The thought of OP's question depresses me.

Land. Locked.

St. Michael's/Easton would be my vote -- gorgeous water views, close to DC, good shops/restaurants and very nice people.

Anonymous wrote:
With that said, you could in theory make the decision to say, "You know what, we are going to have a summer house here, no one will play summer sports, you kids are going to come along and you are going to make friends here."

But I'm not sure that is the hill I'm (personally) prepared to die on. But, it is possible to make it a priority.

My folks made that decision (in our case with offshore sailing) and I think that I came out pretty normal and successful (as well as really really good with knots)... I couldn't play a team sport (or even watch one- which as a guy can be a bit socially awkward) if my life depended on it but I am a good athlete and into lots of solo/small group sports (backcountry skiing, cycling, climbing/mountaineering, kayaking etc). Now that we have a mountain house, I really don't care if the kids do traditional organized sports, in fact I'm much more enthused about getting them into activities at the cabin than around here (ski team, mountain bike team, etc). I guess if one of them sneaks off, defies genetics and becomes a soccer prodigy when I'm not looking I'll have to deal with my disappointment We did make sure that we bought a place that wasn't totally remote (in a cabin development, 3 miles from a town) so that there is at least a strong chance of them meeting other w/e friends that they could walk/bike to but if we don't meet anyone it could be a fight.

Trappe is not "scene-y" You said you wanted that right?

We have a house in Oxford and I think you'd like St. Michaels or Easton (no water, but cute and historic).

But your budget won't go super far there. it takes me 2 hours on the dot from dupont with only a touch of traffic in and out of town and a brief wait on the bridge. Coming home on a Sunday in the summer can take 3 hours.

Anonymous wrote:Deep Creek is a solid 3 hour drive, traffic maybe 4. Same situation as driving to the beach.

Psst- Davis & Thomas WV (45 min south of Deep Creek) are less than a quarter the price and takes about 3 hours even with traffic from Arlington (as little as 2.5 without it) because of the new highway. Canaan valley has 3 ski areas, millions of acres of protected forest and backcountry and world class mountain biking and hiking. No (nice) lake but you can get your fix by driving up to the crowds at Deep Creek.

Story about Thomas:
http://articles.washingtonpost.com/2013-03-21/lifestyle/37904179_1_main-street-bluegrass-band-small-town

St. Michaels/Easton
Lynchburg, VA
Charlottesville
Deep Creek Lake (though drive is too far I think)
Cumberland, MD
Westminster, MD

I like places with a small town feel, but which still have a town because we like to go out to eat, etc. For some of the above, you could live a couple miles outside of town itself as a trade-off of quiet and open space, while still being able to go in for dinner and so on.

Berkeley Springs would be high up on my list of places.

With that said, you could in theory make the decision to say, "You know what, we are going to have a summer house here, no one will play summer sports, you kids are going to come along and you are going to make friends here."

But I'm not sure that is the hill I'm (personally) prepared to die on. But, it is possible to make it a priority.

Good luck, OP.

We have a place near in VA. It's rolling hills with trees, a pretty view, stream running through it, huge back yard, pool etc. Its fantastic.

It's not 4-5 hrs to the beach. It's 3, says someone who actually owns a house there and goes every week in season. Anyway, I'd suggest renting a place wherever you decide for a summer to make sure the location suits you.

Check out Rapphanock over Middleburg. Bit more bucolic, near some great hikes, and the northern part of the county can be 75-90 minutes. Horses and wine.

Be careful not to buy something too remote. We did (2.5 hours away), and it is impossible to find any help for anything, which means I spend my weekends cleaning and doing laundry. The upside is that the nearest neighbor is a mile away, but for me the downside outweighs that. Of course the kids and DH think it's great to go run around in all that space (when we can go given everybody's sports schedules...).

Anonymous wrote:Rappahanock (sp.) County is gorgeous. It's where Inn of Little Washington is and probably about 2 hours away. I think it is more country and less "horsey" than Middleburg and certainly a little less developed.

We have a place there. It is lovely, with water and lots of land - and great views. We live inside the Beltway in DC, and it takes us about 90 minutes to get there.

Deep Creek is a solid 3 hour drive, traffic maybe 4. Same situation as driving to the beach.

Why not 3 hrs? Deep Creek has beautiful scenery, lake, skiing. We go once a month (teens now, with activities at home) and at school breaks. And 3 hrs with your kids in the car is nice.

Avoid Bay Bridge. Look at Western Shore in Anne Arundel county.

You don't have to boat to enjoy the water.