Christopher,
It might be worth your time to research Reno. As was mentioned earlier, Reno is in a period of economic development (they call it the Renoissance). They are hoping to turn the city into a tech hub. And there are the large casinos which always need network security people.
Relative to the traffic you’re dealing with in the Bay Area, you’ll find Reno traffic very light.
UNR is developing a cybersecurity center. If you could get a job teaching, I bet you would have a lot of free time to hike around Tahoe. Alternatively, the Washoe County sheriffs have a cyber-crime center that you might find work at as a consultant. I suspect that would also be a short work day.
Everyone I know here calls them “the Sierras” so you won’t have to learn a new pronunciation.
Kris