Where is the "Boulder" of the East Coast? (Burlington: new home, school)

[IceCold]

Originally Posted by kdh344

north is out of the question

North is COOL! Literally. Have you ever been to the northernmost town in the U.S.? Pack ice in July and such? You are missing a lot

[Spincycle]

Originally Posted by kdh344

I wanna get out of here but need to live somewhere that has an athletic, healthy population and has a lot of trees not open plains, desert, etc. Mountain biking is a must!!! Thanks and any suggestions are much appreciated!

A few possible ideas fa' ya'.

1. Charlottesville - UVA
disclaimer - my cousins compare it to Boulder, they never been to CO. I never been to Charlottesville. Someone will have to help on this comparison?

2. Bel Air, MD (midway between Newark, DE and Baltimore). A more conservative community with big emphasis on running, cycling on their local trail system (e.g. MA & PA trail network). Very healthy, co-ed, younger community. Bar/pub scene (e.g. Sean Boylans, Looneys, Green Turtle) in town is very-coed, young, socialble.

3. New Paltz, NY
They have the Gunks, Mohonk Reservation, Minawaska, a good railtrail and microbrew in middle of town. A hippie town but feels too sleepy. It's like a mini-slice of Boulder (may draw parallels to other CO towns - Carbondale?).

[Brain Drain]

In additional to Asheville, Charlottesville, and New Paltz, try looking at:

Warm/Moderate
Boone, NC (Appalachian State University)
Athens, GA (UGA -- pretty close to mountains but not in them)
Fayetteville, AR (U of Ark, surrounded by Ozarks and woods)
Blacksburg, VA (Virginia Tech)

Cooler
Ithaca, NY (Cornell, beautiful if you can stand the cold)
Saratoga Springs, NY (Skidmore, see above about the cold)
Hanover, NH (Dartmouth brrrrr)
Northampton/Amherst/Mt. Holyoke, MA (lots of exploring you could do here)
State College, PA (Penn State)

Don't write off the West entirely -- it's not all dry. Just look at the weather stats and look for precipitation of 25 inches plus a year. Here in Boulder we get about 19 inches a year as a basis of comparison (this is once you melt down our 80 inches of snow a year and add it to rain totals).

Eugene, OR (University of Oregon)
Corvallis, OR (Oregon State)
Durango, CO (if you can swing it -- expensive and not a lot of jobs)
Ashland, OR (Southern Oregon, expensive but getting more affordable by the day!)
Missoula, MT
Bozeman, MT (perhaps a bit dry for you)
Moscow, ID

And on and on.....

I've been to about half of these places. The others I've come across in my search for beautiful outdoor-focused college towns.

You really need some more criteria to start whittling it down. The options are endless here. Good luck.

[movewest]

I just moved to CO from Northern Virginia outside DC. I really miss the trees! Anyway, I would definitely consider Charlottesville. If a new job didn't take us here, Charlottesville would definitely have been top on our list as we were ready for a change from the DC area.

[RangerDuke08]

Sorry but not Asheville, Asheville is a true hippie town where poor children with flowers in their hair come from across the country to gather and play their instruments and share a Jay. Perhaps similarities in ideas but you will not find the same crowd nor the same level of crisp cleanliness.

There simply isn't a college town nestled in the mountains yet only 30 minutes from a major city, with a healthy/environmentally conscious feel yet also catering to a more homogenous population in the white upper-middle class. Boulder is a unique place, that's why it's Boulder.

I might suggest Charlottesville, VA out East or Missoula, MT if you want to stay in the Rockies.

[frogandtoad]

Originally Posted by RangerDuke08

Sorry but not Asheville, Asheville is a true hippie town where poor children with flowers in their hair come from across the country to gather and play their instruments and share a Jay. Perhaps similarities in ideas but you will not find the same crowd nor the same level of crisp cleanliness.

There simply isn't a college town nestled in the mountains yet only 30 minutes from a major city, with a healthy/environmentally conscious feel yet also catering to a more homogenous population in the white upper-middle class. Boulder is a unique place, that's why it's Boulder.

I might suggest Charlottesville, VA out East or Missoula, MT if you want to stay in the Rockies.

I think your assessment of Asheville is much the same as outsiders' assessment of Boulder. And in both cases is incorrect. Of course nothing is EXACTLY like Boulder, but for a similar feel I think Asheville is quite close. And she said East coast....now if she's considering the West, that would open many more possibilities.

Personally I think Charlottesville is nothing like Boulder but hey, the OP can check out all the suggestions and make a decision.

[RangerDuke08]

Originally Posted by frogandtoad

I think your assessment of Asheville is much the same as outsiders' assessment of Boulder. And in both cases is incorrect. Of course nothing is EXACTLY like Boulder, but for a similar feel I think Asheville is quite close. And she said East coast....now if she's considering the West, that would open many more possibilities.

Personally I think Charlottesville is nothing like Boulder but hey, the OP can check out all the suggestions and make a decision.

I currently work in Boulder county and I have also spent considerable amount of time in and near Asheville in the Appalachians and Smokeys all beautiful to say the least. Firstly Asheville is kind of dirty, they lock up the public restrooms for a reason. Boulder is very clean and sort of hip. Secondly once you get out of Asheville you are in the heart of the rural Bible belt, once you get out of Boulder your are still in the hip suburban areas of broomfield, louisville, westminster, etc. Although yes there is a hippie, artsy, environmental vibe in Asheville and Boulder, it is a very small regional area centered around a few blocks in Asheville, the whole of Denver and Boulder metro and suburban area you can get that vibe even in Fort Collins. You also certainly don't feel the "yuppie" vibe in Asheville just looking at the avg. housing price of $150,000 in Asheville vs $500,000 in Boulder. There also seems to attract a large number of retirees in Asheville for a reason.

But you are right once you get out west you get more of towns similar to Boulder, it's probably also why socially Colorado is considered the West, although Denver is the biggest major city to the center of the United States (closer than KC the midwest). Oregon and California have numerous towns not exactly like Boulder, but close in social scene, environmental consciousness, hippie/yuppie vibes and near the great outdoors with numerous trails and good public transport. I do not think Charlottesville looks like Boulder, but there is a similar lively liberal college town feel with lots of live entertainment, shenandoah nearby, lots of greenery and biking access. That is another thing Asheville lacks, although near the Appalachian trails, there is still only so far in the city you can get with a bike due to the lack of infrastructure. If you are considering Asheville, I would recommend Boone, it is right nearby also very environmentally conscious but is the home to App State, very clean, great football team.

[.gif]

i would second charlottesville and asheville. gainesville is the most boulder-like of any florida city.

[movementarian]

It's right here:

Map of Boulder, VA by MapQuest

[CosmicWizard]

When I read your post, Asheville popped into mind right away. But keep in mind, Asheville is definitely not Boulder as detailed by RangerDuke08. I actually prefer Boone, a smaller college town about a hundred miles north of Asheville. You the have an international biosphere reserve called Grandfather Mountain on the edge of town, and the Blue Ridge Parkway is just a mile or two from town.

Burlington - VT, Ithaca - NY, Amherst - MA, Harrisonburg - VA, Blacksburg - VA, Athens - GA, and State College - PA are some other College Towns loacted in beautiful natural settings though none of them are as trendy and hip as Boulder if that is what you are looking for. As others have already stated, Boulder is unique! They are however, far more affordable than Boulder if affordability is one of your considerations. A few midwest options to consider are Madison - WI and Ann Arbor - MI.