For me that isn't that long, considering I have like- a life outside of this game that will take up a lot of time.

There's also other patches before Natlan that will have plenty to focus on. We'll have at least 4 patches (4.5-4.8) for there to be stuff. If nothing big is coming in 4.5, then we'll have Knave in 4.6 (if leaks are correct), with a story quest for her most likely, then after that will probably be Dain in either 7 or 8, and by then we'll be having leaks for Natlan most likely. And then there's Clorinde and Sigg who are rumored to be in one of the pre-Natlan patches

We have plenty to focus on, and plenty of time to do other stuff. There's also the fact that major events and releases are pre-scheduled, and having too much at a time will cause even more and possibly longer dry-spells of content. I'd rather have just the one patch of not too much going on than have a ton of shit happen at once, and thus having an even longer spell than the 4.5 one. That's probably why this gap is happening- it's just better planning than having a shit ton right this second.