What’s the best place to live in New Hampshire?

I moved to the North Conway area 36 years ago, and still thank my lucky stars I live here every day. I came for the climbing, rock and ice, and the XC skiing. We have granite sport, trad, cracks, slabs, you name it. Lakes and great rivers (fly fishing ) abound here. The people are great. I live in Chatham, so in summer it's fifteen minutes to Cathedral or Whitehorse, and an hour to Cannon. Lake Willoughby is a bit over two hours away.There are so many great cliffs here that there are still some I have yet to visit. My sons got to attend Fryeburg Academy as their high school, great campus environment with students from all over the world.  There is no income tax or sales tax in New Hampshire. In my town people leave their doors unlocked and keys in the car.

My older son lives in Portland, Maine, just over an hour away. Lots to recommend that city, but any after work climbing is at a gym. My younger son lives in Burlington Vt., which is a great vibrant city, but rents are quite high. My fishing partner is a retired submarine commander, pretty well off, who moved out of Portsmouth because rents are high.

New England weather is way different than bellingham.

Portland Maine and Portsmouth are both pretty rad as long as you don’t expect climbing right out your door. The majority of people in New England aren’t racists, so as long as you don’t mind having mostly white friends, I don’t see you having a issue in those terms. It really bothered a family member who wasn’t used to being around almost exclusively white people (they stayed in Lincoln, NH)

Portsmouth is expensive if you want to buy a Single family home. Portland is a bit cheaper but also has sales/income tax.

Maine/NH have different Marijuana laws and that could be a deciding factor for some. 
The heroin issue may be real, but the rest of crime is low so unless you actively seek out heroin or hang with users, I really don’t see it being a issue. It’s not as obvious as it is in Portland, OR, Seattle, etc.

I second Toms opinion in the fact that I never lock my car or house. I also left my $5000 Bike on the back of my truck in Conway for a entire day and no one touched it. 

Tom Stryker wrote: I moved to the North Conway area 36 years ago, and still thank my lucky stars I live here every day. I came for the climbing, rock and ice, and the XC skiing. We have granite sport, trad, cracks, slabs, you name it. Lakes and great rivers (fly fishing ) abound here. The people are great. I live in Chatham, so in summer it's fifteen minutes to Cathedral or Whitehorse, and an hour to Cannon. Lake Willoughby is a bit over two hours away.There are so many great cliffs here that there are still some I have yet to visit. My sons got to attend Fryeburg Academy as their high school, great campus environment with students from all over the world.  There is no income tax or sales tax in New Hampshire. In my town people leave their doors unlocked and keys in the car.

My older son lives in Portland, Maine, just over an hour away. Lots to recommend that city, but any after work climbing is at a gym. My younger son lives in Burlington Vt., which is a great vibrant city, but rents are quite high. My fishing partner is a retired submarine commander, pretty well off, who moved out of Portsmouth because rents are high.

Tom, if you can get to Cathedral in 15 minutes from Chatham, well, you have a much better car than I do (even if you do come up over Hurrican Mountain).    And yes, the fishing around here is great!    

Lol Peter, that time involved a little air on Hurricane. And I live in South Chatham...

I’ve enjoyed reading your input as much as I’ve enjoyed reading the non-climbers’ input. Thanks again.
Winter in Seattle is wonderful. Love it.
Unfortunately, I won’t be able to visit Burlington but will definitely visit Portland.
Living in different places is fun. I love New England and its proximity to NYC, and chances are I will love Bellingham as well, for all the reasons you guys have mentioned. Tough choice.

I made the decision to move to Lebanon, NH (near Hanover and Dartmouth College) about 18 months ago, and I think there is a strong case for this being worth consideration if you are thinking of settling in New England.  It's a rural place, but the college brings in a lot of good culture/music/theater/food.  The largest employer in the state - Dartmouth-Hitchcock Health - is based here.   Recreational opportunities are strong:  some of the best lift-served and BC skiing in the East within 2 hrs, and solid, not-crowded options much closer than that; some of the best mountain biking anywhere that I've experienced within 1 hr (and a lot much closer); lots of great whitewater within 2 hrs.   For climbing specifically you have to drive a little more than is ideal - I'm 45 min from Rumney and 75 min from Bolton (VT).  Biggest downside is a housing shortage brings real estate prices higher than other parts of the state (though I would bet they are on par with Portsmouth).  A number of towns have great schools.

