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Hey - I grew up in the Chicago area (so know humidity) but have been in Denver for 30 years. I NEED WATER! I need trees and rolling hills and no 22" of snow in October (or April)! I want long, lingering, pretty autumns and nice springs and 4 decent seasons but with LITTLE snow. Rain is ok but not all the time. I want a small town near a bigger city (for culture, etc.). I'd like some sort of water - river/ocean/lake/canal, historic downtown with charm and a train station (to bigger city) with educated and friendly people. A place like Camden, ME without the 68" of snow (or black flies). A place like Montpelier, VT without the 108" of snow. I want PICTURESQUE. Sailboats or rolling hills with cows, church steeples and trees. NO icky snakes or bad bugs. Forward thinking and liberal, would be nice, but more than that - genuine. I looked at Portland, OR - but honestly don't think I could do the rain 24/7 for 5 months ... and I think I need more sophistication and cultural and travel options. Any suggestions? I'm looking at MD/DE/PA corner ... possibly VA/WVA. Please help!!!
It's a beautiful town in a great setting where the Potomac and Shenandoah Rivers meet. There is frequent train service via MARC (Maryland's commuter rail service) to Washington DC during the week, and two Amtrak trains daily on Sat/Sun if you want to go to DC for recreational/cultural events.
The cost of living is quite low, compared to Chicago as well as the rest of the DC Metro. It has increased in popularity as a commuter town for folks from DC who want to get away from the hustle-bustle. It's definitely more liberal as a good number of younger outdoor enthusiasts...mountain bikers, climbers, etc. have made it home as well.
Probably fits the OP's desires to be on the liberal end of the county.
Shepherdstown has the University crowd and coffee shops, contemporary american theater festival, etc. It's WV but still an easy drive into DC.
It sounds as if you're okay with weather that is fairly cold, as long as you don't get lots of snow. How much snow can you tolerate? If you could handle average snowfall more in the range of 35 to 40 inches, you might consider towns on or near the coast in southern New England. New Jersey sounds like a good possibility as well. Depending on how close you would want to be to a big city, or to the train that would take you to the big city, there could be quite a few options for you in those places, with as many large cities as there are throughout the Northeast Corridor, and the region well covered by Amtrak.
Maybe Asheville NC, Roanoke VA, Knoxville TN, Harrisonburg VA, Blacksburg VA and Morgantown WV.
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