Canton and Clyde (Asheville, Waynesville, Black Mountain: houses, buy, live in)

[I LOVE NORTH CAROLINA]

I heard the towns Canton and Clyde flooded really bad in 2004 due to the hurricane Ivan. Do they flood a lot or was this just a one time thing? Are there more towns in Western N.C. that flood easy?

[mm34b]

The flooding in that area in September of 2004 was the result of two back-to-back storms only a few days apart, Frances & Ivan. Very unusual for the Mountain Region of NC. Of course, building a town or city on the banks of a river doesn't help either. As long as you build away from the river, you should be fine.

[mhogan10010]

If you move to Canton or Clyde make sure to bring a healthy supply of Nose Pins. Paper Mill smell is pretty intense.

[I LOVE NORTH CAROLINA]

So would you say these are two cities to avoid moving to????

[JAS]

There's a reason why land is cheap in that area - it's called the paper mill.

Unless you love the smell of sulfur in the morning, I would look elsewhere.

[mhogan10010]

It is so bad that when older folks all over Western NC smell something bad, they will say "smells like Canton".
My pastor when I was a teenager in MI was originally from Clyde. Couldn't pay him to move back there.
Unless someone is offering you a crap-load of money, I wouldn't even consider that area. Even then I am not sure.

[RaleighRob]

Of course, building a town or city on the banks of a river doesn't help either. As long as you build away from the river, you should be fine.

I'll take "Things people really SHOULD already know, but too few seem to actually DO" for $200, Alex?

[heznc]

Don't buy on low ground. Good advice anywhere, I think. If you're a Christian fundamentalist, man is this the place for you. I've found racism quite alive and well here, as well as a local reactions that vary from rage to rudeness towards outsiders. The fact remains, though, that people are POURING in here, especially from Florida, but really all over and they've been the friendliest and least judgmental people I've come across here (we're moving out for all above reasons).

[WNCtoENC]

Originally Posted by I LOVE NORTH CAROLINA

I heard the towns Canton and Clyde flooded really bad in 2004 due to the hurricane Ivan. Do they flood a lot or was this just a one time thing? Are there more towns in Western N.C. that flood easy?

My wife and I live in Sylva, NC. We were here in 2004 and a lot of places in WNC were flooded during that time. It is not a usual thing. All the old timers and people that have been here for generations called it the "hundred year flood". Apparently they went through the same thing in the early 1900's. And by the way, Canton does smell. We smell it almost every time we pass by on our way to Asheville. FYI, I posted a reply to your move first or get job first thread.

Best of luck.

[Bear Creek]

The " hundred year flood" hit Jackson County in 1940. It washed away a couple houses. It comes from a water table breaking off the side of a mountain after a long period of rain. I lived near to two creeks that would get up into our road every year or two, sometimes it would wash part of the bank off between road and creek. If you build in a flood plain there you may have to put your house up on "stilts." Mostly, you don't have to worry about flooding. Don't buy or build where there is evidence of past mud slides. Canton smells like boiled cabbage to me. I like the Bethel area near Canton. And the area across the river in Clyde is nice. As is Sylva, Waynesville and Black Mountain.