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My wife and I sold our house in Western MA in February, just before COVID struck, in order to travel across country in our camper.
We have had a great time, despite the pandemic, but we are now ready to settle down again.
We like New England, and have considered living in southern VT, but we are also considering the Asheville area for a variety of reasons, including: 1. Milder winters. 2. Lower cost of living/taxes - property taxes in VT are pretty brutal. 3. Experience somewhere new.
We visited Asheville several years ago and really liked it.
About us: We are about 50, outdoor/nature lovers, enjoy hiking, mountains, and just being outside. No kids, but we do have a 3 year old golden retriever who does basically everything with us. We are able to work from home.
What we are looking for: Small-ish home (maybe 1500-2000) square feet, with a bit of space for our dog and a vegetable garden. Would love at least an acre if possible. Want hiking trails close by - within 15 minutes. Would love some public tennis courts nearby as well. Not looking to be packed in with neighbors. We want to meet people, but neither of us are what you would call “social butterflies” . Would like to be within 15-20 minutes of grocery stores and some restaurants.
Concerns we have about Western NC:
1. ? Too many people - we love to hike on trails where people are few and far between. I am concerned that the area may seem crowded to us; I’m used to quiet, small towns and college towns.
2. Hot, humid summers. For those of you who have lived in New England, how would you compare the summers in Western NC compared with NE? Could we still do some X-country skiing in the winter in Western NC?
3. Local places to travel. To me one of the best aspects of New England is the ability to travel so many different places within about a 3 hr radius: Boston, NY, White mountains of NH, coast of Maine, Rhode Island, Cape Cod and the Islands, etc. Are there interesting places to travel from Asheville?
4. Traffic. I really despise traffic. How bad is the traffic around Asheville?
I think we would want to be slightly outside of Asheville - possibly Black Mountain or Weaverville. Any recommendations?
My wife and I sold our house in Western MA in February, just before COVID struck, in order to travel across country in our camper.
We have had a great time, despite the pandemic, but we are now ready to settle down again.
We like New England, and have considered living in southern VT, but we are also considering the Asheville area for a variety of reasons, including: 1. Milder winters. 2. Lower cost of living/taxes - property taxes in VT are pretty brutal. 3. Experience somewhere new.
We visited Asheville several years ago and really liked it.
About us: We are about 50, outdoor/nature lovers, enjoy hiking, mountains, and just being outside. No kids, but we do have a 3 year old golden retriever who does basically everything with us. We are able to work from home.
What we are looking for: Small-ish home (maybe 1500-2000) square feet, with a bit of space for our dog and a vegetable garden. Would love at least an acre if possible. Want hiking trails close by - within 15 minutes. Would love some public tennis courts nearby as well. Not looking to be packed in with neighbors. We want to meet people, but neither of us are what you would call “social butterflies” . Would like to be within 15-20 minutes of grocery stores and some restaurants.
Concerns we have about Western NC:
1. ? Too many people - we love to hike on trails where people are few and far between. I am concerned that the area may seem crowded to us; I’m used to quiet, small towns and college towns.
Yes, you will find many trails to be too crowded for your taste. With some work, you can find seclusion, but you may find it to be more work than you'd like to do so.
2. Hot, humid summers. For those of you who have lived in New England, how would you compare the summers in Western NC compared with NE? Could we still do some X-country skiing in the winter in Western NC?
Unless you get at least 3,500 feet above sea level (Asheville itself is about 2,200), you will experience uncomfortable dew points in the summer.
3. Local places to travel. To me one of the best aspects of New England is the ability to travel so many different places within about a 3 hr radius: Boston, NY, White mountains of NH, coast of Maine, Rhode Island, Cape Cod and the Islands, etc. Are there interesting places to travel from Asheville?
I guess that depends on your definition of "interesting". Some places within 3-4 hours include Charlotte, Charleston SC and Atlanta GA.
4. Traffic. I really despise traffic. How bad is the traffic around Asheville?
It can be bad, in certain places at peak times (seasonal and daily).
I think we would want to be slightly outside of Asheville - possibly Black Mountain or Weaverville. Any recommendations?
Thanks in advance for the input!
My comments are in red above. Hope that helps some.
WNC has been discovered, and can be crowded at times, especially during summers and leaf season.
Humidity is relative. Don’t know enough about the area where you live to compare, but compared to where I lived most of my adult life, the Gulf Coast, humidity is less here.
We love the small mountain towns in WNC, so there’s plenty of places to explore.
Traffic, again relative, but can be pretty bad, especially during leaf season. Winter is actually one of my favorite seasons.
