Best area of USA for outdoor activities

baisleac

With those requirements, you can't beat Seattle.

too rainy

Wait 5 minutes or drive 5 miles... voila! no longer rainy.

Just_Dot

Another Colorado vote!! I love that there are outdoor activities year-round, despite the changing of the seasons. I also love that you can be city and outdoorsy in one place.

_GlaDOS_

With those requirements, you can't beat Seattle.

too rainy

not really.

sehein7

Yes, the bay area is a bit costly. I actually live in the central valley (south of Sacramento, east of San Francisco), where the cost of living isn't as high as the bay, but we are close enough to everything to enjoy it all. The higher price of gas and groceries is so worth it to enjoy everything else CA has to offer.

JoleneCooper

Sierra Vista, AZ. Meets all of your requirements. Even the boating!...but you have to drive an hour or so to get to it. There's also a lot of desert for the jeep and sand dunes are just a few hours away and make a fun weekend getaway!
The temp is not your typical AZ heat! It rarely gets too high over 100 and the humidity is about 5-7 weeks out of the year. The winters get cold but not freezing, snow does happen about 1-2 times each year too.
LOTS of hiking/walking/biking paths too. Plus it's a military community so there are a lot of active people. Good luck!

rocketpants

Denver is blah.

your face is blah!! (kidding ur beautiful but Denver Kicks *kitten*!!!!!) Boulder is even better if you can afford it.

Most people here are very outdoorsy. In fact it is one of the fittest places in the US to live!! I do all of the activities you listed on a regular basis, and never seem to run out of new awesome places to explore.

And winters here are not that big of a deal. (but keep that on the DL)

_GlaDOS_

Denver is blah.

your face is blah!! (kidding ur beautiful but Denver Kicks *kitten*!!!!!) Boulder is even better if you can afford it.

Most people here are very outdoorsy. In fact it is one of the fittest places in the US to live!! I do all of the activities you listed on a regular basis, and never seem to run out of new awesome places to explore.

And winters here are not that big of a deal. (but keep that on the DL)

I lived in Colorado for about 12 years, so I know it's blah. So there! :flowerforyou:

I will agree that of all the places in Colorado to live, if I had to live there again, I would choose Boulder.

My move to Seattle was one of the best decisions I've ever made though. It's beautiful here!

rocketpants

yeah but Seattle if full of drum circles and hippies, and it rains 366 days a year there. It is not so fun to play outside when you have to take noah's ark to get to the mountains

katieruns

OK pals-

In a few short years I would like to move to a more outdoor activity friendly area. My requirements include but are not limited to:

1. Not too rural. I grew up on a farm but I need the excitement that a metropolitan area can provide.
2. Must have tons of outdoor activities available such as walking, jogging, biking, hiking trails, water for kayaking, canoeing, boating, swimming.
3. No dramatic climates! I do enjoy the change of seasons and some snow once in a while but the 20 below temperatures for weeks at a time in Iowa are getting a little tiresome! Also, I don't really enjoy 100 plus temperatures with 70% humidity either!
4. MUST be scenic!
5. The b/f requests that there be some area for Jeeping within driving distance too. I guess I have to let him has his fun too.


So, where do you live or where have you visited that you think would be the IDEAL place to live and retire?

San Diego Baby!!!

darklord48

Sierra Vista, AZ. Meets all of your requirements. Even the boating!...but you have to drive an hour or so to get to it. There's also a lot of desert for the jeep and sand dunes are just a few hours away and make a fun weekend getaway!
The temp is not your typical AZ heat! It rarely gets too high over 100 and the humidity is about 5-7 weeks out of the year. The winters get cold but not freezing, snow does happen about 1-2 times each year too.
LOTS of hiking/walking/biking paths too. Plus it's a military community so there are a lot of active people. Good luck!

I can confirm that Sierra Vista is a nice area, but it doesn't quite have the big city that you may be looking for.