Compared to Bellingham, you sacrifice (a) size of mountains and quantity of snow (I still dream of having easy access to the Baker backcountry); (b) the ability to get really out there in the mountains (never more than a 1/2 day from a road); and (c) easy driving access to even more wild places (i.e., can't just head up to the Coast Range or the Canadian Rockies to climb and ski).

Personally, a number of good friends have headed to the PNW in the last 8-10 years.  If I didn't have a family and a great job, I'd strongly consider joining them - if I could afford to live there.

Tom Stryker wrote: Lol Peter, that time involved a little air on Hurricane. And I live in South Chatham...

Going from Bartlett to S. Chatham, right near the bottom, there is a little roller that I always hit fast, and even in my old beaters I can catch air. Then it's hit the brakes hard for that righthand turn and whoa, there's the stop sign at Green Hill Rd. You know the spot. It's right about here: 41.07813056, 71.03361111

Again - I have really enjoyed reading the things you guys said. If anyone else feels like sharing anything about living and/or climbing in New England, I’d be happy to read. It doesn’t need to be only good things. I’m just as interested to read about bad experiences, negative inputs, or how happy you are to have left , or how happy you are to have moved there.
The non-climbers are passionate about the things they hate and love about NH.
So many of them mentioned that the only way to be happy in NH is if you love the outdoors.
 I love the outdoors, but I love the city too. But to be honest, I’d like to become less of a city person and become content with the rural life, if I only I could... I can only be me.
In a perfect world I’d live in Boston, which will never happen because Boston is also too expensive. It seems it’s even more expensive than Seattle. I’m done living in big expensive cities.I’m sure I will find a cool small town somewhere with some sort of a big city feel near the things I need. Part of me feels like I should just skip the Whites this time and just spend all my days there visiting cities and towns. 

I did the same thing before I moved to Seattle, and 2.5 yrs later I can tell you that everything I read about Seattle, good and bad, was all true.I can also testify that all stereotypes you hear about LA is all true. 

Cos Teplitz, I had never heard of Lebanon until you mentioned. It does seem like a cool place. 

I don’t really care about being close to climbing. I’m fine driving up to 3 hours, or more, if the climbing is something I want to do. I’d rather be close to a city and drive further to climb. I love climbing but based on some of the things I have read on this forum, I’m not nearly as crazy about climbing as some of you seem to be. I love climbs like Mt. Baker, Shuksan, have done the Soulphide Route and the Fischer Chimneys. I love being out in the cold and in the snow. Love ice climbing. Like rock climbing. Love being near the water. Summer is my least favorite season. Summers in Seattle last a long time, but they are beautiful.  Winter here goes by so quickly, it must be because it’s my favorite season. Since I’ve moved here I’m all year looking forward to the winter. This has been my third winter here. I’ve been told by a former boss that I’m the only person he knows that travels to even colder places during the winter. Then I say Seattle is just not cold enough for me.But based on some of the things the non-climbers said, a  few winters in New England could get me all wintered out. I guess I’m still in the phase of, “I’m not really sure of what I will be getting myself into until I’m there”, from afar things don’t look as bad as they say.But if a few yrs later I realize I don’t really love there that much, I can always move somewhere else. Moving is not a life sentence. I’m
just after the experience to live and climb there. 
And again - living in different places is fun.
One of the great things that make me want to move there is how much cheaper it is to fly to Europe and South America from Boston. It’s a lot cheaper! I went to South America last year and paid $1200 for my flight from Seattle, and it took me 22 hours to get there. If I lived in New England it would have cost me $700 to fly from Boston, and it would have taken me 12 hours to get there.

I’ve been having a crazy fantasy of one day doing a winter climb in the Whites Mountains under super harsh environment, something like the Presidential Traverse in the winter, then next day jump to a plane and fly to one of the heavenly beaches in the Northeast of Brazil. I’d like to experience both extremes of nature within a matter of couple of days. I’d be going from hell to heaven... literally!
Not sure if I will really do that one day, but that’s something I daydream about.

DISCLAIMER: I’m sharing this for entertainment purpose only. I don’t share any of the author’s opinion since I don’t really know NH yet. Have only been there once to climb ice.

I’d like to share this with you guys just because I thought it was really funny.
This non-climber started a topic, “Reasons why not to move to NH”.
And this is what he said,

“This list has no preferrenital ranking.

