Immense and vast as Canada is over 80% of us live in urban settings. With so much space and wilderness it seems we Canadians prefer to huddle together at our outposts of civilization. But it’s not all moose and polar bears out there. Much of Canada has been tamed and cultivated by previous generations of frontier peoples and farmers. The smaller towns and villages they carved out 100 years ago, which only one or two generations back were shrinking and dying, are now being revitalized by a growing interest among young families eager to move away from the intense urbanization. Many of Canada’s urban thirty-somethings are going rural.

Perhaps the move to small town rural living is a response to ballooning housing prices. There are few young families that can afford the $400,000 required for a home in Toronto, even fewer the $600,000 for a Vancouver tear-down house. The affordable housing prices in smaller communities on the Prairies and Maritimes are looking more attractive to people looking to break into the real estate market. When faced with the choices, come find it difficult to justify the $300,000 mortgage for a two bedroom condo when a four bedroom family home with a yard could be purchased for $100,000 less.

Having a space for the kids to run about is a commodity that is out of reach for many in Canada’s intensely urban communities. A condo with a back yard is rare, and park space is dwindling. Finding room for children to run around, be noisy, and just be kids can be difficult in the city. In a small town, space to run is everywhere. Children can ride their bikes on quiet house-lined streets, fields and parks are close by and older children walk themselves to school. Removed from the cramped quarters of urban cores, families have the room to stretch and spread that they’ve been longing for without the long commute to the city centre.

Rural living can also mean living simply. The growing awareness of our impact on the planet, combined with the increasing costs of energy and food, means moving out of urban areas into a rural community can lessen our environmental footprint. Getting our cars off of the clogged city streets lowers gas consumption. Having a larger back yard allows space for a family vegetable patch. And the quieter, slower pace of life can serve as an inspiration for making homemade bread, canning locally grown fruit, and treating the earth with a gentler hand.

Canada will continue to be a largely urban country. Its city centres are world renowned for their culture, beauty and opportunity. Numerous of Canada’s rural communities are revitalizing however. Drawn by the peaceful, simpler life and friendly community, many young families are moving out to Canada’s small towns to raise their children. In a country as huge and vast as Canada, sometimes smaller is better.