favorite/most convenient town in the Whites ?

I vote for "other" - Rumney has it all - small town, super rock climbing (if a bit crowded), nice river running right through it, little mountains with great views, convenient to the bigger mountains, couple of little hole-in-the-wall places to get decent eats... and its far enough off 93 that you don't get the tourist feel - though if you need a tourist trap, you can always visit the Polar Caves...

Peakbagger

Your post has everything I want to live there now. It is just missing information on the school system and the good trout pools on the Androscoggin.

Having grown up in VT and spending 50+ years there, I have a strong biasis for it, although I love hiking in NH more than VT. If I were to move back to the east, I'd probably look in a border town, like the St. Johnsbury area, or a bit further south like Newberry. Generally speaking, property taxes in VT are far lower than NH. I think the same can be said of the ME vs. NH property tax comparison as well. This probably has a larger importance if you're retired.

cushetunk said:

I detect a southern New England I-93 bias to this poll!

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Biased, rightly or wrongly, against 93, 95 and 16, especially on friday and sunday afternoons. It would be different if we lived there or were semi-retired. We FLY up 91 and then generally come in via Orford or Littleton.

I live in Bridgton ME which is only 30 min. from Conway. I'm close enough that everything I do in the Whites is just a day trip. I don't need to stay anywhere and most of the time I drive home to eat although I do on occasion stop for a sandwich here and there.

All that being said, I voted 'other' because North Conway is without a doubt the most important town in the Whites for me shopping wise and otherwise. I rarely head towards Portland for much of anything except to leave the state. "Go West" is my motto.

Kevin Rooney said:

Generally speaking, property taxes in VT are far lower than NH. I think the same can be said of the ME vs. NH property tax comparison as well. This probably has a larger importance if you're retired.

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Very true, Kevin, but another thing to take into consideration is pay rate and income tax. When I was looking at ME and NH, I noticed that ME paid SLPs a lot less than NH, and if I recall correctly, ME has an income tax. So you're right, it depends on what stage you're at in your life whether one state offers a better living situation than another. Hope you and your wife are doing well out west. The dog is loving all the snow we got this year in NH.

I chose Campton/Thornton because I like the convenience of sleeping in my own bed. Plus I get to swim in the Eddy anytime I want.

Livermore doesn't have much in the way of amenities, but it has plenty of solitude, some nice peaks, and not much traffic. )

Biking

In reply to an earlier question, I think the road biking from Lincoln is very good. Three notches to ride up (although I've only gone down from Kinsman), a challenging 40 mile loop over Franconia/Kinsman, a 100 miler over the Kanc (if you are young!), and a nice easy ride south. The only really scary part I've ridden is a mile or so on 112 east of 118. I imagine Bear Notch Rd would also have its moments.

In addition, you can get dropped off for a number of hikes and then coast home. Or do a Pemi traverse and ride back to the car the next day.

Hiking with Kat said:

Just curious, I've been to Gorham a few times, what do you consider good places to eat there? I'm really sick of Mr. Pizza.

My vote would have to be for the Waterville Valley area, but that is mostly because it is close and there aren't a million other people on the trails in this extremely nice hiking area.

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I've yet to have a bad dinner at J's over maybe 10 times.

White Mountain Cafe has good coffee/danishes. Cool Place.

Blue Moon Cafe's cool for "brunch" It has an "atmosphere." Good breakfasts.

Forget the name of the place (Duffy's??) with a really good breakfast buffet on the weekend - maybe only Sunday? Great place the morning after a big hike!

The double whopper at BK always performs consistently.

GHOP has good subs, etc. for a change from Mr. Pizza.

Honestly, most of the food I've had in Gorham has been good.

In that sense, and due to it's proximity to the Northern Pressies, the North Country, Maine, etc. that 's a good, convenient town. Weak, weak nightlife though...

I voted for Randolph but that's just over the hill.

For the nightlife

dclynch said:

In reply to an earlier question, I think the road biking from Lincoln is very good....

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No doubt there are some epic / classic rides up that way*, but I do think the nature of the mountains and roads forming lobes, there is not that much variety. A WMNF perimeter town will probably have more variety. Then again, less development, fewer roads, less traffic (?)

Tim
*my favorite is the 4 notches and a pass loop: Loon - Kinsman - Franconia - Crawford - Bear - Kanc - Loon

I vote Bethlehem, of course! Quiet solitude tucked inside the WMNF... with the benefit of local restaurants and store. A ten-minute drive takes you to civilization with it's Wal-marts and fast food restaurants. And, just about any White Mountain hiking trail, from the Kilkenny/Nash Stream area, to Chocorua and the Moats, to Moosilauke and Cardigan and all in between - within an hour and a half or so (at the very most) from your doorstep.

