Panhandle or Hill Country? Torn between the two (Houston, San Antonio: townhouse, salary)

[NOTAM]

i am moving in late September and trying to decide between Panhandle (would be working in Amarillo or Pampa) or Hill Country (would be working at either Lackland Air Force Base Wilford Hall Medical Center in San Antonio or maybe Brooke Army Medical Center/Ft Sam Houston in San Antonio).
either way, i will ONLY live in a small country rural town.

what small rural country type towns would you recommend if I were to work in Amarillo or possibly Pampa? i am moving either to the Panhandle or Hill Country

what small rural country towns would you recommend outside of San Antonio (north and west of Lackland or north of Brooke Army)?

[neddy]

Belle for those areas you might want to look at Hondo but that is going to be a bit of a drive maybe some town out on 90 if you are at lackland. IF you are at BAMC I hate to think what that drive might be like since BAMC is in the middle so to speak and you are going to have to fight lots of traffic to get to the hill country (the part you want anyway with no people!)

[neddy]

Pampa os a pretty small town! Flat also last I remember! Did ya want something smaller than that?

[NOTAM]

pampa is a good size and not too too big, and i could live out in White Deer or some small town outside of it if i want even more rural....

Originally Posted by neddy

Pampa os a pretty small town! Flat also last I remember! Did ya want something smaller than that?

[scottyc]

Not that far from San Antonio is Bourne,Fredericksburg, New Bruenfelds. Check these out

[kev-n_wk]

i would recommend the hill country

[NOTAM]

yeah i know most would say Hill Country for sure...and there is one big plus for me, if i chose Hill Country, my mom says she would move there too. she will be able to afford a very nice place, since her townhouse she lives in would sell for 850,000 and in a hot market, but me, i wouldnt be able to get too nice a place since i understand prices have gone up due to popularity.
whereas, i would be able to afford a ranchette in the Panhandle on an RN salary (70K-90K/yr)..........

[lifertexan]

If you are wanting some acreage,then the HC is pretty much out of the question. The good land is either bought up and parceled into small exclusive homesites or extremely high. Any commute from inside SA to a smaller town is going to be a nightmare also.SA used to be pretty easy to get around in due to the number of interstates through the city and the loops around it,but it is finally outgrowing its' infrastructure.

The Panhandle isn't scenic,but has it's own charm. I always enjoy driving through the flat plains and small towns going and coming back from skiing. The drive back doesn't start to s*ck until south of Lubbock.And ample acreage with room to breathe in the Panhandle near a nice little town is a good thing. Skiing is a lot closer also. I personally find the storms in the spring to be cool,although a storm cellar to run to would be a nice backup.Still want to take up stormchasing some when the kids are grown.

[dewlover]

My vote is for Dumas TX. This is a great town about 50 miles north of Amarillo. I drive this 4-lane highway three times a week and the ride is glorious. The idea that this area is Flat is wrong! When you leave Amarillo you drop down into a lovely river valley (the Canadian River) where the cottonwood trees turn a bright gold in the fall. Mesa, windmills, cowboys, horses, old farmhouses, river breaks.....and Dumas is built on the edge of one of these breaks. We have all the seasons....hot,dry summers (with cool, refreshing nights), crisp falls, snowy winters and fresh, sweet-smelling springs! One thing you need to know, though, is that the wind lives here. This is where it begins and ends. If you don't love it, you probably won't be happy here!

[NOTAM]

dumas sounds WONDERFUL