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I'm new to this forum and looking for advice on moving/living in New Hampshire. I am a native Californian and currently live in Atlanta, GA with my new husband and our daughters. My husband is originally from the Northeast and he misses it greatly. He is a mountain man, loves the cold winters and snow, and is miserable here in the South. After 4 years of marriage and lots of persuasion on his part, he has finally convinced me to move to New Hampshire once our last daughter graduates high school next year. We are looking in the Concord area. I love and miss the beach and the warm days growing up in SoCal so (as you can imagine) I am dreading the incredible culture shock I will go through up in NH! I have visited and come up for long weekends but have no idea what NH life has to offer. I am looking to get advice and words of wisdom to prepare me for this new adventure coming soon. Any insight I could use would be greatly appreciated!
There are beaches in Northern New England, but not so many warm days.
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Originally Posted by BEACHnME
I am dreading the incredible culture shock I will go through up in NH! I have visited and come up for long weekends but have no idea what NH life has to offer. I am looking to get advice and words of wisdom to prepare me for this new adventure coming soon. Any insight I could use would be greatly appreciated!
Definitely get ready for some culture shock, and some climate shock. I'd recommend taking a long weekend in January and visiting the area. You might also want to try to visit for "Maple Weekend" (usually towards the end of March) and get out into the more rural farmland of southern NH.
Concord, NH is quite different from Atlanta or SoCal, but that's what I like about living up here. I've spent a fair amount of time in California, and while people in New Hampshire may seem colder and more private than what you're accustomed to, I think the people also more genuine.
You may want to be closer to the beach than Concord. Try checking around Portsmouth and Rye. The beach at Rye is lovely and Portsmouth isn't too far from either Portland, ME or Boston, MA where there is lots of things going on.
If you are looking for any semblance to Southern Californian life, you will be miserable in NH. Without speaking in extremes, I wouldn't know how to better state that you will not find the So Cal of your memories in NH.
Most people that move to NH are looking to elude the SoCal and urban lifestyle you may desire. Don't end up with NH being what Georgia is to your husband.
I recommend visiting a couple of times before you decide where to look. Fly into Manchester or Boston and take the bus (Bostonexpressbus.com) to Manchester or Concord during the winter. Then rent a car and drive around. The North country is spectacular during the winter. Also visit the very short coast line as part of the trip. The difference in winter climate from Plymouth to Portsmouth is astounding. Then repeat the trip in August.
In any case bring your own job or income or have a position arranged before you move. Well paying jobs are few and far between in New Hampshire.
This is a very interesting thread as I have 2 locations on my short list I may want to re locate to. I am in MA but I have East TN on my radar which of course is different from Atlanta but then I have you guessed it, NH. And from being places I am going to advise the OP of one thing. I may not have moved to NH yet, but I do go there and do not come to the area if you intend to turn it into California or your husband to turn it into Boston. I been to NorCal area.. I hated my time there. To me, California is a bigger NH on massive steroids, was once been the place to go, libertarian values, natural beauty, nobody living there (100 years ago) but if more people like you find NH and want to populate that, then all it will become is another California and that isn't wanted in my eyes.
One way to keep NH underpopulated is to keep the open land away from developers.
If you want to keep the current positive attributes of New Hampshire, move here, buy the biggest plot of land you can afford, and at the least, put it all into current use to keep your taxes low so you can afford to keep those acres undeveloped. If you're feeling generous, do a conservation easement or even donate the land to the conservation commission.
I have neighbors from MA who bought the house down the road, First summer here they cut down 95% of the trees, plant a huge lawn. Some of the rocks were too big to haul away, last week they were out with bleach and brushes, scrubbing off the lichen. Literally trying to kill off the wilderness and make it more like the suburbs they just escaped.
Thank you all for your insights. I in NO way want the semblance to a CA life in NH. The beauty and serenity of NH has always been the draw. We would never want to change that, or bring anything different (urban) to the beautiful lands. I think my biggest adjustment will be the climate, and of course missing the beaches. But definitely keeping an open mind! Guess I’ll need to take up more snow skiing than water skiing
'Concord area' is a bit broad, considering how small the state is geographically. If you're using even a 20 mi radius, you're talking about a pretty broad swath of places.
Likewise it depends on what you mean by 'beach.' Concord is going to be a decent (though mostly enjoyable) drive to the coast just because 4 isn't the fastest road. That said, from Concord you have access to a lot of river/lake beaches fun. If you live in one of the outlying towns (Contoocook), you're even closer. But the swim/tanning season can be pretty short (Memorial Day to Labor Day some years), and snowfall in April isn't totally unusual.
I like the Concord area a lot, though I do think it's primary appeal is as a nice place to raise a family. I'd probably be less inclined to move there after my nest had emptied, since it's lacking some of the conveniences you might now be inclined to take more advantage of: travel, dining out, night life, etc.
Edit: Especially if you want the ocean, I'd be inclined to consider something closer to the coast. Dover (or Portsmouth if one can afford it) in NH, or perhaps something around Newburyport on the MA side.
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There are beaches in Northern New England, but not so many warm days.
One way to keep NH underpopulated is to keep the open land away from developers.