And the great benefit over Lincoln / Conway - lack of the tourist hordes. Bethlehem tends to stay quiet even during the busy holidays when Gorham, North Woodstock, and North Conway are jammed up with people.

Of course, my opinion is a bit biased

With respect to Kevin's comment on tax differences between the states. NH is universally regarded as having the lowest if not next to lowest overall tax burden in the US with Me being the 49th highest and VT the 42th.

Many retirements these days are taxable as they were 401k's rolled to IRA's so income taxes impact a lot of current retirees. Property taxes in NH, as I mentioned varies substantially between towns so a well informed buyer can pick the town with the least taxes (which generally have lower services). VT and ME have somewhat equalized property taxes so the taxes tend to be more equal from town to town although property values vary considerably.

Some good choices on that list. I pretty much like all of them. However, I voted for other. There isn't much hiking up in Pittsburg but I sure do love flatwater kayaking and there is plenty of that to be done on the three Connecticut Lakes and some of the ponds as well. I also enjoy taking a quick day trip over to Quebec.

Oh yeah, and it is easily to best place in NH to run into a moose.

Sorry I picked a place outside of the whites but at least I picked one in NH.

Roxi said:

... But my favorite town in the Whites is still Bethlehem. I love having so much within walking distance: a great Italian restaurant, the village store, post office, bank, coffee shop/bakery, a movie theatre, an ice cream shop, antique stores, and a hair dresser, not to mention two golf courses - one at each end of town. The town is friendly as well as beautiful. I love the view of Mt. Jefferson as I drive east on Rt. 302. Anything that I need and can't find in Bethlehem is just a short distance away in Littleton, but the fact that MANY trails and a few ski areas are within a 10-20 minute drive from Bethlehem make the location perfect. Having 1HappyHiker share his beautiful photos and TRs reminds me weekly how glad I am that I chose to live there for a few years. !

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Thanks for everyone's input here last year. A few months after I started this thread we found what we were looking for in Bethlehem and I have to agree with everything Roxi and the others wrote here about the town. We also enjoy the short walk to town for a drink and app, Mt Agassiz, Forest Lake S.P. and our Alder Brook Sportsmens Association membership. With snow we can sled out of town to all major trails. Garfield TH is 5 1/2 miles from us. While local property taxes are relatively high, garbage and recycling pick-up is now free and the town sanitation, road crews and police are excellent and almost freakishly responsive.

Roxi said:

... The only thing I'd want to change is to shorten winter. 6 months is a long time. I look forward to summer!

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We were still using our wood stove in early June . Love the longer winters here.

Make sure you check out the farmers market on Saturday in Bethlehem, WREN ( a local group) runs that one and has expanded to one in Berlin.

Kevin Rooney said:

Generally speaking, property taxes in VT are far lower than NH.

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Apparently VT has a substantially higher nonresidential rate, so it also depends on whether it's your primary or not. I don't understand all the credits and adjustments there, so I may be missing something. VT & ME really weren't on the radar for us, regardless.

Lancaster

Interesting thread. If I were to buy a primary residence in that area, I'd give Lancaster a good look. Real estate prices are lower there than in the White Mtns Proper but it's very close to the Whites, the North Country, Nash Stream, Prospect Mtn, Weeks State Park and other natural areas. It borders on Vermont and its a one hour drive to Canada. It's got a thriving (yet unpretentious) downtown area. It has two beautiful rivers, the Connecticut and the Israel, and it's got a race track, a summer-stock theatre, an incredible selection of churches, a grand resort, it's own medical center, a drive-in movie theatre, a religious cult (every town needs one), a downtown cinema, a Dunkin's, a farmers market, a Shaw's Supermarket, and a huge flea market within the town itself or in a neighboring community. It's also host to the Lancaster Fair, the largest (I think?) in the state. And if you check the demographics, it has the highest average household income as well as the highest percentage of college graduates in the area, which may say something about it's local school system (although to be fair, its high school, White Mtn Regional, is in Whitefield).

Chip, welcome to the neighborhood!

B-town is a great place to live, you should stop by for cold one!

Just remember the north country's most favorite expresion:

"If you think the weather is cold.....just wait till you meet the people!

Gotta say Lincoln... home of The Mountain Wanderer & great conversations with Steve Smith, the trailhead to the Osseo Trail & the Pemi Wilderness, and top it all off with brews and great food at the Common Man!