For me, the closest city is a 2.5 hour drive, so that's what I do. I don't travel much, and can only hobby about once per month, so when I can see a reviewed provider, I take a road trip.
I have TOFTT a few times, and they were mostly not good experiences.

Well, I lived in Montana and now I live in another midwestern state.
When I lived in Montana, it was really prior to internet as it is today and I really only hobbied when I was in a larger city, NYC, SF, DC.

Now I do the 1st two because the last can be socially deadly.  I am smack dab in the middle of the bible belt.  We have John TV and the whole 9 yds here.  You could well find yourself on the evening news or a website so I don't hobby here.

I do still have the opportunity to travel and I use TER to research the city I am going to and hobby then.  I have a few agencies I am happy with.  I used to fly my old ATF to meet me but haven't done that in a couple of years

I have a new ATF who has been coming to spend weekends with me on an every other month basis.  I may have her travel with me in Sept, kinda like sampling the local fare now though, LOL

Not perfect but it is working for me now.

Do not do #2 if it involves flying her across state lines. Remember the ex-governor of New York, Eliot Spitzer? You may not be as high profile, but the risk is still there. Plus, if you can afford to fly her to you, you can afford to fly to her just as well without having to pay any extra travel fees. I live 2-3 hours from the nearest TER-reviewed city, so I make a road trip when I can.

I like to travel

Sometimes I try to go to a conference and other times I travel to a city specifically to see someone. Actually if I go to a conference I pick out who I want to see first and then look for a conference in that city. So the conference is just an excuse and a tax deduction. Sadly, I cannot deduct all of my expenses for those trips  I live a couple of hours from Chicago and enjoy taking the train when that is my destination.

Re: Having sex with a walrus or bison???

Is that called "Animal Husbandry"?

Seriously, I know what you mean. The closest big city for me is a minimum 2 hour drive, so my hobbying is limited to when I travel. I get some travel time from work, and an occasional sports trip, and then, every now and then I just have to invent a trip, like I'm doing this weekend.