Where can I live close to nature and yet be within an hour from London?

I'm relocating to London and will need to commute to King's Cross station each day. I'd like to live somewhere where I can do outdoor rock climbing, visit libraries and have a cinema close by. So, on one hand, I don't want to live in a rural village far from anywhere, but on the other hand I would not want to live in the middle of urban London either. A medium-sized town or city would work, but I don't want to be too far from the countryside. Am I asking for the impossible? Does anyone have any ideas? I don't know the area around London at all.Where can I live close to nature and yet be within an hour from London?
Stoke newington N16 has a lovely park with deer and goats (Clissold park), a friendly library and an indoor rock climbing centre, and there are cinemas in Islington, and you can get the bus straight to Kings Cross. It is also a lovely friendly area where it is easy to make friends and meet open minded people. Other than that if you want the countryside on your doorstep you might like to live somewhere near Epping Forest like Loughton but it's very suburban and Tory out there and it's much further out.


Not easy I'm afraid!Where can I live close to nature and yet be within an hour from London?
Dorking, Surrey (adjoining the Surrey Hills) 45 minutes by train from London Waterloo/Victoria


Wendover, Buckinghamshire (Chiltern Hills) 45 minutes by train from London Marylebone


Haywards Heath, West Sussex or Balcombe West Sussex 45-50 minutes by train from London Victoria/London Bridge


Tunbridge Wells, Kent 60 minutes by train from London Charing Cross/London Bridge/Cannon Stree


Berkhamstead/Tring, Hertfordshire 40-45 minutes by train from London Euston.


www.nationalrail.co.uk
Epsom/Ewell, Surrey.


St Albans, Herts


Kings Langley, Herts


Penn, Bucks
Chesham, Amersham, the Chalfonts, Hemel Hempstead, Watford.


All have quick access to London.
Peterborough
Richmond Upon Thames......... they actually have deer running about in the park.

Ltd