Bellingham, WA as a retirement town

[shiny]

Maybe I should host a little "See if you want to retire to Bellingham" soiree. Ha's paying.

Count me in! But, I owe Ha one, so I'll have to pony up.

Maybe we could do a kayak trip.

 

[genghis]

Although we live near Seattle, we have a summer house on Lake Samish just south of Bellingham, and spend most of our summers there. Overall a pretty nice place.....

Positives about Bellingham
- Fantastic scenery - mountains and water
- Traffic not too bad
- Housing prices have increased recently - but still less than alot of West Coast areas
- Close to enough to Seattle for sports, concerts, etc
- Outdoor activities - water sports, skiing, hiking - you name it
- Long summer days
- Close to British Columbia, the San Juans, etc
- Quirky, fun town - influenced alot by the University


Negatives about Bellingham
- Winter weather - cloudy, gloomy, more snow than Seattle, more wind than Seattle
- Earthquake potential
- Short winter days
- Did I already mention the winter weather?

 

[John Tuttle]

I like Bellingham, but the first thing I always think of when the name comes up is that pipeline explosion.

Also, today on the news I saw that gas prices in Bellingham are the highest in the state. Why is that?

 

[Ed_The_Gypsy]

Negatives about Bellingham
- Winter weather - cloudy, gloomy, more snow than Seattle, more wind than Seattle
- Earthquake potential
- Short winter days
- Did I already mention the winter weather?

We experienced more earthquakes in Kirkland (4 or 5) than in Bellingham (1).

I don't think the snow is any different than Seattle.

More wind = MORE SAILING! And you can probably still get a berth in B'ham. (Sooner than in Seattle, for sure!)

I like Bellingham, but the first thing I always think of when the name comes up is that pipeline explosion.

Also, today on the news I saw that gas prices in Bellingham are the highest in the state. Why is that?

The pipeline blew up within about one block or so of our house [before we moved there]. I would bet that this pipeline is now the safest in the country. Every lawyer in town is now a specialist in pipeline safety.

Gas prices high? Maybe. They are higher in Oregon, I know. You will be retired--how much gas can you burn in town? It is a small town; it doesn't take half an hour to get downtown, it take 5-10 minutes. It will take you longer to find a parking place. You can walk or ride your bike. Or your Vespa. Or your Harley (big shop in town).

Have hallibut fish-and-chips or the shrimp plate or whiskey crab soup at The Shrimp Shack. Have oysters at the restaurants on Chuckanut Drive. Have whiskey crab soup at The Cliff House and enjoy a dyn-o-mite view of Bellingham Bay. Have the best pepperoni pizza anywhere IMHO at La Fiamma. Have a microbrew at the non-smoking Archer's Pub. (They used to have oyster stew once a month. Check.) Eat cheap at Burrito Bandito.

For outside activities, check out trail biking and hiking. Check out skiing at Mt Baker, kayaking, rowing and sailing. Check out Ski-to-Sea. Check out The Oyster Run.

They are building a ton of condos in town these days. Good or bad? Dunno. Take a look.

Cheers,

gypsy

 

[haha]

Have hallibut fish-and-chips or the shrimp plate or whiskey crab soup at The Shrimp Shack.
Cheers,

gypsy

Is it open? Last time I went looking for some fried oysters and friendly waitresses when I was coming up Holly from the west end it was closed. Man I loved that place!

Ha

 

[Sheryl]

The pipeline incident could have happened anywhere, has nothing to do with the particular location... (not that the OP implied it did).

The old, quirkly Shrimp Shack is gone, alas. But it reopened downtown in a remodeled old building. Food is supposedly the same, but ambiance much more sterile.

Whiskey Crab soup at the Cliff House restaurant is one of my favorite foods on the planet. Sunset from their deck is spectacular.

Moorage in Bellingham Harbor has about an 8 month waiting list, last I heard. But new Marina will be built with first phase of GP redevelopment.

No one has yet been able to explain why our gas prices are so high. I buy it when I go out of town each week.

Ed, yes, too many condos IMHO. But you forgot to mention we have two award winning microbreweries, Boundary Bay and Orchard Street.

Also - I forgot to mention great bookstores, both used and new.

 

[Ed_The_Gypsy]

The old, quirkly Shrimp Shack is gone, alas. But it reopened downtown in a remodeled old building. Food is supposedly the same, but ambiance much more sterile.

The new Shrimp Shack is here:

http://tinyurl.com/38z3go

The young fellow who ran it died. His parents, who ran the original, took over operation.

The new one dropped the oyster stew (sob!), but the halibut and shrimp are unequalled in town and the whiskey crab soup is as good as I remember at the Cliff House.

The wait for moorage in Seattle is something like 10 years, as I recall. Come to B'ham instead.

The OSB used to have a wonderful restaurant, but that is long gone. There also used to be a Cajun restaurant but also long gone.

The Archer Ale House has many microbrews and is a lot quieter than Boundary Bay.

Boomer's is my son's favorite fast food--a classic drive-in.

There are a couple of good Japanese and sushi restaurants, Thai, Vietnamese, Indian, Greek, Mexican, Italian, etc. (All you vegans have to do your own research.)

Gee, I wish I was home.

