seeking small rural town for relocation

[Rexicana]

I think there are a lot of places like this and each has a little different character. Around here, Temple, Nelson and Harrisville are *really* pretty and you can get quite a rural feeling there. Temple is the closest to Boston of those three and would get you there in about an hour and twenty minutes. Wilton, as someone else said, is even closer and has an actual downtown.

[bogieMA]

Thanks again for all the suggestions. I did recently visit Amherst, with some quick looks at Mont Vernon and Wilton as well. Loved the New England look and feel of Amherst's village center and the backroads in Mont Vernon and Wilton were lovely. I am also hoping to visit Mason, Brookline and Hollis, although some very preliminary research makes me wary that Brookline and Hollis are facing alot of development in the future (Although I stress that my research hasn't been very thorough yet - it's only what I could glean from reading some things online, like strategic planning documents. The residents of these towns are the real experts and they may not agree with my assessment, so if I'm wrong, please let me know.)

One other town that caught my interest (thanks to your suggestions!) was Temple. I haven't been able to visit yet, but from the town's website it seems very rural but also with an actual Town Common. The citizens also seem to be committed to preserving the town's quiet way of life, but again, that's only based on the website. If anyone has any more info on Temple, I would love to hear from you.

My concern would be the commute into Boston. I currently work from home one day a week and could possibly increase that to two, so it might not be that bad. I currently commute to Boston from the South Shore of MA (close to Cape Cod but not quite as far south), and it's definitely no picnic. True, my traveling distance miles-wise to Boston now is shorter than it would be from the towns I'm considering in NH, but because we only have one major expressway from the south (Rte 3, and then Rte 93 into Boston), our traffic is horrendous. So I know that the traffic from NH - MA and vice versa must be bad, but I have a hard time believing it's as bad as from the south. If anyone has experienced both, your opinion would be much appreciated. Thanks again!

[WannaComeHome]

Temple... it's out near me (well, where I will be). I remember it used to have a ski slope on Temple Mt - biggest problem I remember (back in the 60s) was in really bad snows the road would close and my brothers and sisters couldn't get home from their jobs on the mt! Maybe it's gotten better, but there is still Temple Mt to consider regarding winter commute.

But on the possibly interesting side (depending on your point of view), there's an article in the Monadnock Ledger titled " Temple leads the way in reducing greenhouse gases: Cool Monadnock project targets 36 towns" Monadnock Ledger-Transcript : Serving the Heart of the Monadnock Region not entirely sure what to make of it, but there it is.

[Rexicana]

Temple Mtn ski area is alas no more, but has been joyfully repurposed into the wonderful Wapack Trail Wapack Trail - Friends of the Wapack.

You would be on the down side of the mountain in the Winter, so I would think the commute would be OK (my husband goes over the mtn and it is OK for him).

To get from Peterborough to Burlington is 1 hr 20 minutes, maybe 1 hr 30 min. It is no walk in the park. Temple is ten minutes closer, and Boston, without traffic, is 15 minutes farther than Burlington.

If you are looking for a shorter commute though, you may want to consider something like Hollis or even Tyngsboro MA.

I grew up on the South Shore and the traffic there is *nasty* now. The only area up north that is comparable is 95 between 93 and the Pike.

Temple is a beautiful, quiet small town. It has some farms and some developments. People I know who live there seem to use both Peterborough and Wilton for services. Some of the roads are steep (well, relatively -I still shake when I think of the CA ones) and windy. The main ones are fine.

[JCPTNH08]

I agree that driving over Temple Mountain in the winter can be hellish. They close it from time to time in the winter due to accidents. Personally, I'd be looking at towns east of Temple Mountain - Wilton, Lyndeborough, Mason, Hollis etc. Even then, I don't envy you commuting to Boston. If you're taking the T, then fine, but driving can be a looong commute, and it can be unpredictable. I drove to Boston every 6 weeks or so for two years to get my boyfriend to Logan for either 7am or 5pm, depending on the flight. Sometimes those trips were a piece of cake - in and out. Other trips, even though I was traveling at the same times could take upwards of 5 hours round trip. The worst was a three and a half hour trip from Peterborough to Logan. You just never know about traffic there.