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Easily Phoenix, then Austin, then Atlanta, then New Orleans. I dunno how Atlanta is winning this: rolling hills and trees?? The valley of the Sun has real topographic grandeur and Austin has significant elevation changes and limestone cliffs over a pretty great waterfront. Beauty will always have a subjective element but this poll smacks of homerism to me...
Stone Mountain is 1,686 feet high; Kennesaw Mountain is 1,808.
I'm talking about vertical profile, more than 1,000' of vertical gain while ascending the mountain. In Phoenix you're surrounded by ranges the peak at well over 3,000' while Phoenix is around 1200' and if you drive as far as you'd have to for Kennesaw you can be at Four Peaks which reaches 7,657' at the peak.
Stone and Kennesaw just don't compare, they're small and isolated geographic formations. They're nice to have but not in the same ballpark as what's around Phoenix.
New Orleans is lowest on the list for me. Sorry. I absolutely LOVE the city, and even seeing the bayous around it is something people should do. But for long term, that scenery is just not for me. Also, I took the "around" in the post to heart. From what I understand, there aren't any particularly nice beaches near NOLA, you would need to head to Gulf Shores, AL almost which is about 3 hours away, and to get to any reasonable sort of terrain, it's one of the furthest drives of any city, about 5 hours, perhaps more to Birmingham, and TRUE Appalachia doesn't start for perhaps another couple hours beyond that.
Austin is a close 3rd, just behind Phoenix. There is pretty good topography in and around Austin, and if I was just limited to city limits for this posting, Austin might just win. There are a good number of hikeable hills and viewpoints west of Austin in Hill Country, plus with Hill Country's pastoral and isolated setting, it has become a Top 5 wine region in the US. I also like that there are certain aspects of Hill Country scenery that appear to be somewhat "desert/western" in nature, but yet, there is still plenty of forest too. To the east and south, there are plenty of natural spring pools, and even some bayou as well.
Phoenix is 2nd because it is the most intriguing on the list, but it could drop if I spend a significant amount of time out there and truly hated how dry it was/felt. Because of that reason, it is behind Atlanta. But, it has a number of mountains surrounding the city, and landscape is so unique compared to so many places. Also, when considering location, this one really pulls strong. All one would need to do is drive 2 hours to get to the San Francisco Peaks, a mountain range so drastic that it is referred to as the "Arizona Rockies", and absolutely stunning red rock formations that the west is known for. Heck, even the perfect weather and stunning California coastline can be accessed in a weekend. This one is real solid at #2.
But, Atlanta still tops this group. Hiking in town (about seven hills spread out around the town, perhaps not as tall as the ones in Phoenix, but of a similar idea. Plus the Chattahoochee Recreation Area) Yes, for grandeur, the Appalachians might not be able to top the western mountains, but they are still equally stunning in their own way. It is amazing how forested and green the metropolitan area, and entire region is. Even though it is the largest city of this group, the dense deciduous canopy makes it feel (to me) more breathable than any of these others. Also, it is only a few hours from this one to the beaches of the Atlantic, or bayou landscapes, etc.
But, Atlanta still tops this group. Hiking in town (about seven hills spread out around the town, perhaps not as tall as the ones in Phoenix, but of a similar idea. Plus the Chattahoochee Recreation Area) Yes, for grandeur, the Appalachians might not be able to top the western mountains, but they are still equally stunning in their own way. It is amazing how forested and green the metropolitan area, and entire region is. Even though it is the largest city of this group, the dense deciduous canopy makes it feel (to me) more breathable than any of these others. Also, it is only a few hours from this one to the beaches of the Atlantic, or bayou landscapes, etc.
That's a really interesting comparison between the 4 cities and I'm sure you can easily see how some of us would rank Phoenix over Atlanta. Just as you mention the heat and dryness of Arizona can get old the humidity, bugs and dampness can be as much as a detractor to enjoying the outdoors in the Southeast. As far as the hiking goes that's also very personal, if you're itching for a real challenging day hike it's always accessible within a short drive of Phoenix, year round, I don't see nearly that same level of access possible in the Atlanta area. As for easier hill type hikes that's also abundant and easily accessible in Phoenix as well.
What you won't find is the same density of green in Phoenix or nearby. Flagstaff and the other high country areas have a lot of pine and aspen trees but not to the same density. For me, the access and lack of weather interfence in Arizona is hard to top anywhere else. Also the majesty of such dominating peaks that tower over anything else built is amazing and not something I see matched on any eastern big cities.
I like visiting the East and the variety of geography we have in the US is nothing short of awesome.
Atlanta but I'd love to see some pictures of Phoenix.
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