I feel like I am the only young person who does not want to live in a city.
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People go where the jobs are. I don't think you will find apartments in rural areas (at least not in my state) and few people in their 20s can afford acreage. Just going by my younger relatives many of them would like to live in the country but can't afford it. I know a lot of middle aged people that have moved to rural areas and commute. But prices keep going up and living in the country may become a dream harder to obtain.
There are cities where one is only about 30 minutes away from hiking areas. It becomes a matter of priorities. How important is job vs location; long commute vs short commute or public transportation. Is it more important to have quick access to outdoor interests or bars, restaurants, theaters, etc. Usually we have to pick and choose.
Most young people want to live where the action is. Nightlife, bars, concerts, ball games. You'd be in demand, since they still need people to work in remote facilities such as power plants, paper mills, pipeline terminals, and the like.
I grew up in the Chicago area, and I went to college in a small town in a different Midwestern state. I wanted to get out of the big city and experience a different lifestyle, and that's what I got, but it did teach me that small towns aren't for me; I need the stimulation and magnitude of a larger city.
I may be following the typical "life script" in terms of living patterns (there are other ways I'm not), but I can assure you there are plenty of other young people like you - and not all of them are closed-minded and prefer the predictability and homogeneity of small towns; some are artistic and quiet and relish the thought of a home in a bucolic landscape.
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