Bellingham (Seattle, Vancouver, Everett: environment, home, university)

[KRAZYRTNOW]

So here i sit thinking about moving to washington. I have a friend in the tri-cites area trying to convince me to go there. But as i check things out on the computer i see bellingham and the photos are so pretty. i love the greenery and being i am in las vegas now...i so want to get away from the heat. Is bellingham really as nice as the photos let on. Is it a fun place to live?

[ShadowXOR]

I'm thinking of moving to Washington as well, but I want to be much closer to Seattle than where Bellingham is...but I just checked out the pictures and WOW! It is SO beautiful. I wish it was closer to the big city so I could move there!

[scirocco22]

Well, it's close to Vancouvery B.C. which is a very "big city." *lol* Greater Vancouver's population is probably over 2 million now. The city of Vancouver itself is just a hair bigger in population than Seattle.

Yes, Bellingham is nice in a lot of ways. It's a college town so there's a vibrant nature to the city. It also has it's share of problems as you've probably read on other threads in this forum. For the most part, though, you'll find it very affordable to live there.

But yes, it's situated in a beautiful physical environment. The views to the west are gorgeous out to Bellingham bay. To the east is Lake Whatcom and further out to the east is Mt. Baker and the Cascades. And to the south are some great parks; Lake Padden, Lake Samish, Larrabee St. Park ...and whether you settle there or not, you've got to take highway 11 through Chuckanut Drive --some beautiful scenery along the water and forests out to the San Juan Islands and the little "islandettes" that you'll see scattered out in Samish Bay.

I know some people that are actually commuting to Microsoft from the Bellingham area but I know it sometimes takes them over 3 hours to get home at night because of traffic ...it's about 85 miles but, again, the traffic trying to get out of the general metro area (including the congested Everett/Marysville corridor) is sometimes horrendous!

But yeah, KRAZY, it's a fun place, especially if you like the outdoors and nature. There's a wealth of things to do if you're into the outdoor life. Probably not as fun a place to live as Las Vegas depending on what you're into. If you like the party life, as I say, there's WWU in town and you'll find keggars quite frequently on the weekends.

But be prepared ...Bellingham is quite a bit colder in the winter than Seattle. It gets the winds and the cold that come roaring down the Frazier River Valley in B.C. and it gets quite chilly at times in the winter. Coming from Vegas, you'll notice the difference right off.

--'rocco

[scirocco22]

"Vancouvery" ...????? Sorry for the typo!

--'rocco

[b-hamster]

I was reading the Tucson posts prior to a visit and noticed this Bellingham thread. We've lived in Bellingham since 1980 and love it for all the reasons scirocco22 stated. I kayak and hike a lot and get withdrawals now if I don't enjoy the outdoors every few days.
My daughter is going to school in Seattle now so we find ourselves in Seattle for some reason every couple of weeks. If we avoid rush hour we consistently arrive in downtown Seattle in 90 minutes. I've also started taking the train instead of driving whenever possible; the scenery is breathtaking.
We avoid getting winter depression by walking outside often and by escaping to someplace sunny and dry for at least a long weekend.
And we ARE a little colder than Seattle. I just posted a bunch of photos from the unusual snowfall we had last week. Seattle had much less snow.
(http://www.kayakcam.com/gallery-bellingham.html)
I know two families who moved here from Nevada and they have settled in well.

[scirocco22]

--delete--

[margo0645]

Yes, yes, yes. It IS as nice as the photos. And it's 1.5 hours from either Vancouver, BC or Seattle; it's got skiing at Mt. Baker, it's close to the San Juan Islands; it has a university, it's just a really, really nice town. I cannot imagine anyone not loving it there. Once in a while in the winter you'll get some bitter cold come in from Canada and B'ham will get snow when Seattle doesn't, but still, it never lasts more than a few days. It is a GREAT town!

[compltlyme]

I love Bellingham but I sure don't like the traffic in and out of there. If some big event is going on in Seattle and everyone wants to go the traffic is horrible! Only I-5 in and out of there. I first wanted to move there but decided on Seattle's east side. If you like Bellingham and want to be closer to Seattle, check out Issaquah and the North Bend area.. It too is breathtaking!

[scirocco22]

umm, am I undertanding, compltlyme? ...horrible traffic in Bellingham and not in ISSAQUAH???!

*lol* --excuse me, I shouldn't laugh.

--'rocco

[compltlyme]

Originally Posted by scirocco22

umm, am I undertanding, compltlyme? ...horrible traffic in Bellingham and not in ISSAQUAH???!

*lol* --excuse me, I shouldn't laugh.

--'rocco

I didn't say that...but in Issaquah there are more routes to take... Let me explain... Since I am from CA Traffic here on the eastside is bad...but Nothing compared to Where I am used to. When I was up in Bellingham and visiting several times we went into Seattle for events and so did everyone else. And coming down I-5 at those times reminded me much more of what I hated about So Ca.

Yes the Eastside does have traffic.... and sometimes it can be annoying but to me moving slowly isn't bad as long as one is moving. But making a parking lot out of a freeway... really seems like Traffic....stop...go inches...stop...go inches... I have been here almost 2 years now (the plateau) and I have not encountered that dead stop traffic except during the ice on the roads. In Ca it was a daily thing. And that was my experience coming and going to Bellingham.

Could be that since I am more familiar with the Eastside...that I just learned how to get around the traffic better.