Is it quiet where you are? ( nature noise not included! )

[Mycatsbigtoe]

I’m in Scotland and live in a new build estate with houses everywhere. The neighbours behind us are almost constantly in their garden, which is fine, but the noise of their loud voices can be relentless as well as their dog barking for long periods of time. . I don’t mind birds or natural noises ( although I don’t like dogs barking ). It makes me not use my back garden much.

I’ve always said to myself that one day when the kids grow up, I’ll move somewhere quiet. My question is, is that realistic or will there always be the sound of people or cars if you’ve not the money to buy an island or huge estate! Even when I’ve been on holiday on a Hebridean island in a cottage, I could often hear dogs barking.

I live in the middle of a village with the main road about 200m away. Because there's lots of trees you can't hear the road at all in the day.
We do have neighbours, kids playing, building work, mowing lawns and bus noise though.

At night it's very quiet, apart from the odd car and owl.

Yes it's really peaceful. I mean we do live in a street so obviously hear sounds of human activity sometimes but generally it's very quiet. No one says music in their gardens or anything.

I'm in Outer London, a house just off one of the main roads.

I can hear the occasional swish of a car driving past.

Oh, and that's a fox jumping on the paper and card bin to get onto the wall.

I live very rurally in a tiny spread out village.

It’s 11pm so not only is it silent it is also pitch black

I bloody love it!

I hope you get your wish one day OP

They're a bit lower hmere and can hear the planes take off and land. It's supposed to be every 45 seconds but just seems constant😀relatives are so used to it they don't notice anymore. And I think they find it interesting.

For me, I'll be glad to get home to my house on a main road tomorrow. Is peaceful in comparison 😂

I can imagine! Shame though, living I. The Great Park otherwise sounds very idyllic!

Here at the Old People's Flats in a moribund rural town, it's pretty quiet at night. I can hear trains passing over a mile away if the window's open - but I can't keep the window open to sleep, because the socking great church out the back keeps forgetting to turn off its chimes at bedtime. 😬

During the day, it's 'quiet' apart from the usual vehicle noises & occasional construction. But my neighbours, who I assume are all hard of hearing, roam between each other's back gardens having VERY LOUD and endlessly repetitive conversations.

I always lived in cities before moving to the sticks, and genuinely enjoy the sounds of human activity day & night. But there's something so goddamn irritating about these shouty chats, I have to keep reminding myself I live in a flat and this is what happens!

The actual countryside was the worst, though. I found the stillness really oppressive (not to mention the lack of pavements & streetlights), then the sheep would start up and they sound so much like humans groaning in agony!

I'm officially Mrs Grumpy of Nowhere-in-the-Middle 😏

I can hear the cows mooing in the field behind us but can't see them because of trees, it's bliss.

Incredibly quiet here - edge of Bath but 6 minutes into town - lovely spot

I feel lucky the way our house sits. All our neighbours side & back are older couples. Grandkids come over and play occasionally but it isn’t every day.
One has a yappy dog I could boot into next week, although it’s the owners I’m more annoyed with because they never bring it in or tell it to shut up.

a house over the road sold to a young couple recently and they now play out on the front lawn with primary age DC after dinner as the back is in full shade then. That’s a new thing, before them it was a really quiet street. I do like hearing the kids play, not sure I will feel the same way by the end of summer though if it’s a daily occurrence.

We can hear cars but we are a couple of streets back from the main road so it’s not too loud.

To add some balance to the thread:

The crack heads next door are fighting again. Lots of screaming, banging, swearing and threats to kill themselves/each other.

Upstairs neighbour didn't treat me to the daily playing of the Lion King soundtrack on repeat earlier. However, I'm sure I'll get to hear her moans and groans shortly as they enjoy a loud sex session of a nighttime.

Lots of motorbikes being revved up and down the street.

Very jealous of all of you in peaceful, rural villages.

Ooo yes doesn’t upset me either! I like to feel “connected” and hearing the city buzz helps me to feel that way.

I appreciate that it’s not for everyone though :)

Yep, that's what I miss.

I suspect my deaf/shouty/sociable neighbours wouldn't bother me if they were part of more general activity, actually. I didn't mind the police helicopters, etc, either!

