Hi Russell- For a long time I wanted to bake sourdough bread but had
no access to a good starter (didn't want to make my own). The best
advice I got was to just go into a bakery that I loved and ask them
for some. Fortunately, at the time, I was living in Berkeley and just
went over to Acme, brought a jar in with me, and asked them for
some. They filled the jar so full that the starter was exploding out
by the time I got home. Anyways, moral of the story is, find a good
artisan bakery in your area and just ask them for some. Most good
bakers are really willing to help another baker out (as evidenced by
this fabulous list) and they will probably be happy to give you some
of their starter.
Hope that helps!
~katie