East Coast Cities With a PNW feel? (appointed, rent)

[88Hearts]

Okay, so since I was younger I have been obsessed with the PNW, majestic forests, mountains, rocky coastline, rainy and mysterious it just seemed so magical. Movies like The Goonies, E.T, Short Circuit, Harry and The Hendersons(I know, Northern California) and recently Twin Peaks and Gravity Falls have drawn my attention.

Being older and married It is hard for me to find my way to live out there. I can walk away from everything I have here now but my wife has family and things she wants to stay near to, she denies it but I know it would cause her anxiety to be on the other side of the country.

I'm looking for a Small-Medium city that is/has:

close to large trees/forests
hiking/mountains
a rocky coastline or nearby rivers/lakes
bikeable and walkable neighborhoods
good food, and coffee
Universities and Community colleges nearby
a sense of community
live music, local and big acts
and is just mysterious, like bigfoot is living nearby

Places I looked into are Asheville NC , Portland ME , Northhampton MA. I feel locations in New England might fit because of Stephen King and I love the movie Stand by Me.


Tl;dr Looking for small-medium cities on the east coast like the PNW that have a "bigfoot lives nearby" vibe.

[bluecarebear]

It's really not magical when you rarely see the sun. I would have never moved to Pittsburgh, comparable weatherwise to the PNW, if I would have known about the cloud banks and few clear days.

[88Hearts]

I'm in New york so I have some experience dealing with the grey dreary winters. Even the grey dullness in the X-files which is filmed in Vancouver B.C was appealing to me. I'm into the Mist and fog but I do enjoy the sunlight.

[88Hearts]

I have also looked into Charlottesville VA which looks like a gorgeous city and Chattanooga TN which seems to have beautiful surrounding scenery.

[Bees46]

Your wife will move to Maine or Tennessee, but not the PNW?

I am from the East Coast, now living in Oregon. I was drawn here too and it has not disappointed. I never thought of it as mysterious, but that's a good description. I love the rain and all the lush green that comes with it.

If you can't make that move, I'd go with Maine.

[Blackbeauty212]

Pittsburgh is the only (Big) city in the East that will give you that PNW Feeling. DC has some of it too, but no hills to completely make a PNW feeling.

[88Hearts]

Originally Posted by Bees46

Your wife will move to Maine or Tennessee, but not the PNW?

She has anxiety flying so we drive almost everywhere. I also prefer driving for the scenery also stopping for gas and food in new areas.

[88Hearts]

Originally Posted by Blackbeauty212

Pittsburgh is the only (Big) city in the East that will give you that PNW Feeling. DC has some of it too, but no hills to completely make a PNW feeling.

My wife loved DC, I also thought it was really nice, but rent is pretty high for us. We can afford to spend $900-$1100 on rent.

[88Hearts]

Originally Posted by Bees46

I never thought of it as mysterious, but that's a good description.

When I lived in Brooklyn as a kid we would visit relatives in the Adirondack area and I found that to be mysterious. We would walk the dirt paths surrounded by large trees there were bear tracks and deer tracks but no sign of them. The forest was surrounded by the moose river and had several small waterfalls. It was just awesome but the town they live in the nearest large supermarket or cafe is about 30+ away.

We moved up about 90 miles from the city and while I love the forests and scenery we have here it seems dwarfed to the Adirondacks or what the Pnw has to offer. The rent here is too high for what is available and it is a collective of small towns that have different vibes that require driving everywhere for anything.

[boulevardofdef]

Portland is the obvious choice here. It's got a very PNW vibe. It even has a PNW name! (Though, of course, it was the original Portland.)