Best View of the Mountains in Knoxville

[linnemj]

We just moved outside Maryville in Blount County in July. We spent a lot of time over the past 5 years looking at the area as we traveled. If you want mountain views check out Eastern Blount county in the Walland area. It is close to the national park but still not too far from shopping in Maryville. If school districts are not important you can live in the county and enjoy lower property taxes.

What is funny to us, is while we liked the Walland area, we found a perfect house for us west of town off Route 129. We still have mountain views but it is a little longer drive to the park. Feel free to PM me for additional information.

[HelenJim]

I'll definitely check out the Walland area. Thanks linnemj! Congrats on your house.

[hiknapster]

Originally Posted by HelenJim

Thanks for the info PlaqueKnight! It looks like Knoxville does have a lot of activities. I don't need tons of shopping - I live in a suburb half hour outside of Chicago, and I barely get to the city since out town and the surrounding suburbs have enough stores. I'm thinking since there aren't too many towns right outside of Knoxville, I am hoping that their downtown has enough variety of places, especially restaurants - we do love good food! Though I like that Asheville is bigger and seems to have better access to mountain trails, if Knoxville is fine in those areas, I'm leaning toward K because temperature-wise it is a little warmer. I know it's a small difference, but I hate being cold. Thanks again & good luck.

My ex is from Chicago.

I have to be one of the biggest Knoxville boosters around, although there are plenty of us off of this forum. And Knoxville's downtown has greatly expanded since I first fell in love with it, especially in the past year. I know that I say this every year, but every year it's true.

But here's the thing. I understand that you are 30 minutes from Chicago. I get it. Even so, I think you are going to find our downtown laughable. I think Knoxville is great, I really do, but by reading your posts, I'd be shocked if after a couple of years you weren't complaining about moving here, and that's if we even passed your litmus test to begin with.

I get that you are retiring, but people don't move too far out of their comfort zone. You see, I'm a small-town girl and Knoxville, which seems like a very large town sometimes, is a great fit for me. That's why a lot of retirees from New York City and its environs retiree to the Miami-Boca Raton-Fort Lauderdale area. It's not New York City by any stretch of the imagination, but it's a good retirement fit.

Since you are very concerned with sunny days, you might want to check out that area. I used to live in Southwest Florida and there are a lot of Midwestern retirees and transplants. Anywhere from Naples to Tampa is worth looking into.

By the way, all of my ex's family lives in the Fort Myers-Cape Coral area.

[HelenJim]

Thanks for the info hiknapster. I do worry that it might feel like too much of a small town compared to what I'm used to, but we'll go check it out probably next summer. As for Florida, I don't think we would live there because it gets pretty hot, and we really do love mountains (as opposed to beaches).

[hiknapster]

Originally Posted by HelenJim

Thanks for the info hiknapster. I do worry that it might feel like too much of a small town compared to what I'm used to, but we'll go check it out probably next summer. As for Florida, I don't think we would live there because it gets pretty hot, and we really do love mountains (as opposed to beaches).

You are very welcome.

You are also welcome to come check us out anytime.

I know that you like hiking so you'll probably love our greenways and urban wilderness.

http://www.outdoorknoxville.com/imag...%202%20pgs.pdf

And Ijams.

Ijams Nature Center

We're becoming nationally known for our outdoor opportunities in an "urban" setting.

But we are a bit of a distance to the Smokies, perhaps 45 minutes to over an hour, depending on where you live.

You might also consider Nashville. It's not in the middle of mountains, but neither is Knoxville. Also, Sacramento comes to mind as well.

Or you might not be able to get everything that you wanted, but as you know that is life.

[HelenJim]

The greenways and Ijams look amazing! I know we wouldn't have a shortage of outdoor activities. We'll see how we feel about the town itself, but Knoxville has a lot going for it!

[NomadByKnight]

Originally Posted by hiknapster

My ex is from Chicago.

I have to be one of the biggest Knoxville boosters around, although there are plenty of us off of this forum. And Knoxville's downtown has greatly expanded since I first fell in love with it, especially in the past year. I know that I say this every year, but every year it's true.

But here's the thing. I understand that you are 30 minutes from Chicago. I get it. Even so, I think you are going to find our downtown laughable. I think Knoxville is great, I really do, but by reading your posts, I'd be shocked if after a couple of years you weren't complaining about moving here, and that's if we even passed your litmus test to begin with.

I get that you are retiring, but people don't move too far out of their comfort zone. You see, I'm a small-town girl and Knoxville, which seems like a very large town sometimes, is a great fit for me. That's why a lot of retirees from New York City and its environs retiree to the Miami-Boca Raton-Fort Lauderdale area. It's not New York City by any stretch of the imagination, but it's a good retirement fit.

Since you are very concerned with sunny days, you might want to check out that area. I used to live in Southwest Florida and there are a lot of Midwestern retirees and transplants. Anywhere from Naples to Tampa is worth looking into.

By the way, all of my ex's family lives in the Fort Myers-Cape Coral area.

The small town vibe has me a bit worried myself, I will admit it (I grew up about 30 outside of Atlanta). We haven't gotten a chance to go and visit yet but geographically it looks right on the money, so we are going to go check it out one weekend hopefully early spring next year. I will agree with you Helen, the amount of things to do outdoor wise is very appealing to us and that is one of the things that is really drawing us to the area! I convinced my fiancee to also consider Virginia so I might include Richmond in my research, however the further proximity from the mountains is a big downfall. For Knoxville to have a smalltown vibe it sure does look like it has a lot of things to do downtown as well. Also, can't forget that it won the 2015 Top Large City in Blueridge Outdoors Magazine (http://www.blueridgeoutdoors.com/mag...op-towns-2015/).

[creeksitter]

If you are interested in VA, I suggest a visit to Roanoke. My advice is to get a long weekend and do a road trip. Much better to form your own opinions than rely on the opinions of others.

[HelenJim]

Yes, PlaqueKnight, I've read quite a bit lately about Knoxville having much to do downtown. I haven't really considered Virginia since I assumed it is colder than TN or NC, but both Roanoke and Richmond look to be about the same temperature-wise as Asheville. I'll look into VA more tomorrow, but from the little I saw today, they look like good medium size cities with lots of outdoor activities. I keep Knoxville at the front of my mind, though, since it's warmer than any of these!