1. There is no culture here (Love theatre, love music, different experiences, nope)
2. There is no diversity (You are moving to the whitest state in America, no different cultures, no different people to mingle with(we'll delve into that more later)
3. LOTS AND LOTS OF SNOW AND LOTS AND LOTS OF TALK ABOUT IT
4. Its BORRRRINGGGGG unless you're old. Do You love trees, do you love to be surrounded by thousands of trees with no outlet for fun or livliness. Where going to keene(the third biggest city in NH(20,000 people) is a scary,fun and exicting adventure. You can go to a torn-down movie theatre or walk around downtown(half a mile of shotty bulidings)
4.5-Education(NH's Schools are among the worst in the country(i.e. Conant High school Serving the local population of 10,000 has serveral times faced losing it's accredation(which is death in education terms) and is overall a very poor school. Also the college system is mediorce, if you're looking to suceed in life and not coast by, then Our colleges aren't the choice for you.(Exception,dartmouth)
5. The people, The people. Do you live misolgy? Do you live misantorhpic, sardnoic, uptight;quiet and boring people. Who are very mistrustful and negative? If you like having fun, are free-spirited or outgoing then this is not the place for you.
6. NO ECONOMY (the economy here is terrible, because it's so small and there are no real citys or centers of commerce. It's very hard to find a proffisonal job, or if you're not, a decent paying prole job. And there is very little room for opportunity, so whatever your occupation is, be prepared stay perpetually or ascend the ranks every 10/20 years. If that is, you happen to get the job in the first place or better yet find it!!
7. It's ugly! New england has a certian winter charm(although ephmeral, it lasts about a week) however beyond the pretty snowy glitz of the winter and the iridescent descent of fall(which lasts about a month) The majority of NH is very very ugly and run-down. If you have lived in NH/NE you're entire life or the majority of it, you'll never notice. But once you've been to the south,(which actually is much nicer despite perspective), flordia,maryland, NY, cali,you'll realize how crappy, shotty and run-down the bulidings/overall beauty of New England is.
8. Lack of excitment creates many problems; one there is a massive drug problem in NH(so much so that NH/vermont have the highest drug usage rates in the country and so much so that one of the least populated states in the country has a DEA Drug Task Office(bust DD,DU,etc) soley NH..(many states dont have one at all! or have regional offices)
Also the people are very boring and most conversation is small talk, not with strangers but with you're friends and everyone you know. (weather,exciting devoplments(it's going to snow monday,it's christmas tommorrow,jimmy got a new job at mcdonalds)

Reasons to move to NH:
1. You're old
2. You like solitude
3. You are uptight
4. You like the scenery(NH is a pretty state)
5. You're of determinant intelligence (Due to the resitance to change, invasive egos and overall economy(I guess bad economy attracts stupid people) The people of my state tend to be unintelligent compared to the rest of the USA(New York,boston,Flordia, et cetra et cetra)

And please people of NH focus on all the issues I posed, not just the last one!”

Ice Crow wrote: DISCLAIMER: I’m sharing this for entertainment purpose only. I don’t share any of the author’s opinion since I don’t really know NH yet. Have only been there once to climb ice.

I’d like to share this with you guys just because I thought it was really funny.
This non-climber started a topic, “Reasons why not to move to NH”.
And this is what he said,

“This list has no preferrenital ranking.

