Huntingdon, PA Info?

[pman]

what about lewistown to huntingdon? is there any recreational walking from huntingdon youd recomend for someone without a car?

[Geckosrule]

Hi everyone, I know this message board is old and maybe not active anymore, but worth a shot. My husband and I are looking to relocate to either Blair or Centre County. His job will be in the town of Huntingdon but we are thinking about living in State College. However we are very concerned about the drive to Huntingdon from State College in the winter. How bad does route 26 get in the winter? It's a very well-maintained road, but at certain points is very high in elevation with a steep grade, with a few twisty spots.

Our alternative is living in Altoona or Hollidaysburg so his commute is easier, but we like State College the best and have family there. Any advice? Living right in Huntingdon itself won't be an option for us.

[rowhomecity]

Are you from Pennsylvania? Most PA rural 2 lane roads are cindered in the winter, but if there is heavy snow, it will not be a clear road, until after the snowfall has stopped. Pretty typical. Get a killer SUV and snow tires, and you should be fine though. Snow tires make all the difference. The great thing about the higher elevation you would be located, is you are most likely to have temperatures cold enough, where it is heavy packed snow, which makes snow driving much easier.

In High School (we never were closed) and I had to drive on intense roads with lots of snow about 45 minutes, and that never stopped me. And I had a 5 speed compact car with snow tires. (again the snow tires make the difference).

I have family who lives in other rural parts of the state, and they have to travel rural roads, in the winter, and while there are 8 - 12 days their commute is not ideal, overall this has not stopped them from living in the town they want. (Wellsboro, PA).

And I agree with you, in that part of PA, State College most certainly is the best place to live. I personally would never want to live in Altoona.

[ki0eh]

Huntingdon has some nice hidden neighborhoods only a couple of blocks off the beaten path, in the northwest part of the borough (sorry, I don't know the local name for the area) more influenced by Juniata College than by the prisons. The one coffee shop I know about in this area is nice. https://standingstonecoffeecompany.com/

There are also scattered beautiful homes in the hills south of town going out towards Raystown Lake (not on the Corps of Engineers reservoir, of course).

Work is daily, schools are daily, but even grocery shopping or the mall/box stores aren't daily. Are folks really better off to live in a shack and lose 1.5 hours/day driving to and from it, vs. having the time and funds to put in a nicer home closer by? Food for thought, not everyone thinks the same way.

Aesthetically, I think Jackson and Barree Townships in the northern tip of Huntingdon County are about the prettiest areas in the entire state. Unfortunately, this is difficult to distinguish in real estate listings as it is Huntingdon schools and post office despite being pretty far out. (Greenwood Furnace State Park has a Huntingdon postal address, even.) The presence of https://www.stonevalleyccs.org/ suggests at least some folks are trying to address issues of perhaps excessive consolidation. This is pretty much a State College commuter area, but if you're going to Huntingdon at least you can avoid crossing Tussey Mountain (locally called "Pine Grove Mountain" by many focused on PA 26), and if you click with the charter school folks could at least keep the kids nearby for elementary school.