This is a follow up to my post about the REI Bedford Announcement, back in Fall 2022.
REI announced in November 2022 their second NH store would be in Bedford NH. The first NH REI store opened in North Conway NH in 2019, but it’s not convenient.
The Bedford NH store will be convenient for hikers who live near Bedford, Manchester, or Nashua.
The Bedford NH store is expected to open in Fall 2023. I stopped by the other day to see how the construction is going.
The concept drawings done by Encore Enterprise for an REI store to be included in the Market & Main development project looked a lot cooler. What I saw today at the Market & Main site looked more like a standard big box store. Oh well, you can’t have everything.
REI Bedford NH – May 24
Driving To Hikes In NH
The hot spot for hiking in NH is by far the White Mountain National Forest. The rest of New England does not even come closes to the amount of hikers the Whites sees. Take a look at the TrailsNH Coverage map above.
Hikers from New Hampshire and Massachusetts will drive up I-93 most of the time to get to the Whites. Neither Bedford NH or N. Conway are in route for most hikers.
After my hike, I don’t want to head into North Conway either. I avoid it when ever possible, because traffic is a mess. Town is full of tourists, with basically just one way to get in and out.
