Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
Think long, think strong about the Carolinas......eek!!!!! This is coming from someone trying to relocate away from that area.....But then again.. you might like the area....."different strokes for different folks.....but as someone who just turned 40.....I would look west...such as places like Alburquerque/Denver/Phoenix/Dallas. Again..just an opinion. :0
I think Roanoke, Va. would be a city that fits many of your suggestions. It's certainly not a large city by any means, but it's a nice, laid back city nestled in the beautiful Blue Ridge Mountains. And even though it's not that large, if you don't want to live right in the city, there's plenty of communities (or suburbs) around it that are very nice.
The city itself has many festivals throughout the year, especially during the summer. There's a pretty good music scene here, not as much as in larger cities, but not bad. A lot of the downtown eateries host bands at night. There's a lot of restaurants here, especially locally owned. You'll find plenty to eat downtown if you are not looking for chain restaurants. And once out of downtown, there's plenty of chains.
The Roanoke Valley has plenty of recreational opportunities. Roanoke is located very close to the Blue Ridge Parkway, which has many campgrounds along it. There are many, many hiking trails and walkways in the area. There's also a mountain that is only minutes away from downtown that has a small zoo on top, plus the famous 'Roanoke Star'. For fishing, the most popular spot is the Smith Mountain Lake, which is about 30-45 minutes away. The city is also home to a very large Hospital complex, Carilion.
There are a couple cons though off your list. Roanoke is located in the western part of the state, so it is more like 4-5 hours to the closet beach. Also, there are no pro sports teams near Roanoke, although Virginia Tech, which is close by, has many great college sport programs. And Salem, a city next door to Roanoke, is home to the Salem Red Sox (a minor league baseball team)
You were already recommended Richmond I see, but you said it was a little too far north, so this could also possibly be a problem, although Roanoke is located a tad farther south. Overall, we have four distinct seasons here, with the summer usually not obsessively hot, and the winter not obsessively cold or snowy. Also the cost of living here is low compared to many other cities.
If you need any more information feel free to message me. Most of this information and more you can see for yourself when you check out citydata's Roanoke profile. Hope this helps.
You realize that you are replying to a thread that was last updated 6+ years ago, right?
No...actually I didn't, until now. Oh well. Thanks.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