1. There is no culture here (Love theatre, love music, different experiences, nope)
2. There is no diversity (You are moving to the whitest state in America, no different cultures, no different people to mingle with(we'll delve into that more later)
3. LOTS AND LOTS OF SNOW AND LOTS AND LOTS OF TALK ABOUT IT
4. Its BORRRRINGGGGG unless you're old. Do You love trees, do you love to be surrounded by thousands of trees with no outlet for fun or livliness. Where going to keene(the third biggest city in NH(20,000 people) is a scary,fun and exicting adventure. You can go to a torn-down movie theatre or walk around downtown(half a mile of shotty bulidings)
4.5-Education(NH's Schools are among the worst in the country(i.e. Conant High school Serving the local population of 10,000 has serveral times faced losing it's accredation(which is death in education terms) and is overall a very poor school. Also the college system is mediorce, if you're looking to suceed in life and not coast by, then Our colleges aren't the choice for you.(Exception,dartmouth)
5. The people, The people. Do you live misolgy? Do you live misantorhpic, sardnoic, uptight;quiet and boring people. Who are very mistrustful and negative? If you like having fun, are free-spirited or outgoing then this is not the place for you.
6. NO ECONOMY (the economy here is terrible, because it's so small and there are no real citys or centers of commerce. It's very hard to find a proffisonal job, or if you're not, a decent paying prole job. And there is very little room for opportunity, so whatever your occupation is, be prepared stay perpetually or ascend the ranks every 10/20 years. If that is, you happen to get the job in the first place or better yet find it!!
7. It's ugly! New england has a certian winter charm(although ephmeral, it lasts about a week) however beyond the pretty snowy glitz of the winter and the iridescent descent of fall(which lasts about a month) The majority of NH is very very ugly and run-down. If you have lived in NH/NE you're entire life or the majority of it, you'll never notice. But once you've been to the south,(which actually is much nicer despite perspective), flordia,maryland, NY, cali,you'll realize how crappy, shotty and run-down the bulidings/overall beauty of New England is.
8. Lack of excitment creates many problems; one there is a massive drug problem in NH(so much so that NH/vermont have the highest drug usage rates in the country and so much so that one of the least populated states in the country has a DEA Drug Task Office(bust DD,DU,etc) soley NH..(many states dont have one at all! or have regional offices)
Also the people are very boring and most conversation is small talk, not with strangers but with you're friends and everyone you know. (weather,exciting devoplments(it's going to snow monday,it's christmas tommorrow,jimmy got a new job at mcdonalds)

Reasons to move to NH:
1. You're old
2. You like solitude
3. You are uptight
4. You like the scenery(NH is a pretty state)
5. You're of determinant intelligence (Due to the resitance to change, invasive egos and overall economy(I guess bad economy attracts stupid people) The people of my state tend to be unintelligent compared to the rest of the USA(New York,boston,Flordia, et cetra et cetra)

And please people of NH focus on all the issues I posed, not just the last one!”

https://www.usnews.com/news/best-states/new-hampshire

Alot of stereotypes about NH are false and people from other states who have spent little time there say them. New Hampshire ranks highly in a lot of things (other than diversity & nightlife).

Insert name wrote:

https://www.usnews.com/news/best-states/new-hampshire

Alot of stereotypes about NH are false and people from other states who have spent little time there say them. New Hampshire ranks highly in a lot of things (other than diversity & nightlife).

Thanks for the link. Great info!

"In a perfect world I’d live in Boston,"
"I don’t really care about being close to climbing."
" I’d rather be close to a city and drive further to climb."

Ice Crow,
Sounds like a bad idea to consider NH.  You said it yourself above.  You seem young, and not obsessed with climbing.   Do yourself a favor and pick a city where you can hang out, experience lots of different things, and stay connected to vibrant culture.   Make the finances work.  How about the NYC area?   

Mack Johnson wrote:

Bellingham for sure.  I lived in North Conway in the 70's and Derry, Manchester and Pembroke in the 80's.  We moved to western Washington 30 years ago and it was one of the biggest gifts of my life. Bellingham is a nice college town close to Mt. Baker, the ocean, Vancouver, Squamish, and a couple sets of hills called the Cascade Mountains and the BC Coast Range.   You can ski year-round!  The weather is moderate, the politics are mostly blue, there is astounding beauty all over. 

In the 70's?  That was an eternity and different planet ago.  Not the same place as it is today.  Nor is Portsmouth

If you're considering moving to the Northeast, change your travel plans.  Spend a few days in Portsmouth, Portland, and Burlington.  All are similar to Bellingham.  If you crave the outdoors, spend a few days in North Conway too.  Bellingham is awesome, but so are all of these towns and the White Mountains.

It sounds like you would enjoy living in Portland or Burlington much more than anywhere in NH. 

I second idea of Portland. Not to mention, there are basically more restaraunts than people if that is your thing. Really great community of climbers at the gym just south of town (Salt Pump). Opportunities to get outside within 2 hours, but nothing really within an hour for ropes. But if you like culture, there is your place!

Zach Powers wrote: I second idea of Portland. Not to mention, there are basically more restaraunts than people if that is your thing. Really great community of climbers at the gym just south of town (Salt Pump). Opportunities to get outside within 2 hours, but nothing really within an hour for ropes. But if you like culture, there is your place!

Zach, where are you at these days? 