 

[bosco]

Negatives about Bellingham
- Winter weather - cloudy, gloomy, more snow than Seattle, more wind than Seattle
- Earthquake potential
- Short winter days
- Did I already mention the winter weather?

considering the winter people have been having in New York, Minnesota, and other places, I'm having a hard time with your assertion that Bellingham has anything remotely resembling a difficult winter. It's pretty darned temperate there, compared to many places in the US. Heavy snowfall is not a common occurence, and neither is cold weather. More snow than Seattle--well, Seattle has more snow than San Francisco. Not much, in any of these places.

I will grant you than spending the winter in Kotzebue, Alaska, north of the Arctic circle may have warped my memories of 2 decades of living in Western Washington....but having lived from Portland to Vancouver BC at various time, winter just ain't a big deal anywhere west of the Cascades.

 

[Sheryl]

I'm having a hard time with your assertion that Bellingham has anything remotely resembling a difficult winter.

Having lived in Ohio, Wisconsin, and Western New York, I consider myself a veteran of some serious winter. The reason Washington's weather is criticized is not the severity of it. You are correct that there is little snow or cold. What gets to you after awhile is the mind-numbing tedium of one gray drizzly day after another. Sometimes it feels like it barely gets light before it starts getting dark again. You start to feel like you haven’t seen the sun or sky in years, and you book a flight somewhere just to get up above the clouds and make sure the sun is still there.

Sheryl<--four months into a particularly rainy NW winter

 

[2B]

I lived in the Seattle area for about 8 years.  I try to explain to Texans that you'd go to parties or events and you'd know who was already there by the jackets hanging up.  You'd go out the door with your water-resistant jacket on without thinking if it was raining.  You'd get back and if someone asked if it was raining you wouldn't know.  It was just there in the background and you didn't notice it after awhile.

Now when I was in college and the mountain came out in the spring, it was wonderful to get half naked with everyone else and throw frisbees around in the 50 degree weather.

People have always said that there is a sarcastic, NW sense of humor.  I think it's true and I have it.  It must come from the months of endless drizzle and fog.

 

[unclemick]

26 years There(NW) - I was taught sunshine vacationed in Yakima!

heh heh heh

 

[Sheryl]

People have always said that there is a sarcastic, NW sense of humor. I think it's true and I have it. It must come from the months of endless drizzle and fog.

Absolutely!

 

[Buckeye]

2B - Reading your email makes me homesick. It was mud football in the quad in shorts as soon as there was a hint that winter was gone. Of course, everything was still wet and smooshy but we definitely had our shorts on. It's something we did naturally so it's interesting to see that it is something that can be described by folks who didn't grow up in the area.

 

[unclemick]

One of my life regrets is not making to at least one Mt. Baker Slush Cup in person - do they still hold it??

heh heh heh

Slush cup - a beer fueled trip across a prepared slush pond on snow ski's with a bikini clad young lady on your shoulders - prizes are awarded.

 

[Sheryl]

From www.mt-baker.com/history.html

On July 4, 1948, the Koma Kulshan Ski Club organized a giant slalom race and promoted the event as the only ski tournament in the country during the month of July. This was the unofficial beginning of a long tradition of spontaneous and merry July 4th "Slush Cup" events that lasted into the 1980’s, until the U.S. Forest Service alleged damage to the alpine environment and shut down the Slush Cup.

Sad! I remember photos in the paper of the bikini clad skiers, but never made it myself either.

 

[Sheryl]

By the way, we got 6 inches of snow last night and it's still coming down.

Climate change, Nah! It isn't happening.

 

[Ed_The_Gypsy]

Ha spoke thusly:

If you visit Bellingham, I strongly recommend a downtown coffee house named The Black Drop. Have one espresso there and you will never again go into a Starbuck's.

http://www.theblackdrop.com/people_talk.php

Ha

OK, I came home this weekend and just stopped by the Black Drop for espresso. Quirky little place. This spot used to be a sad little donut/sandwich shop. Went in there once and never again. The Black Drop moved in ~2003 or 2004, long after I went a-viking up to Canadistan.

It is an OK place. Clean. Satisfactory coffee. Espresso needed a little cream, so it wasn't the best (the best espresso doesn't need cream). Good ambiance (you do what you can when you are next door to the bail bonds shop). Parking iffy. Just around the corner from a couple of used book stores that I like, so I give it high marks. (I grew up in used book stores in Portland, OR, so this is important to me.)

The best espresso I ever had remains from the Blackwater Cafe in Sarnia, Ontario.

I avoid Charbucks whenever possible. No soul, and I have only found one in the world that makes a good straight espresso--in the +15s in Calgary, near Shell.

 

[haha]

It is an OK place. Clean. Satisfactory coffee. Espresso needed a little cream, so it wasn't the best (the best espresso doesn't need cream). Good ambiance (you do what you can when you are next door to the bail bonds shop). Parking iffy. Just around the corner from a couple of used book stores that I like, so I give it high marks. (I grew up in used book stores in Portland, OR, so this is important to me.)

The best espresso I ever had remains from the Blackwater Cafe in Sarnia, Ontario.

The last time I went there was a beautiful warm day and I sat outside. I am sure that influenced me. But I will be looking for the The Blackwater Cafe next time I am in Sarnia.

Ha

 

[webbach]

Housing prices seem reasonable. Any idea on real estate taxes?

 

[Sheryl]

Housing prices reasonable

Depends on where you're coming from, I guess.

I just picked up a flier for a beater, 3 br 1 ba. , $298,000.

My RE taxes for a small older house, same block as above beater : $1,800/yr.