Not to mention great snowshoeing and skiing in winter, one of the best Farmer's Markets in the country, and a great restaurant scene (more restaurants per capita than NYC!). Wineries and craft breweries abound, too.

Good sports to watch at IC, and the air quality is truly amazing. When my wife and I went to college there, we knew a bunch of people that previously suffered from allergies that went into "remission" at Ithaca. I don't know the science of it, but the air up there was just great.

Great sports to watch at IC (go Bombers!) and some of the best air quality I've ever been exposed to.

I would reiterate the wine trial that snakes between Cayuga and Seneca lakes. Most locals know the state land on which some of the greatest trails for XC skiing as well as a completely different system of trails for mountain biking true catharsis for exiled upstaters.

But it's not "far-left pacifism;" it's "far-left ACTIVISM." The progressives who work diligently to make the world a better place abound in Ithaca, NY. It was the 2nd town to ban hydro-fracking (industrial drilling for gas). Dryden was the first, right next door. Cornell students are famous for their civil rights activism not just in the 60s, but these days (i.e., Green Umbrella, Power Shift has its roots here). And EcoVillage is world-famous as an example of cooperative and sustainable living. It's true many Ithacans are anti-war activists, so I understand the term "pacifism," but I don't like it because it sounds too much like "passive."

The not-so-fast facts: Very high taxes for a small town. Not many good jobs outside academia, and those inside are hard to come by. Lots of friction between lefty do-gooders, native and new, and very conservative people from the rural areas and blue-collar townie backgrounds, and some drug infiltration from big cities. Lots of sprawl for a small town. Those xc ski trails -- they're actually the same as the mtb trails -- are not so great after the many thaws; they can be bare in January, and the season usually ends weeks earlier than in mountain towns even in the East. Those gorges are pretty, but swimming in them can be dangerous. Rains a lot, and summers are muggy and springs dank. Rocks are unsuitable for climbing. Frankly, you include Ithaca but leave out Lake Placid?!

Watkins Glen Gorge is not in Ithaca. Surprisingly, it's in Watkins Glen. Buttermilk Falls, another state park gorge, is in Ithaca. Two other state park gorges, Robert Treman and Taughannock Falls, are in the same county as Ithaca. Watkins Glen, however, is 30 miles and a 40 minute drive away.

Watkins Glen Gorge is not in Ithaca. Surprisingly, it's in Watkins Glen. Buttermilk Falls, another state park gorge, is in Ithaca. Two other state park gorges, Robert Treman and Taughannock Falls, are in the same county as Ithaca. Watkins Glen, however, is 30 miles and a 40 minute drive away.

You gotta be kidding me. Cornell has the highest suicide rate of any Ivy league. Wonder why people drink themselves to death there.

gosh..looking to leave the deep south withe gulf coast as my back yard. stayed once for 6 weeks outside albany and found it so charming but once removed for a mid-age single female. comments are all over the board yet seems it might be worth considering. just me..my lab and maybe a horse..what are these high taxes as mentioned like an ex?

gosh..looking to leave the deep south withe gulf coast as my back yard. stayed once for 6 weeks outside albany and found it so charming but once removed for a mid-age single female. comments are all over the board yet seems it might be worth considering. just me..my lab and maybe a horse..what are these high taxes as mentioned like an ex?