Any takers? Distant possibility of a relocation. What’s it like-- I have no concept of the area, being from the west coast.
I’ve never been there myself, but my best friend and her husband vacation there every summer, and take shorter trips whenever they can. They love everything about it. Food, prices, people, scenery, things to do, manageable traffic.
I’m going “Duluth”? “Duluth, Minnesota”? Yep.
Their other favorite place is Chicago, if that comparison helps at all.
I lived in Duluth for 2 years in the early '80s. I say it’s a non-starter, unless you have very few other options. The winters are really freaking long! Vacationing there in summer, fine, short trips, OK, whatever. You haven’t done Duluth until you have endured a snowed-in winter from the beginning of November until something like April. The economy took a major hit and population dropped from 100,000 to about 80,000. Lots of boarded up businesses, etc.
My husband and I visited last spring (in April, and there was ice on the ponds). We had the worst Chinese food I’d had in ages. The restaurant had been voted best Chinese in town…
If you think you might like it, go up now, in March. If you happen to go up in summer and get the one nice day they’ll probably have that year, don’t let it fool you.
As far as traffic, I don’t think that’s too big an issue, but it is quite difficult driving on icy roads in a city built on a very steep hill.
Respectfully Submitted, Not a Member of the Duluth Fan Club
I got my Computer Science degree at UMD.
The weather is definitely not a selling point. I never had it as bad as Harriet the Spry, but the winters are not pleasant. If you’re used to a warm climate, it’ll be a real shock. But the winters weren’t significantly worse there than I’ve experienced in southern Minnesota.
Harriet is definitely right about the steep roads. The city is basically one big hill. One of my roommates in college was from California, and she described Duluth as, “San Fransisco with snow.” If you’re not used to driving on ice or snow, it’ll take lots of nerve-wracking experience to get used to it. There are some buses, but I never used them and don’t know how useful they are for getting around the city.
Overall I really liked Duluth. However, to me it was almost a metropolis. It has roughly 4 times the population of my hometown. It felt very alive and active to me. To someone from larger city it might seem rather quiet and dull. Lake Superior is beautiful, but if you’re used to seeing an ocean you probably won’t be impressed.
It’s hard to know what to say about it though, since I’ve never been to the west coast and therefore can’t compare and contrast easily.
I got my psych degree at UMD. I grew up in the U.P, so winter wasn’t an issue. Also, if you live in the dorms, it’s possible to go anywhere on campus without venturing outside. I had a great experience, academically, and would have no qualms about recommending it to anyone.
Big college/tourist town. You have the College of St. Scholastica, the University of Minnesota Duluth, Lake Superior Community College, Fond du Lac Community College and across the bay, the University of Wisconsin-Superior. Gorgeous scenery, its built along LaKe Superiors north shore. You have the bay with the giant ocean liners coming and going. There’s a big taconite industry up in that area. Very hilly city and remote. Not alot around or beyond it. The city itself is about 80k population and not very diverse.
The Boundary Waters Canoe Area isn’t too far from it and offers great canoeing/camping. The weather is another thing. Last week it was around -20F. Annually they get about 80 inches of snow. True Minnesota type winters. I personally wouldn’t like to live there. It’s great to visit and drive through, but it’s too small for me. It has a definite “Hick” feel to it.
It’s not that remore, a 2-hour drive gets you into the Twin Cities.