_GlaDOS_

yeah but Seattle if full of drum circles and hippies, and it rains 366 days a year there. It is not so fun to play outside when you have to take noah's ark to get to the mountains

Ahahaha I love the rain myths about this place. We do have a lot of hippies though. But it keeps the crazy conservatives away, which I'm ok with.

Learning2LuvLindsay

Another Denver vote!

bregalad5

Ahahaha I love the rain myths about this place.

Really? I've had people from Seattle tell me it's not a myth, that it really does rain as often as people say it does...

sleepytexan

SAN DIEGO. No place better on earth. I love it here.

baisleac

Ahahaha I love the rain myths about this place.

Really? I've had people from Seattle tell me it's not a myth, that it really does rain as often as people say it does...

It's how we keep the population from going SoCal on us.

momma_roo

North Carolina, Asheville area!! Beautiful and diverse. Even Charlotte isn't far from mountains or the beaches!

I live in Hendersonville, NC and love it here. It is a quick drive to Dupont State Forrest or Pisgah National Forrest and close enough to Asheville, Greenville or Charlotte. It snows in the winter and gets hot in the summer, but it is very mild compared to most places.

farmgirlsuz

That is easy - Denver, CO

Another Denver vote! Or the west side of the metro area is even better. We don't even have to drive to get to hiking / mountain biking trails.

I third this! It doesn't get any better than the Denver area. Biking, hiking, skiing, snowshoeing, camping, rafting, kayaking, not to mention the fantastic metropolitan area. We have 4 seasons with milder winters than most people think.

Forgot to mention the nearby Jeep trails and it's only 6 hours from Moab which is world famous for four wheeling.

We actually vacationed there (Silverton/Dillon and then on to Moab) a month ago. Some of those Jeep trails are INSANE! The b/f is voting for Denver, but I really like the Pacific NW (Seattle actually) so I just wanted to see what other people thought and maybe learn about some new places that we hadn't even considered yet.

mjdaniels1

I am going with South Texas. There is so much to do. I can holiday in my own state. Beaches 12 monthes a year. BTW. I do not like cold weather. My own opinion. Just spent 4 years in Germany. I adore Deutchland. :flowerforyou:

luvmycandies

Miami doesn't meet all your requirements, but we certainly can be outside everyday and very active. No season changes though. But i love walking and running on the beach!

_GlaDOS_

I would just like to add that it's October and snowing right now in Denver. Yuck :flowerforyou:

sleepytexan

I would just like to add that it's October and snowing right now in Denver. Yuck :flowerforyou:

It's October and sunny and 70 degrees here in San Diego :laugh:

baisleac

I would just like to add that it's October and snowing right now in Denver. Yuck :flowerforyou:

It's October and sunny and 70 degrees here in San Diego laugh

It's 51 here (Olympic Peninsula, but close enough to Seattle) and the leaves are all turning orange and red. :drinker:

San Diego is pretty awesome, but changes of seasons... not so much.

algebravoodoo

I am going with South Texas. There is so much to do. I can holiday in my own state. Beaches 12 monthes a year. BTW. I do not like cold weather. My own opinion. Just spent 4 years in Germany. I adore Deutchland. :flowerforyou:

My vote would go for Deutschland as well, but since it is limited to USA, well, don't bother with Mississippi unless you head to the coastal regions or at least south of Jackson and stay east of Oxford. Northwest corner, you just as well paint a target on your back.

kyylieeeeee

I'm going to cast my vote for the Hudson River Valley in downstate NY! Here's why:

