Living in the mountains

We live in Asheville and have for over 20 years. My wife is from Hendersonville. I visited the area my whole life, as my grandmother lived in Black Mountain and I spent summers with her. One of the reasons I moved here was for the outdoors- hiking, motorcycle riding, rivers... Yet today we rarely do any of that in the Asheville area. Always go somewhere else. It is pretty here though. But you have to deal with the crazy liberals and pseudo outdoorsy people (urban hikers). That alone is enough reason not to visit or live here!

I feel like I understand (like others above) the dynamics of Asheville. And the surrounding areas...

It’s not what it was! Crowded by tourists and as already said, yuppies. That’s why there are good food and brew places. We can’t wait to move out.
 
Look into Sandy mush you will definitely be on your own or Haywood and Madison out in the Walnut area very nice quiet living in those areas I live in Leicester it use to be the country but don't feel like it here lately

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Ron said:
The "Tail of the Dragon" or Deals gap is a section of Highway 129.

Literally 20 years ago we bought our cabin and would go up there and trout fish and see...maybe..maybe 15 cars in a weekend.
At the time the town of Robbinsville consisted of a Texaco with a chicken stand inside of it and an Ingles.

Its a quiet little 2 lane road town.

Now on peak leaf weekend or any other number of biker cruise weekends thousands of cars and bikes converge on the town. Ive seen it take 15 minute to turn out of the Inlges parking lot as a parade of bikers went by. Then there is the incessant humming of sport bikes...avoiding getting ran into by show offs etc.

On the "good side" there is now a few hotels, a wendys, a mcdonalds, a bass pro, and a walgreens
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Most overrated road to ride a motorcycle on in the east coast. Hell maybe farther.
 
Bhudgins said:
Look into Sandy mush you will definitely be on your own or Haywood and Madison out in the Walnut area very nice quiet living in those areas I live in Leicester it use to be the country but don't feel like it here lately

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Yeah Walnut is just a sign on the road pretty much.Its about 1/2 way between Greeneville,where I live,and Weaverville NC.
 
I live in Franklin, and we've been here for three years. It's a nice enough town with good people, and I assume the vibe is similar to Bryson City and Sylva. There are a ton of old people from Florida that come up here every spring to escape the heat, and they leave at the end of leaf season. That being said, November through April are great! This area is very affordable, much better than Asheville or Boone, but there is a lack of "stuff" here so it's not as desirable. With Asheville being an hour away and Atlanta being two hours away, you can always make a trip to visit the large cities and shop, eat, etc. We've tired of the local restaurants around here and wish there were more within a half hour. Customer service also blows here. Since there is little competition, prices will be higher and the overpriced service you receive will be poorer than if you were in a larger town.

I do think this town is a good place to live, but I have a weird quirk where I want to live someplace new every few years. Not because of this place, but just to experience someplace different.

Anyhow, the SW corner of the state is a decent place that deserves a look.
 
If it wasn’t for the allure of the Rockies I think I have loved the Ga Nc area the best.
 
Sparta, Graceland Highlands, White Top, Damascus..........
 
My wife and I packed up everything and moved to Ashe County after we got married. I/we love the mountains. I wish I would’ve known then what I know now. Cost of living is not cheaper for one. We plan on moving back one day, but we will have a better idea of what we are getting into. I miss living up there... moving back to the Charlotte area has turned me bitter and cold... life was better there.
 
RobMcBee said:
moving back to the Charlotte area has turned me bitter and cold... life was better there.
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I kinda got that vibe from ya but I wasn't gonna mention it.:D
 
If cash is a consideration I'd say Tennessee. Everywhere has a view and from when we aere looking for mountain property with creek Tenn. was cheaper than western NC. Taxes are low and when you get ready for people and sights pigeon forge has it all. I hear Jonas ridge is cheaper than Banner Elk but also has crime and "Deliverance" types.
 
Brevard NC is mountain bike capital of the east coast. Plenty of hiking trails, fishing, and camping. 40 minutes from downtown Asheville.

I hardly ever go downtown Asheville because Brevard, Arden, hendersonville area have everything we need....except good 4 wheeling.


If you want to get closer to wheeling go east TN.




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EdJonesJeeper said:
Brevard NC is mountain bike capital of the east coast. Plenty of hiking trails, fishing, and camping. 40 minutes from downtown Asheville.

I hardly ever go downtown Asheville because Brevard, Arden, hendersonville area have everything we need....except good 4 wheeling.

If you want to get closer to wheeling go east TN.

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We rented a house two years ago in late October up on a mountain overlooking Brevard. It was a great vacation. We hiked a bunch of trails and saw some great water falls in the Pisgah National Forest and Dupont State Forest. We definitely liked that area. I haven't mountain biked since my son was born but it is something that I see myself doing again when he gets older, so that is a consideration.

The activities that we want to be able to do when we retire are the following, listed in order of most frequent:
- Hiking
- Biking (road/greenway and mountain)
- White water rafting
- Fourwheeling
 
All the good wheeling is in Tennessee

But the problem is; you're looking for a CLOSE option (for now) that is worth jumping in the car and head up for the weekend, then possible retirement down the road. IMHO that's 2 different things. Close enough to make it worth going every other weekend (for ME...living in the same area as you) is Pinnacle/Pilot Mtn/or Independence/Galax Va. (where my family is from...butt-tons of hiking, mountain biking...etc) Whereas retirement is Tenn on the other side of the gorge where I can get to AOP, Golden, Harlan.....in a reasonable amount of time :cool: THAT's what my retirement looks like anyway
 
Depends on what you consider reasonable time to travel. I think we did this once there is like 7 off-road parks within 3.5-4 hrs of Haywood county


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CasterTroy said:
All the good wheeling is in Tennessee

But the problem is; you're looking for a CLOSE option (for now) that is worth jumping in the car and head up for the weekend, then possible retirement down the road. IMHO that's 2 different things. Close enough to make it worth going every other weekend (for ME...living in the same area as you) is Pinnacle/Pilot Mtn/or Independence/Galax Va. (where my family is from...butt-tons of hiking, mountain biking...etc) Whereas retirement is Tenn on the other side of the gorge where I can get to AOP, Golden, Harlan.....in a reasonable amount of time :cool: THAT's what my retirement looks like anyway
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For us, living in the mountains will be a second home, but it won't be until we are retired/close to retirement, so we won't be making the drive back and forth every other weekend.
 
Thanks for all the replies. I am going to print off a map and mark each location that everyone suggested and investigate all of them.
 
Edgemont / Mortimer
 
Tennessee is kinda like SC with no inspections, cheaper gas, and fireworks, but it is better because it has mountains and no state income tax. I'd take i26 north out of Asheville, cross the state line, and start looking there. It's like 30 minutes from the state line to Asheville, and the mountains are beautiful as you cross into TN.
 
drkelly said:
We rented a house two years ago in late October up on a mountain overlooking Brevard. It was a great vacation. We hiked a bunch of trails and saw some great water falls in the Pisgah National Forest and Dupont State Forest. We definitely liked that area. I haven't mountain biked since my son was born but it is something that I see myself doing again when he gets older, so that is a consideration.

The activities that we want to be able to do when we retire are the following, listed in order of most frequent:
- Hiking
- Biking (road/greenway and mountain)
- White water rafting
- Fourwheeling
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I look forward to being you being my neighbor in a few years ol pal. Brevard FTW!
 
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