Possible Relocation to Tri-Cities, TN area

[KenLee]

I live outside of the city limits in Boone, NC (45 minutes from Johnson City).

If you want rural but relatively easy drives to Johnson City/Boone/Abingdon, Butler, TN is worth looking at. Watauga Lake is one of the prettiest and cleanest in the country, the majority of the land around it is public land you can hunt on. You can find rural parts and still be close to amenities in Watauga, Ashe, and Avery counties in NC (all in the mountains). Johnson and Carter county check a lot of your boxes, Mountain City, TN (Johnson County) is a medium/small sized town with some rural areas and checks a lot of your boxes

I don't know if it was a joke or not, but there's no way in hell I would live in Gastonia. Asheville sucks except for good food options.

I really enjoy the Mountain City/Butler area and Watauga Lake. Had an agreement to buy part of a coworker's inheritance up there 5ish years ago. She let family talk her into selling to them. She was too good of a longtime friend for me to make a stink over it.
Agree that I wouldn't live in Gastonia.

 

[KenLee]

Never thought I'd see Pauline mentioned on Rokslide ... I grew up in Spartanburg, still have some friends in Pauline (went to Dorman). Even shot some dove there last September.

There's a ton of public land within an hour of Pauline. A good bit 30 minutes.
Heck, they can move to Union, SC and be in the midst of public land, but probably a hair outside the "3 hour zone". Also real estate is cheaper in Union. I wouldn't live there with school age kids, but retired, it would be ok.