Get acquainted with a small-town -- SW VA for a short-term lease (Wytheville: home, live)

[VALover]

If I were looking to live somewhere to get the real *small town* feel in SWVA I would seriously consider Wise,Floyd,or Grayson. I have a friend who lives in Wise and loves it. I have spent lots of time in Floyd and love it there. The people in Floyd have always been very nice to me. Also, I think Grayson County is a very beautiful place, especially the Elk Creek/Comers Rock area.

I am from Wythe County and while I do like it there I don't think I would suggest it as a place to get the real feel of small town America. Wytheville is nice enough but with I-77 and I-81 going right through it, it sort of ruins the small town feel.

[KewGee]

Originally Posted by VALover

If I were looking to live somewhere to get the real *small town* feel in SWVA I would seriously consider Wise,Floyd,or Grayson. I have a friend who lives in Wise and loves it. I have spent lots of time in Floyd and love it there. The people in Floyd have always been very nice to me. Also, I think Grayson County is a very beautiful place, especially the Elk Creek/Comers Rock area.

I am from Wythe County and while I do like it there I don't think I would suggest it as a place to get the real feel of small town America. Wytheville is nice enough but with I-77 and I-81 going right through it, it sort of ruins the small town feel.

I agree; it's too big for me. I spent one night in Wytheville on my trip to VA. I had a very bizarre thing happen at the motel, 2x, same scenario before I ever got settled in a room. Hence, I got my money back and traveled a bit further down the road to another motel.

Darn! I didn't get to see Elk Creek either.

[silverwing]

Reply to KewGee

"We did go to Damascus and walked a ways on the VC Trail. It was a very nice area. We were there on Father's Day and it was a little warmer than I had expected, but not too bad"

Well, warm is to be expected. If you are looking for cool mountain weather, I think you’d have to look at the higher elevations in western North Carolina. Virginia has elevations, but still its share of hot and muggy, only without those hot blasts of air that flow over the flatter sections of the country. I remember those too well from living in the Midwest. Heat isn’t a long lasting feature in the VA mountains though and fall is wonderful. Warm days and crisp nights that bring on the colors.

"We traveled towards Saltville (another one of your recommendations) before Damascus and stopped at an overlook to view the town. "

Hee. I know that spot, we took pictures from our bikes there.

Saltville is neat from a distance, kinda grubby up close. There is a museum (small) that details the archaeological importance of the area. Seems there are digs there every year that have uncovered fossils of mammoths and other animals of that era. If you had followed the road going down into Saltville, only in a northern direction, you would have headed back into the mountains and found Konnarock – kind of a back-of-beyond spot. Very pretty.

"I'm still concerned about the four-lane highway you mentioned. I can't remember it right now, but it's in my notes from you"


I think that would be 58. It will cross the lower half of the state from the coast to the tri-states area (VA/TN/KY) at Cumberland Gap. I paid attention to that as I was traveling and took some notes. I think the eventual ambition will be to complete that; it will affect the Marion to Independence section, from what I’ve read; but it may not even be complete in our lifetimes. It seems to be constructed in 5-10 mile chunks. Some of the geography certainly makes it daunting.

"They definitely are going to build that prison in GraysonCounty. It will be outside of Independence. "

Figures. Once the area leaders got their teeth in it, I figured it would be a done deal. As long as it’s not on the New. Funny thing, though, I was riding along 58 and passed through Jonesville (that’s closer to the Cumberland Gap area). I came around a turn and just gawked. There was a huge federal prison (as stated on a sign) right next to the darn road. I looked it up later and found that it is Lee Federal http://www.bop.gov/locations/institutions/lee/index.jsp Jonesville is a more out of the way, less likely to be developed area than the Grayson region, but it seems that pains were taken to not make the prison a focal point of the Jonesville area. You come up on it, pass it, and move on.


"You know, I'm so unfamiliar with the area and all that I have to be alert about, that I'm getting confused. I have to live there for a month or more before I can truly decide for sure what area I want to live. Of course, I must overcome my fear of winding roads too.."

Well, we’re originally from the St. Louis area. We flew to Charlotte on our first trip, drove down for a week’s visit the second. We knew where we’d be living so we decided to explore some of the mountain areas on our way down – primarily the Smokies. Ohhh boy. Flatlanders driving for the first time on some of those mountain twisties. I wish I’d packed extra underwear, I know there were times we came close to needing to change. We stuck to the Charlotte area, after moving down, for a couple of years. It took some time to work up the nerve to go back to those roads. You do get used to it though – you have to if you want to see some of the most beautiful country that exists on this side of the states.

I hope you get more time in the future to view the area. Where we would live when we moved down here was pretty much decided by our job location. Approaching retirement, it’s very hard to decide what we’ll do. Even knowing the area so well, it is hard to choose. I guess you have to look at an area and say "pretty, but what will it be like to live here?” Good luck on that. I’ll be watching for your posts.

[KewGee]

Thanks for another great post, silverwing.

Well, I'm glad to know we weren't the only "flatlanders" who get frightened with some of those roads. I WILL get used to it. I will so psyche myself out on my next trip, I'll have no choice.

