Indiana living is my kind of heaven..

[indy_317]

Originally Posted by JoeJunior

I lived in Terre Haute for 3 years after college and traveled the western half of Indiana on business extensively. I like it around Bloomington, but don't find the state especially scenic anywhere. I feel the same about most of the entire Midwest.

I think a decent part of the lower Midwest that is mostly flat does lack a very scenic feel, but some spots stand out. Larger river cities like Cincinnati and Louisville do have areas of hilltop parks and neighborhoods with some great views. A couple of years ago we took a trip to lower Wisconsin (Dells, Driftless areas). I hadn't been to this area since I was a teenager. I had no idea this area was so scenic. The areas of elevation change weren't as dense as say an E. KY or Appalachian Mountain area, but it seemed a tier or two higher than what Brown County offers.

Originally Posted by JoeJunior

As a Tennessee native, give me Middle and East Tennessee any day. When we lived in Atlanta 'burbs, we spent our weekends at our Northeast Georgia mountain place. Give me Hiawassee, Georgia and Lake Chatuge any day for sheer beauty.

I also worked in Virginia and North Carolina and found both states to have it all--from great beaches to beautiful mountains. Even better, Virginia is for Lovers. Cannot beat that.

In my retirement years, we go between NE Georgia and our waterfront house on the Tennessee River in North Alabama. It's 650 miles of the best inland cruising in the U.S.

E. TN is nice. I've always considered Knoxville a possible pre-retirement or retirement area. It seems to have been discovered. Basically at the steps of the Great Smoky Mountains NP, close to many of TVA lakes in the area. Housing prices took off around five or so years it from what I recall. Not sure if incomes have followed though. If the tri-cities area wasn't so spread out, it could possibly be a larger player in the region as well. A friend from my youth was looking to possibly relocate to E. TN. Originally considered the tri-cities area, but when it came down to it, they looked more at Knoxville. This was before housing costs took off. They didn't go. I guess the spouse, who works in healthcare, was looking at taking a $20K or so hit in income had they moved. They ended up staying in the Indy area last I knew.

After traveling to NC and SC for beach trips in past years, both of those states have amazing outdoor offerings. In recent years we also took two beach trips to Florida, both Gulf and Atlantic coasts. The southeast is said to be one of the top places people are relocating to and I can see why. Having scenic mountains and beaches, all within a reasonable drive, plus a more moderate winter, are hard to beat. I know two people from Indiana whose kids all moved to Florida. Both of them are now relocated to Florida where the kids and grand kids are. One was from N. Indiana, another one central Indiana. A co-worker was discussing him and his wife retiring soon and they are leaning toward the Gulf Coast area.

You are right to. Some of the most scenic drives east of the Mississippi can be found in the Southeastern Region. I even find driving I-75 south from say Lexington through to Atlanta a fairly scenic drive.

Originally Posted by Ivory Lee Spurlock

The way the streets of Indianapolis are laid out, it's probably the hardest big city in the nation to get lost in.

Before in-car/smartphone GPS was really a thing, I was on a work committee about upgrading some systems. Two people from a vendor had flown in, mid-day. They got lost trying to find their destination on the east side of the city. She said she called her contact to ask for directions. People with no sense of direction, especially if the sun is basically straight up in the sky, can get lost in the flat lands. She mentioned how there were no mountains to basically help guide them at least toward a general area. She was used to having large, natural landmarks (they were from somewhere out west, but mentioned how in Denver, they have a general sense of where they need to head due to the mountains) for general navigation. I've been told that downtown Indy is basically in a bowl, and this would make it harder to see our downtown skyline from the outskirt areas.

[indy_317]

Originally Posted by Chicago Bob

Rolling hills are my favorite - love upstate NY and parts of Pennsylvania, Southern Ohio, etc. Do not like mountainous, closed in areas where you cannot see the horizon though. Love seasons, wish winter was shorter in Northern climates but appreciate it all the same. I want easy living and country roads and hopefully soon I can find it and more importantly, afford it.

While most of the northern 2/3rds of Indiana is usually considered flat, it isn't all completely flat. For example, I was out in east central and SE Indiana recently. There are some areas where there is a slight elevation. Some of these areas that are slightly elevated sometimes have a road along the ridge. And usually you will see a row of houses, mostly homes that appear to be 60s-90s era housing (varies by area) that are built to have a view of the surrounding lower lands. The further S and SE you get, the more drastic the elevation differences are. The southern portions of the state have a much more mild winter than the northern 1/3rd part. As far as affordability, that comes with a cost. Counties like Henry and Fayette were decimated by the collapse of the US automobile manufacturing industry. These and other counties have really just been treading water and things aren't looking to good for the future. So while housing might be more affordable in some of these areas, you deal with minimal shopping options, minimal healthcare options, etc..

[sheerbliss]

Originally Posted by indy_317

Before in-car/smartphone GPS was really a thing, I was on a work committee about upgrading some systems. Two people from a vendor had flown in, mid-day. They got lost trying to find their destination on the east side of the city. She said she called her contact to ask for directions. People with no sense of direction, especially if the sun is basically straight up in the sky, can get lost in the flat lands. She mentioned how there were no mountains to basically help guide them at least toward a general area. She was used to having large, natural landmarks (they were from somewhere out west, but mentioned how in Denver, they have a general sense of where they need to head due to the mountains) for general navigation. I've been told that downtown Indy is basically in a bowl, and this would make it harder to see our downtown skyline from the outskirt areas.

When I moved here from Denver, I needed a compass in my car not only because there were no mountains, but because it was fall and the sky was usually cloudy.

Denver is also easy to get around because the streets west of Broadway and south of Ellsworth are in alphabetical order, and until you get to the suburbs full of meandering streets that don't go anywhere, almost everything is on a grid, with plenty of places to cross the South Platte River.

[jjbradleynyc]

I'll say Indiana can be beautiful to some and is a nice state with many good people.

There are areas that surprise folks with how geographically pretty they can be, that's for sure.

But personally, if I had to rank Indiana against all other 49 states, Indiana would be in the bottom 15 or so rankings, for me.

Reason being, there are no mountains in the state, and that typically adds a ton of depth of geographical extremes to add to a state's originality and scenery.

[sidneyinmyeyes34]

As a person that has been to Indiana during late October and checked out the Dunes on Lake Michigan, I would say Indiana is a pretty state. Lots of agriculture in Indiana and deciduous trees. From what I have seen I would say its neighbor to the north Michigan. Has scenery overall with some exceptions more attractive in comparison to Indiana and Illinois and Ohio.