"Hippy" small towns (New London, Lanesboro: bike, baptist, area)

[Kar54]

I know this is the Minnesota forum, but I saw "hippy" small towns and had to note my favorite:

Telluride, CO...

Gorgeous place to visit, as close as one can get to "Switzerland in America".

And home to many a granola-munching, Birkenstock-wearing, grey-haired, pony-tail sporting, ganja-puffing happy hippy.

Not that there's anything wrong with that, dude.

[601halfdozen0theother]

When I glanced at the thread title I thought it said "Happy" small towns. That would be a nice thing to look for!

Old thread, but basically most of LaCrosse, Vernon and Crawford counties in Wisconsin, Wabasha, Winona and Houston counties in Minnesota, and Winneshiek and Allamakee Counties in Iowa would work for someone hunting to a similar kind of place the OP sought.

[jmgg]

Definitely the place in Minnesota that's "hippiest" would be Bigelow. It sits right on the Minnesota/Iowa border and is only about 5 miles from the highest elevation in Iowa, Hawkeye Point. I've heard there's a little old man who sits on top of the towering 1667' peak answering any questions of all those who dare to climb the dangerous pathways. There you can pursue the meaning of life, pick thistle flowers and dance in the surrounding alfalfa fields. Wild marijuana can also be found to help expand your mind.

It's really groovy!!!

[Minntoaz]

Originally Posted by jmgg

Definitely the place in Minnesota that's "hippiest" would be Bigelow. It sits right on the Minnesota/Iowa border and is only about 5 miles from the highest elevation in Iowa, Hawkeye Point. I've heard there's a little old man who sits on top of the towering 1667' peak answering any questions of all those who dare to climb the dangerous pathways. There you can pursue the meaning of life, pick thistle flowers and dance in the surrounding alfalfa fields. Wild marijuana can also be found to help expand your mind.

It's really groovy!!!

Colorado.

[Unsettomati]

Originally Posted by matthewmatthewmatthew

Hello!

I'm considering relocating from MPLS to a smaller city/town. It'd have to be within 5 hours of Minneapolis, and it'd be best if it was within 2-3 hours or less from the cities. Here's my list of wants:

-job opportunities for teachers (Math/Special Ed licensed)
-vegan friendly (within 45m of a co op)
-Quaker Meeting nearby
-bike friendly
-some sort of music scene (esp. bluegrass)
-left leaning politically
-decent amount of people around my age (mid to late 20's)
-near farmland, especially organic

I'm looking more towards the South East: river towns and such. I know that small towns aren't Minneapolis and I may not find everything I want. I'm not interested in moving to Duluth (too cold).

Winona seems like the obvious choice, given the communes and the college and everything, but it seems like jobs are harder to come by in Winona. Would La Crosse, WI be a good option? I've heard good things about Dubuque, IA, too. Are there cities/towns I'm overlooking?

I know not all the towns I'm looking at are in MN, but i figured it made more since to post here than U.S.A. because I'm coming from MN and most of the towns I'm interested in are in MN or on the border.

Thanks!

--Matthew

As others have noted, you've described Northfield - but I certainly wouldn't characterize it is a 'hippy town'. There's lots of soccer moms, lots of college students, lots of lutherans and lots of liberals (with, it should be noted, a smaller but very vocal and very conservative local faction).

Originally Posted by northstar22

I'd avoid Northfield because it's basically a suburb of the Cities. It's only 15 minutes from Lakeville and will probably fall victim to Cities sprawl within the next decade.

Northfield is not remotely a suburb of the Cities. The urban sprawl ends at Farmington, 12 miles to the north, and it hasn't crept south of the Highway 70/212th Street line in the four-plus years since you made this post. The larger an urban area becomes, the slower its radial growth even if it keeps growing at the same pace, due to basic geometry. The metro area is expected to add 700,000 people in the next quarter century - if it stopped growing in every direction but due south it would probably reach Northfield by then - but since it obviously won't do that, it'll still be 8-10 miles away even at that date decades from now.

[KsStorm]

Originally Posted by forestoflowers

Currie is the town for you...it needs a health food store or a coop however, as well as an organic farm and a rock & roll band. Then I assure you life will be perfect....u can buy a farmhouse for 1000 down & 500 a month...plant your garden...corn, tomatoes, ganja, lettuce and anything else...bring your tribe with u, carefully selected...I wanna see happies working the soil. Currie Minnesota...a truly lovely town.

Sounds heavenly to me!

[KsStorm]

[bler144]

Old post, but Northfield would be missing a "decent amount" of people in mid/late-20s. Both St. Olaf and Carleton are almost wholly traditional age schools, and I don't believe either offers graduate programs.

There will be a few alums and locals who stick around to work at the colleges or in other jobs, but it'll be slim pickings both for social life and dating. Not impossible, but challenging.

Per the 2010 census, the % of Northfield residents between 25-34 was 8.9%. By comparison Mpls was 21%, and national average was 13.3%.

[Old Prospector]

Originally Posted by matthewmatthewmatthew

Hello!

I'm considering relocating from MPLS to a smaller city/town. It'd have to be within 5 hours of Minneapolis, and it'd be best if it was within 2-3 hours or less from the cities. Here's my list of wants:

-job opportunities for teachers (Math/Special Ed licensed)
-vegan friendly (within 45m of a co op)
-Quaker Meeting nearby
-bike friendly
-some sort of music scene (esp. bluegrass)
-left leaning politically
-decent amount of people around my age (mid to late 20's)
-near farmland, especially organic

I'm looking more towards the South East: river towns and such. I know that small towns aren't Minneapolis and I may not find everything I want. I'm not interested in moving to Duluth (too cold).

Winona seems like the obvious choice, given the communes and the college and everything, but it seems like jobs are harder to come by in Winona. Would La Crosse, WI be a good option? I've heard good things about Dubuque, IA, too. Are there cities/towns I'm overlooking?

I know not all the towns I'm looking at are in MN, but i figured it made more since to post here than U.S.A. because I'm coming from MN and most of the towns I'm interested in are in MN or on the border.

Thanks!

--Matthew

what did you decide ?

[theedgeoflight]

I'm sorry but I had to laugh. Looking for a Quaker meeting nearby but left leaning politically. Is that possible?