[Justme2010]

Thank you all for your thoughts, knowledge and insights, sorry, haven't followed up on the thread for last couple of days.

[Justme2010]

ok, I need some info on hotel/motel in these counties (Wise, Floyd, Carroll, or Grayson -- on Grayson, any idea as to a ballpark time of when the proposed prison will be built or I'll simply drop it...). And do I need to make reservation because of summer travel season? Or for hotel reservation may be required while motel intend to be availble without advance notice?

On a related note, how are laundry is being taken care of for a traveller (hotel service or local laundry "mate"?)

And sports-wise, what team is folks in that area intend to be behind (baseball and football, I know generalization probably isn't a good idea...).

Much appreciated.

[Justme2010]

Hi everyone,

I think I've had some idea about where to stay for my trip. Now, a new question, more for locals if anyone around, does everyone use VoIP service, just checked out Vonage coverage for the area, it does not look good, reliable alternatives? The list of VoIP service providers for the states is just way too long ...

Many thanks.

[Lutz Lady]

For anyone looking for small town America, you would have to look at Dickenson County. My family and I moved here about 2 Months ago from Tampa, Florida. If you want no corporate businesses and down to earth people this is the place. Everyone here is as friendly as can be. I have yet to encounter anyone that was not friendly. We live in Clintwood, which is the biggest town in Dickenson County but only about 2000 people. There are no Walmarts or Targets or even movie theaters here. But there seems to be a lot going on. The 4th of July parade was great, such a community feeling, everyone wearing red, white and blue and the fireworks show that night was unbelievable. It was better than anything I ever saw in Tampa and lasted 45 minutes. No traffic jams to get there or back. The Ralph Stanley Museum is in town and they have "pickin on the porch" bluegrass music at least once a month. There is also a small theater in town- The Jettie Baker Center that offers plays and small concerts. There is the University of Virginia at Wise about 30 minutes away so you can get involved in college sports and lectures, etc. I was told not to move here, it was a backwards place, but I have yet to see that. Yes, we do have internet here- Verizon DSL and I have yet to have any problem with it. I do not know about VOIP. And yes, some of the roads here are windy, very windy and steep. We have had to take dramamine to go a few places like Breaks Interstate Park- which is a beautiful park with unbelievable views and scenery and Flannagan Dam which is also beautiful. But you will see Deer on just about every road and in people's front yards. There is some poverty here, but I also have found that the people that do have spend a lot of their time volunteering to help those that dont. It is amazing. We walk everywhere and feel this is the safest place in the world. Not everyone might feel this way, but I thought I would give you an opinion from someone that just moved here.

[Justme2010]

well, Lutz Lady, thanks for the thought, after some consideration, I decided to move to a medium-sized city/town (some sort of transition platform from a major metropolis to a real small town), hence, I've chosen to move to Roanoke and I've done my home work of figuring out "most" desirable neighborhood, and I made the move, as matter of fact, two days ago. People seems quite friendly ...

[SCBeaches]

Originally Posted by Lutz Lady

For anyone looking for small town America, you would have to look at Dickenson County. My family and I moved here about 2 Months ago from Tampa, Florida. If you want no corporate businesses and down to earth people this is the place. Everyone here is as friendly as can be. I have yet to encounter anyone that was not friendly. We live in Clintwood, which is the biggest town in Dickenson County but only about 2000 people. There are no Walmarts or Targets or even movie theaters here. But there seems to be a lot going on. The 4th of July parade was great, such a community feeling, everyone wearing red, white and blue and the fireworks show that night was unbelievable. It was better than anything I ever saw in Tampa and lasted 45 minutes. No traffic jams to get there or back. The Ralph Stanley Museum is in town and they have "pickin on the porch" bluegrass music at least once a month. There is also a small theater in town- The Jettie Baker Center that offers plays and small concerts. There is the University of Virginia at Wise about 30 minutes away so you can get involved in college sports and lectures, etc. I was told not to move here, it was a backwards place, but I have yet to see that. Yes, we do have internet here- Verizon DSL and I have yet to have any problem with it. I do not know about VOIP. And yes, some of the roads here are windy, very windy and steep. We have had to take dramamine to go a few places like Breaks Interstate Park- which is a beautiful park with unbelievable views and scenery and Flannagan Dam which is also beautiful. But you will see Deer on just about every road and in people's front yards. There is some poverty here, but I also have found that the people that do have spend a lot of their time volunteering to help those that dont. It is amazing. We walk everywhere and feel this is the safest place in the world. Not everyone might feel this way, but I thought I would give you an opinion from someone that just moved here.

I have family in and around Clintwood and have to agree with you that it is a very friendly, hospitable place with smalltown values. Nothing like good old-fashioned, foot-stomping bluegrass music. And I absolutely LOVE The Breaks! I often recommend it to people for vacations. There are some of the most breathtaking views up there and so much to do! The old still, the museum, the restaurant (with resident racoon on the porch), the gift shop, and the miles of trails makes this a wonderful place to visit.

I'm glad you have the opportunity to move to such a neat little oasis! I look forward to my retirement days when I move to my land up there.