M Mobes wrote:

Zach, where are you at these days? 

I'm finishing up school in MA, but moving near Sebago in March!

Ice Crow wrote: I’m not really a small town person, however, I’ve been trying to find a small cool town to live which offers good economy and education, it’s within reasonable driving distance to the mountains, water, climbing and a big city, for the times that I crave big city fun, which is not really that often.
 

This text is a bit buried, but it seems to be the best summary of what the OP is looking for. Based on these criteria, within New England, the OP should strongly consider Burlington, VT. It meets these criteria better than anywhere else in New England:

- Very cool small city with a lot going on for its size.
- Pretty town, with lake and mountain views.
- Very progressive local and state politics (Bernie got his start as mayor of Burlington).
- Nice water access - right on Lake Champlain, with many smaller mountain lakes and rivers nearby also
- Decent local cragging (Bolton is a half hour away with pleasant schist climbing), and excellent climbing 1.5-2 hours away for weekend excursions (Rumney for sport, ADKs for trad). Great ice climbing too, if you are into that sort of thing.
-Local skiing is quite good (... by New Engalnd standards).
- For city access, Montreal is an awesome city and is less than 2 hours away.

Nowhere else in New England meets the criteria quite as well. Portland (ME) and Portsmouth (NH) are both good cities, but  are a bit farther from mountains/climbing/skiing. Burlington offers a see-the-mountains-from-town feel, whereas in Portland/Portsmouth you are living in a coastal environment and driving to get to mountains. It mainly just depends what you are looking for.

Meanwhile, northern NH (North Conway area and various other options) offers the best climbing/skiing access in New England, but is very much remote, small-town living. Again, that's great if that's what you were looking for.  Someone mentioned Lebanon/Hanover NH, which is actually a decent option. Though I think not quite as good as Burlington (smaller town, no big lake, mountains access about the same).

The other town that meets the OP's criteria perfectly, on the other side of the country though, is Bellingham WA. Bellingham and Burlington remind me a lot of each other. SImilar size, culture, and layout. Very different climate, though (chilly and damp winters in town, rather than cold and snowy). Bellingham's skiing is bit farther away (Mt. Baker), but incomparably better than what you are getting in Vermont. Similar story with the climbing. The notable climbing areas are a bit of a drive from Bellingham, but are world-class quality (Squamish).

This was limited to US towns in the NE and NW. If Canada is an option, Squamish and Kelowna/Penticton (all in BC) should be strongly considered. Or, if you are OK with a drier climate and less access to water, there is Bend, OR, Golden, CO, Flagstaff AZ, etc...

Russ Keane wrote: "In a perfect world I’d live in Boston,"
"I don’t really care about being close to climbing."
" I’d rather be close to a city and drive further to climb."

Ice Crow,
Sounds like a bad idea to consider NH.  You said it yourself above.  You seem young, and not obsessed with climbing.   Do yourself a favor and pick a city where you can hang out, experience lots of different things, and stay connected to vibrant culture.   Make the finances work.  How about the NYC area?   

While I absolutely love NYC, I could  not afford to live there. Plus, I feel like I’m done living in big, liberal expensive cities. In a way, I can relate a little with the guy from CA who told the NH hater his reasons to have moved to NH. He said, “I am an extreme conservative who grew up in the most liberal states of America. I change my ways when they no longer work, not just to try something new.”

I relate to him in the sense that I have lived in big, liberal cities my whole life and somehow I managed to become conservative. I was never liberal, but I’m a cool conservative. Unfortunately, all big cities are full of liberals. Moderate liberal views are ok, but I hate the views of extreme liberals. Our society can not thrive on their insanity. It feels like their ultimate goal is to extinct us. They are becoming beyond immoral. And again, unfortunately, big cities are full of these kind of people. At the current moment, the thing they have been doing that I hate the most is to push transgenderism to children and their relentless fight to make abortion legal up to birth. NY has approved that already. That’s evil in my eyes. But please,  let’s not go off topic.

I want to experience something new for a change. While I‘d never go live in a  small rural town because that’s nearly impossible, but I’m going to find a small cool town  with some sort of big city feel somewhere, even if it’s only a little bit of a feel. The city must have good economy and education, and must be within reasonable driving distance to nature, climbing, water and a big city.
No more big, expensive cities full of extreme liberals. 

Perhaps Mobile would better suit your needs.