Yes but not sure I would notice noise as I'm from the city. I can here birds and the yachts nearby's masts

Nope. Live in a pretty small rural village which happens to be a main transport route for HGVs getting to and from Norfolk. House shakes every time one drives past and it drives me mad!! It also wakes up my 2 year old at 6am every day 🙃

I shouldn’t laugh but I enjoyed your realism on this thread of idyllic quietness. I suspect this is a similar case for many people in the U.K. though sadly. Have you lived in your place long? Hope you find some peace!

I’m in zone 3 London on a residential street, genuinely can’t hear a thing at night except the occasional car and the randy foxes. V peaceful

Lots of road noise and sirens, during the day but feels peaceful in the back when the neighbour's particularly loutish paintitandflipit builders aren't around. There's often kids playing (nicely) in the cul de sac behind and gardening and odd bits of diy going on but it's generally a pleasant hubbub not dominated by anyone.

Usually, yes. There's the sound of the machinery in the industrial estate behind us, the noise of the trains every now and again, the church bells, the kids playing, people's radios and three charter from their parties, the birds singing and the dogs barking. Written down it sounds like a lot but it feels quiet to me because it's peaceful noise rather than the sound of violence or arguing. It's the sound of people just going about their day.

This thread is really interesting and someone has really nailed my thoughts (can’t remember who sorry!). I live in a small town, lots of beautiful trees surrounding us and our close is generally really quiet…. But that actually means dogs barking/chatter really stands out. So it can be virtually silent and then I’ll jump because next door’s dog barks. I think I’d prefer to be in the middle of nowhere with no neighbours or back in a city where I tend to zone out with the general hubbub of noise 🫤

I live at the end of a Close in a detached house with a good size plot. When I sit in the garden on a warm day I can usually hear a little bit of traffic but distant, and occasional chat and laughter from neighbouring gardens. Obviously mowers and strimmers sometimes in the summer, but certainly nothing loud or offensive. Some of our neighbours quite enjoy a summer evening party so then we’ll hear music and chat but the music isn’t outrageously loud and never goes on past midnight.

Sometimes at night I can hear the sea from my bed if I’ve got the bedroom window open. 💙

Working class town in Essex. It’s okay not great. Our actual neighbours aren’t noisy (touch wood!) but there are a couple of very noisy fuckers in the vicinity. People let their kids play outside in the road and they scream and shriek. The house a few along at the front played really loud music all day last weekend, then were shouting and guffawing as their guests got in their cars at gone 11/12 which stopped me sleeping. They do this occasionally. The worst house is at the back, one along from
us. Right bunch of fucking proles. Let their kid slam footballs constantly into their fence. Woken the baby up a few times. Yesterday they decided to blare horrendous music at 100 decibles, could hear it even windows shut & tv on at the front of the house. I fucking hate them.

Yes! We also live on a new estate but are lucky enough to have bagged an amazing position right on the edge of the National Forest and at the end of a little close. The bird noises are amazing and our views are wonderful. New build estates can be noisy if you're right in the middle etc but they aren't always. Even so, I'd still love to live in a little isolated cottage in the hills one day like a wise old witch 😆🌸❤️

Fairly quiet, although there's a moderately busy road outside so you do hear traffic.

I have noticed recently an increase in drunk twats bellowing up and down the street at kicking out time on Friday and Saturday nights, which didn't used to happen.

Back to my 'rural idyll' of the town centre, Zone 5, small terraces, the odd older building converted, LA flats.

There's a 400cc motorbike going over the flyover about a mile away, probably heading to the coast for the afternoon.

Somebody's just closed their car door and driven off slowly. Their eldest's taking his football with them going by the couple of bounces he did just before getting in.

Sparrows. Think they're planning on having a rummage through the Ivy on the house for some spiders.

Breeze through them-over-the-back's Silver Birch and my Cherry Tree.

Great Tit, couple of Blue Tits.

That's nice, a Goldcrest. Probably means there are Firecrests, Greenfinches and Chaffinches, as they all tend to travel as a mixed flock.

Sounds like a plane at about 7000 ft.

Freddy the black lab/pitbull cross is apparently going to have to wait until teatime before he gets another walk because 'you're too hot already, go back to the kitchen'.