Located, Located, Located

They’ve done it again: Fingered another undiscovered California town as a great place to live and to get away from it all. The little town of Etna, in far Northern California, was selected this month by Outside magazine as one of “20 Dream Towns: The New and Best Places to Live & Play.” The cover story touts them as adventure hide-outs and sweet land deals. Etna, population 780, is described as “The Golden State’s Last Best Place.”

It’s not a new gimmick, going back as it does to the venerable Places Rated Almanac, which has surveyed metropolitan areas since 1981. Soon the adventure magazine joined the game. Bishop, in the eastern Sierra, has been hailed by a number of journals as one of the country’s hottest outdoor recreation centers and was cited by Men’s Journal in 1996 as one of “America’s Coolest Mountain Towns.”

Down the road, U.S. 395, Lone Pine has been celebrated in Men’s Health as “One of the 50 Healthiest Towns” and by Men’s Journal as among the best places to live in the United States.

Rock climbers, backpackers and anglers have been discovering Bishop for years. But it’s growing so rapidly now that one mountain guide who bought a house in a new tract on the edge of town was accused of moving to Orange County.

Lone Pine always has been a center for the thousands who flock to hike up or climb Mt. Whitney, the highest U.S. summit outside of Alaska. Lone Pine, where the best place to eat used to be the pizza joint, and others now feature gourmet restaurants. Can resort-spas be far behind?

The Outside article, an eye on its readership, spreads the honors around. Among the “Best 20” is Lander, Wyo., in a state featured this week in The Times as a growing retirement spot. Also Lanesboro, Minn., and Lincolnville, Maine. Maybe “cold and damp” was mistaken for “invigorating.”

Actually, rating no more than one for a state is a good thing. Once a town such as Etna is discovered, its days as “Last Best Place” are numbered. In fact, the Outside article notes, “equity-rich retirees from elsewhere in California are starting to discover the area, so prices are creeping upward.” There goes the neighborhood.

Oh, well. There’s still Markleeville, in isolated Alpine County