Hanover, NH

Anyone have any particular thoughts about living in Hanover NH area.. Positives/Negatives?

Cheers and thanks for any input.

cool little town. easy to be remote, but has some actual culture due to the school.

you're a little closer to the daks than many other places in NH, but not close enough to make it a hugely easier trip.

as far as the big NH climbing destinations,
you're still kinda far away from rumney (50min) which is comparable to many other towns in NH, about the same distance from the Whites as say Concord and even further from Conway.

basically, cool place and decent employment. if climbing is #1 priority you would do better to find somewhere that more easily accesses the whites.

Steve's comments are right on from what I have experienced. The Hanover area seems like one of the few in NH where you can find good restaurants for instance. Keep in mind that driving across NH usually takes much longer than you'd think compared to going north/south.

It also has some local climbing. There's some semi-secret boulders in nearby Lebanon, NH that some of the Dartmouth folks and a few other locals know of. There's actually 2 or 3 different areas in Lebanon with boulders. In addition to Rumney and the NH areas you will also be near Deer Leap in Killington (about the same distance as Rumney but into VT), Smuggler's Notch (1.5 hours North in VT), Bolton (1~ hour north in VT).

The main thing detracting from the area is the choice in climbing gyms. There is 3 within 20 minutes, but they aren't the greatest. In Hanover you have the Dartmouth gym which is strictly bouldering. Its about 20-30 years old, has some nice wall shapes and features, but is generally lacking in setting and new holds.

You have the River Valley Club right next door in Lebanon near the hospital. This wall is tiny but has very interesting natural features and is all rope routes.

Then you have the only real gym in the area, the Quechee, VT Green Mountain Rock Climbing Center. Overall I am not a fan of this gym, I preferred it under the old management and name (The Wall). Since the new owners took over I'm just not psyched on this place but I will admit I haven't gone in to check it out. It does boast pretty tall walls for a gym, however.

Well, I was born there so it must be great. In all seriousness, Hanover offers:

-some good restaurants and a cool downtown vibe
-cultural opportunities because of Dartmouth
-small town feel but access to things not usually available in small towns because of proximity to Lebanon and White River Jct
-reasonable distances from good skiing
-reasonable distances from the climbing areas mentioned above and many others

One of my favorite towns in NH. The Portsmouth/Dover area is probably tops for me. (Fortunately, that's where my family lives.)

Green Mountain Rock Climbing in Quechee Vermont is a fantastic old school gym with 45'+ walls. The owners are fantastic people who are dedicated to climbing and especially engaging many underserved folks in climbing. The staff at the gym are great people as well. A good group of Rumney regulars train here and they have an adult climbing beer league in the fall and winter with 4 person teams.

Locally there is tons of fantastic bouldering in Hanover area and near in the Killington area. For routes - Rumney, an hour or so to Cannon area, local crags - several with good rock and single pitch trad and sport.

There's tons of access-sketchy local bouldering in Hanover, get in touch with the Dartmouth Mountaineering Club which is very active and friendly.

The climbing gym at Dartmouth is open to the public but it's two old converted squash courts in the basement of one of the buildings. Great angles to climb on, not very tall though. If you're into training it's one of the best training dungeons you could possibly ask for, strong people abound, and they know the local word-of-mouth spots too.

Man I wish I had that gym back...

Hanover area is gorgeous.

Hanover is one of the more picturesque towns in New England. Its small town vibe with worldly options and unbelievable location are reasons many go there or opt to return.

Hanover and Dartmouth are somewhat one in the same. While there is some separation it's not much. The college scene there is much, much lower key than other huge school/town combos though. The AT runs through town and there are tons of rec opportunities near by. While the drive times for a North Eastern person seem longish any one from the west will marvel at the proximity of various things to town. I know while I was there (from the NE) 3 hour drives seemed long. Then I moved west where 3 hours was NBD.

The DMC has storied history and is quite active. Definitely contact them for current info.

Winter is long in NH so you need a cold weather activity, be it Ice Climbing or Skiing. Summers and Falls are fantastic. For a small town, the food options are really great. As others have mentioned, nearby West Leb and White River Jct have your usual Box Stores and larger chains as needed along with some other food options. The EMS there introduced me to the glory that is flannel lined pants.

What's the interest?