I encourage you to take a close look at Brevard. It is a charming mountain town and conveniently located close to many outdoor activities.
WNC has been discovered, and can be crowded at times, especially during summers and leaf season.
Humidity is relative. Don’t know enough about the area where you live to compare, but compared to where I lived most of my adult life, the Gulf Coast, humidity is less here.
We love the small mountain towns in WNC, so there’s plenty of places to explore.
Traffic, again relative, but can be pretty bad, especially during leaf season. Winter is actually one of my favorite seasons.
I encourage you to take a close look at Brevard. It is a charming mountain town and conveniently located close to many outdoor activities.
I think you would like the weather better in the High Country area around Boone, Blowing Rock, Banner Elk, Beech Mr, etc. it is at a higher elevation so cooler in the summer, more snow in winter.
I’m in northeast TN, but frequently hike and spend time outdoors in WNC.
Some of the “main” areas, like Craggy Gardens and DuPont State Forest, are going to be super crowded during peak season weekends. I never go to those places on the weekends. Off-season or during the weekdays is fine.
There is some skiing in WNC, but the seasons will be shorter and it will be wimpy skiing compared to New England.
Asheville is much better than the rest of NC during the summer, but you will still have plenty of hot and humid. The High Country, which is more remote, is cooler in the summer.
I spent several years in Indianapolis and no place in WNC has traffic, comparatively.
My wife and I sold our house in Western MA in February, just before COVID struck, in order to travel across country in our camper.
We have had a great time, despite the pandemic, but we are now ready to settle down again.
We like New England, and have considered living in southern VT, but we are also considering the Asheville area for a variety of reasons, including: 1. Milder winters. 2. Lower cost of living/taxes - property taxes in VT are pretty brutal. 3. Experience somewhere new.
We visited Asheville several years ago and really liked it.
About us: We are about 50, outdoor/nature lovers, enjoy hiking, mountains, and just being outside. No kids, but we do have a 3 year old golden retriever who does basically everything with us. We are able to work from home.
What we are looking for: Small-ish home (maybe 1500-2000) square feet, with a bit of space for our dog and a vegetable garden. Would love at least an acre if possible. Want hiking trails close by - within 15 minutes. Would love some public tennis courts nearby as well. Not looking to be packed in with neighbors. We want to meet people, but neither of us are what you would call “social butterflies” . Would like to be within 15-20 minutes of grocery stores and some restaurants.
Concerns we have about Western NC:
1. ? Too many people - we love to hike on trails where people are few and far between. I am concerned that the area may seem crowded to us; I’m used to quiet, small towns and college towns.
2. Hot, humid summers. For those of you who have lived in New England, how would you compare the summers in Western NC compared with NE? Could we still do some X-country skiing in the winter in Western NC?
3. Local places to travel. To me one of the best aspects of New England is the ability to travel so many different places within about a 3 hr radius: Boston, NY, White mountains of NH, coast of Maine, Rhode Island, Cape Cod and the Islands, etc. Are there interesting places to travel from Asheville?
4. Traffic. I really despise traffic. How bad is the traffic around Asheville?
I think we would want to be slightly outside of Asheville - possibly Black Mountain or Weaverville. Any recommendations?
Thanks in advance for the input!
Based on your list of what your looking for i would suggest looking at the area from Yancey Co. up thru Ashe Co. I just left Windham Co. VT 18 mths ago. Cost of living and harsh winters primary reasons plus just wanted to return to Southern Appalachians.
We hike all over the WNC / ETN / SVA region and you will definitely see people on most of the trail systems here, even the not so well known ones nowadays as the area is becoming more and more congested.
The region receives 25+ million visitors annually so yeah, it can get pretty crowded here. Trash has also become an increasing issue on the trail systems and landmarks, which when living here (we’re 35 to 40 min north of AVL in TN) you’ll notice happening more and more when out exploring the area.
We were on a lesser know trail earlier today with our GSD and arrived to two other cars. Took a short hike then came back 90 minutes later and there were now seven cars - and a slew of fresh food and gum wrappers and used face masks on the ground that weren’t there before. Typical of people who simply don’t care about their surroundings, and treat the world and beautiful outdoors as their personal garbage can.
My advice is to visit the area from May to August or in the fall and see how the traffic and congestion look to you. Drive around Asheville, Hendersonville, Black Mountain and surrounding and get a feel for the area. Spend a few weeks doing so and I believe you’ll find it much more congested then what you were envisioning from afar. Good luck.
Last edited by VinceTheExplorer; 12-27-2020 at 03:22 PM..
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. Would like to be within 15-20 minutes of grocery stores and some restaurants. 
