shops, they do have a wallmart, its just a small town that is spread out, they can accomodate the most basic needs, schools, restaurants, food shopping, nothing else really going on, it depends on what you like and what you dont like, i personally could live there but others could or wouldnt, mountains well you are so close to them, everywhere you look there are mountains, its more of a stop off in between whistler and vancouver, lots of police out daily on the main road doing car spot checks, high crime rate from what iv been told, nice friendly bunch of people, lot of people that live there tend to work in whistler.......thats it really....nothing special but each to their own really, not much work prospects again as its just a small spread out town, food is really nice though lots of nice restaurants about.......

They were widening the road to Squamish when I was there earlier this year, going to dual carriageway, which looks like it would help as you could easily get stuck behind something struggling up the hills.

I seem to recall there was a fair sized supermarket in the town but it was pretty quiet.

save on foods and walmart as far as i know.....

Ah thanks, it was probably Save On Foods I went to, the one next to the road back to Vancouver.

Really liked the train museum there, but not really so good for anyone other than tourists.

How long have you spent there?

Squamish area is OK, many towns in Canada are bland, its the scenery around that makes them so spectacular. There are some nice locations around Squamish, but you have missed the low prices. Since the Olympics came to town prices have jumped and for many who cannot afford Whistler, Squamish is the closest. There is a plan for a new ski resort around Squamish too.

The road upgrade has cost millions and benefited few. It was done because the 'road was dangerous'. Not sure how a road can be dangerous, the drivers on it were and still are crazy at times. There was a rock slide last year that shut the road for a few days, but this is not a common occurrence.

Many do the road trip into Vancouver from there, it is about a 40 - 60 minute drive. Would not worry about the time to the Rockies from there, it is about 10 hours drive.

Personally I prefer Squamish/Vancouver area over Calgary. Although the prairies have their own charm it was not for me as a place to live.

If you want close proximity (under an hour) to skiing/snowboarding, take a look at some of BC's interior towns and cities too. Kelowna (Big White), Vernon (Silver Star), Kamloops (Sun Peaks) and Revelstoke (Revelstoke Mountain) all have excellent ski hills easily accessible, and the Rockies are only a mornings drive (or less) away.

I have a few clients in Squamish so visit every now and again. I also have a friend who lives in Squamish and comutes to a job in North Vancouver.

Squamish bills itself as the "outdoor recreation centre of Canada" and I would not argue the point. It is in an incredibly beautiful setting. You pay for the setting with rain, but when the sun comes out then, wow.

The townscape is nothing special - no better or worse than most small towns. It is growing but still feels very much like a village. It fits very well with the OP's wish to live in a small place with access to a big city. Outside of rush hour downtown Vancouver is easily drivable in 60 minutes - and it is a gorgeous drive.

There are new subdivisions on the outskirts of the town so there is a selection of housing types. Unfortunately, as others have said, it is not that cheap any more.

Squamish is an outdoor mecca - mt biking, rock climbing, kite surfing, hiking overload... It's roughly 30 mins from Whistler and an hour to d/town Vancouver. Road closuers do happen in the winter but I wouldn't worry about that, it's pretty rare plus the road upgrade should help.

On the flip side the place is a bit of a dump and theres no real town centre. As for housing, in the past year a lot of new townhomes have been built due to the road extension and overflow from the property boom in Whistler. Plus a Save on Foods (supermarket) and Home Depot (B&Q) have also gone in.

Personally I'd rather live in North Vancouver, or Whistler itself - but Squamish will be cheaper.

As RICH suggested, if it's snowboarding you're into and Vancouver or Whistler doesn't float your boat, check out Revelstoke. What do you do for a living?

EDIT:
Another thing to consider. There's no night skiing at Whistler, but if you live in Vancouver you can hit the north shore mountains until 10pm. Not the best turns you'll ever throw down but there's just something about taking the board into work, and heading straight to the slopes after

popped through there last week. The road between Vancouver and Whistler isn't far off finished and they are building more shops in the town. People seemed very friendly and the view of the mountains all around you from the town centre was nice. The drive into the city from there was very pretty. The petrol was more expensive than in the city though.

Another consideration is the town is a bit of a dump, but it is improving. With improved access and possibly a new ski resort, it could well be the next whistler and prices could still rise. Whistler was something of nothing 20 years ago. I find Whistler very false, lots of hooray Henrys', much prefer surrounding areas, to the south if Vancouver commute is necessary and to the north if it is not.