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Hello. Okay I need some advice. Husband is considering a job transfer from Fort Worth to Western Pa. His office would be in Delmont so it would need to be within a hours drive. We would be leaving all our friends and family so I need somewhere that will take my breath away and keep me and the kids occupied. We love love love the outdoors, hiking, canoeing, biking, swimming, & just exploring. We are leaving a somewhat small town of 20,000 people where everyone knows everyone. I have visited up there during the fall a few months ago but only for a couple of days so I only got to see downtown Pitt and the town of Sewickley. From my research online my top places I want to visit is... 1.Grennsburg 2. McCandless Township 3. Johnstown. I just want family friendly, parks, safe, beautiful, close to shopping & entertainment, a walkable town, and preferably where the people are friendly like in Texas Any advice would be so appreciated. Super scared but excited. Thanks in advance.
OP, there are many people from Oklahoma and Texas in the Greensburg-Latrobe area, which includes Hempfield and Unity townships. You can check those out!
I kind of enjoyed last summer. Kayaking is pretty popular on the rivers as are motor boats. Plenty of people fish around the area, a freind of mine enjoys sailing his ness yawl on lake Arthur which is only about a hour away from the city. Personally I am very into horseback riding and my horse is stabled about 30 minutes from town.
Pa has plenty to offer and I a sure that whichever neighborhood you chose you will find plenty of friendly people.
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We visited Ligonier in summer and its a quaint little town. We found two good restaurants and an excellent bar and coffee shop, and chatted to some friendly locals. Certainly surrounded by some beautiful hills for hiking, lakes for kayaking, and all very close. We did a great hike at a lake in the Laurel Highlands, saw some stunning 300+ year old growth forest, and swam afterwards. It was delightful, and that was mid September. If that's what you're looking for, the location is certainly right.
I can only second that. They haven't left their dark, trollish basements for at least a decade, so have absolutely no idea what Pittsburgh is like. And have no intention of finding out as it would ruin their preconceived notions.
We visited Ligonier in summer and its a quaint little town. We found two good restaurants and an excellent bar and coffee shop, and chatted to some friendly locals. Certainly surrounded by some beautiful hills for hiking, lakes for kayaking, and all very close. We did a great hike at a lake in the Laurel Highlands, saw some stunning 300+ year old growth forest, and swam afterwards. It was delightful, and that was mid September. If that's what you're looking for, the location is certainly right.
Thank you for the information...sounds kinda perfect.
FYI, Pitt = The University in Oakland with the ugly campus. It's a common mistake made by outsiders to use "Pitt" as an abbreviation for Pittsburgh. For future reference, "PGH" is the preferred abbreviation.
But anywhoot, pretty much anything in eastern Westmoreland County and Fayette County would be a fine fit. The Laurel Highlands is one of the loveliest areas in the country, and yunz should be able to find an affordable place in those areas without much trouble.
I love the outdoors. Moving from Houston to Western Pennsylvania was like moving to paradise. Three percent of Texas land is available for public access; more than 30% of Pennsylvania land is public. State forests blanket the Appalachians and its foothills. There's a bike path from Pittsburgh all the way to DC. The mountain lake beaches in the state parks are pretty and cool; the state brings in tons of sand. My favorite is Keystone (which happens to be close to Delmont). Unlike Texas, there is no "too-hot" season. Dress correctly for winter, grab a sled, and there ya go.
Ligonier is a real nice, walkable, small town. Much smaller than 20,000. It's about the size of Jefferson, Texas. But with a grocery store. Actually almost any borough is walkable, but not many are pretty. Most either have a working factory or the remnants of one plopped in the middle. That's the problem with Johnstown - a bunch of abandoned and working factories just about integrated with the residential areas. It's quite a pretty town though, nestled in a mountain valley. Ligonier doesn't have any factories.
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We love love love the outdoors, hiking, canoeing, biking, swimming, & just exploring. We are leaving a somewhat small town of 20,000 people where everyone knows everyone. I have visited up there during the fall a few months ago but only for a couple of days so I only got to see downtown Pitt and the town of Sewickley. From my research online my top places I want to visit is... 1.Grennsburg 2. McCandless Township 3. Johnstown. I just want family friendly, parks, safe, beautiful, close to shopping & entertainment, a walkable town, and preferably where the people are friendly like in Texas 