1-- Easy easy easy access to NYC: bucolic and populated at the same time
2-- Catskill mountains, Shawangunk mountains
3-- The Adirondacks are only 2 hours from Albany, and there are fantastic peaks to climb. The 46 High Peaks club is a great goal!
4-- The Hudson River itself. There's great kayaking along the entire length of the river.
5-- Really solid seasons: very definite spring, summer, autumn, and winter
6-- Day trips to the Atlantic Ocean beaches are easy
7-- Vermont, Connecticut, Rhode Island, and Massachusetts are less than 5 hours away by car, no matter where you're comign from in the Hudson Valley
8-- There are tons of AWESOME local wineries and microbreweries
9-- Thousands of beautiful lakes (especially in the Adirondacks and Finger Lakes) to use during the summer, and hundreds of ski mountains to use in the winter.
10-- Great places for offroading. And I know this for a fact because me, my sister, and cousin all have lifted Jeeps
11-- You mentioned retirement, so this is a great place to be for medical access since there are specialists for just about every condition imaginable in NYC

There are tons of other reasons that this area rocks, of course. I grew up here, still live here, and never plan on leaving the greater NYC area. I spend most of my free time outside. I hike (lots and lots and lots of hiking), trail run (lots of that too), go boating often, fish, camp, etc. But I also love how beautiful it is here, and my favorite part of all of it is that I can hop in the car and within an hour either be hiking in the Shawangunks or walking around Manhattan!

Good luck on your search for a lovely place to live!

Rae6503

I would just like to add that it's October and snowing right now in Denver. Yuck :flowerforyou:

That just means we get to go snowboarding soon. Snowboarding IS an outdoor activity. Or there's cross country skiing, snow shoeing and/or sledding.

micklepickle61

Chattanooga, TN was just ranked as the best place to live by Outdoor magazine.
Road biking
Mountain biking
running
Trail running
Kayaking
White water rafting
Rock Climbing
Hiking
Backpacking
Beautiful city close to plenty of wilderness areas
vibrant downtown area
*Sigh* I love it here.

rockerbabyy

west seattle, wa area, or any of western washington really.

Yeah West Seattle! :flowerforyou:

i lived in west seattle for a few years and loved it. was "small town" enough for me, but still close to the city and there was always something to do. i miss it, but we just bought a house in monroe.
and really as far as rainfall goes, NYC gets more inches per year than seattle Seattle ranks only about 40th out of the 60 largest cities in annual rainfall.

cramernh

White Mountains of Northern New Hampshire!

Tons of hiking, boating, fishing, even things for kids to do! I HIGHLY recommend the Kancamagus Highway - the only costs are the cost of gas prior to getting on it... and then happy walking and enjoying our lovely scenery!

UrbanRunner81

Pittsburgh... I think it has you covered lol I have examples after you requirements. I like

1. Not too rural. I grew up on a farm but I need the excitement that a metropolitan area can provide. -- Lots to do here. Everything is close by. It is urban, rural is just outside the city.
2. Must have tons of outdoor activities available such as walking, jogging, biking, hiking trails, water for kayaking, canoeing, boating, swimming. -- Several large parks with trails and hiking. Also Steel Valley Trail that runs along the rivers in Pittsburgh. It connects to trail from DC. We have 3 rivers so kayaking and canoeing is very easy to do here. Along with boating as well. Lots of swimming pools in the area, too.
3. No dramatic climates! I do enjoy the change of seasons and some snow once in a while but the 20 below temperatures for weeks at a time in Iowa are getting a little tiresome! Also, I don't really enjoy 100 plus temperatures with 70% humidity either!
-- Weather is pretty nice most of the time. It can get a tad humid but only clips at a time.
4. MUST be scenic! - http://www.scenicpittsburgh.org/
5. The b/f requests that there be some area for Jeeping within driving distance too. I guess I have to let him has his fun too. - My brother does this, just outside of city, lots of stuff like that to do.

I love where I live.... everything is close by. I live right near a park...so easy to just run to the park, go on the trails and run back. I bike around the city, too. We are pretty bike friendly.

Just_Dot

I would just like to add that it's October and snowing right now in Denver. Yuck :flowerforyou:

Not to mention it didn't snow everywhere...my parents live 35 miles nw of me and didn't get any snow and the snow we did get is already gone.

We get over 300 days of sunshine a year!