It's a simple question — what's your favorite thing about upstate New York?
Our political reporter Nick Reisman posed the question Thursday morning on Twitter, and upstate residents chimed in with a variety of answers.
What’s your favorite thing about upstate New York?
— Nick Reisman (@NickReisman) May 30, 2019
(And please, no sarcasm. Take the negative vibes elsewhere)
Nick answered the question himself as well, albeit with an answer that was anything but expected — weather, and perhaps surprising to some, he wasn't alone:
Mine is, believe it or not, the weather. In the Capital Region we have maybe a handful of beautiful spring and fall days and when the weather is nice it’s glorious.
— Nick Reisman (@NickReisman) May 30, 2019
The colors: green and blue in summer, fiery leaves in fall, glowing white in winter. Makes it easy to forget the gray days. Plus, we have water, water everywhere to drink and play in. We're so lucky.
— Teri Weaver (@TeriKWeaver) May 30, 2019
Food and weather. I live in Oneida County and love chicken riggies! And I’ll take a harsh winter over frequent 90+ degree weather any time.
— Pat OBrien (@patobriennyusa) May 30, 2019
Also, having all four seasons is nice.
— Josh Mertz (@JoshMertz) May 30, 2019
I love how quickly you can go from a vibrant urban downtown to a rural country road to a nature walk/hike. Can easily hit multiple kinds of recreation in the span of just a day.
— Bryan Terry (@BryanTerry55) May 30, 2019
How easy it is to go from the downtown of a fun city, like Albany or Troy, to the Adirondacks to unwind.
— Dan Clark (@DanClarkReports) May 30, 2019
It feels beautifully rural without feeling at all remote or isolating. The way the little towns and villages string together so closely, but each with their own space, is pretty perfect. The up and down topography helps make that possible, I think.
— Eric Phillips (@EricFPhillips) May 30, 2019
Small cities with interesting differences. Spring-summer-fall weather. Lots of natural beauty. We're close enough to the Acela corridor to feel like a part of the big-city vibe but far enough away to miss the downsides of that life.
— Todd Kehoe (@AlbBizResearch) May 30, 2019
We can go to Canada, New York City, Boston, or drive thru at least three separate states within a few hours.
— Shannon Gray (@Shannon218) May 30, 2019
#locationlocationlocation
It’s location- close to the mountains, lakes, beaches and still a few hours away from NYC/Boston
— Lauren Sears (@lsearstv) May 30, 2019
The fact that I can live in a city and be in the middle of nowhere in 15 minutes.
— Bryan Marcou OMalley (@bromalley) May 30, 2019
Honorable mention: spaghetti parm at Chefs in Buffalo and the Dinosaur in Syracuse... Wegmans in Pittsford... notice the food theme?
— Anthony Proia (@aproiaNY1News) May 30, 2019
Upstate NY corn in the summer. And the damn good breweries (Ithaca, Davidson’s, Ommegang, etc.)
— Michael Polenberg (@PolenbergM) May 30, 2019
Apple cider donuts in the leatherstocking region!
— Tristan Ellis (@TristanAMEllis) May 30, 2019
Stewart's ice cream.
— Patrick Whittle (@pxwhittle) May 30, 2019
Grape Pie!
— carrie adams (@MadamCAdams) May 30, 2019
Grilled cheese sandwich and hard cider from https://t.co/DiTXBK0uN5
— Trip Gabriel (@tripgabriel) May 30, 2019
Finger Lakes wine & beer
— Ben Jay (@FakeBenJay) May 30, 2019
We have the unbelievable good fortune to eat locally, the food that grows here is spectacular!
— Chris (@OllieNewYork) May 30, 2019
The food. Never realized until I moved away from Syracuse all the awesome stuff I couldn’t get elsewhere.
— Kelsey Mancini (@KelseyMancini) May 30, 2019
Ithaca’s gorges.
— NYPD 111th Precinct (@NYPD111Pct) May 30, 2019
Hudson Valley swimming holes in the summer.
— Tana Ganeva (@TanaGaneva) May 30, 2019
Really top notch lakes and waterfalls all over the place.
— Jon (@JonEHecht) May 30, 2019
Adirondacks.
— Marie Cusick (@MarieCusick) May 30, 2019
I am proud to be a native Adirondacker. It was a unique place to grow up because the Adirondacks is a mixture of public and private land like no other park in the country.
— Leigh Hornbeck (@leighhornbeck) May 30, 2019
The Adirondacks, Catskills, Finger Lakes, Lake Ontario
— Ryan Finn ⛈️ (@WeatherManFinn) May 30, 2019
The finger lakes
— Matt Green (@GreenHappenings) May 30, 2019
The beauty of the open wilderness matched with the quaintness of towns like Cooperstown and Ithaca. Thankful every day my wife is from way upstate.
— Chris Barca (@CBarca_) May 30, 2019
Folks from NYC need to get out more.
Boating on Finger Lakes
— H John Roberts (@HJohnRoberts3) May 30, 2019
The Adirondacks, the Lakes, the seasons
— Kelly & Tom (@Chichester23) May 30, 2019
The Fall Foliage. Such a beautiful place that time of year. Honorable mention to Lake George. Everyone’s happy place.
— Randy Hammond (@RandyTHJ) May 30, 2019
The high peaks, particularly around the Saranac chain.
— a humble potto (@atom_smashr) May 30, 2019
Upstate has many good people, who value hard work, honesty and family. Those who have stayed gave up the wealth and stress that comes with big city life for a life that is somehow more genuine, more "real". I FEEL that here. It's one reason I moved back.
— Todd Hallidy (@ToddHallidy) May 30, 2019
I share in the many great responses already submitted and I’ll add the people. Genuine, hearty, hard working and (generally) good natured. Kind and generous, but with a good BS detector. (Oh and hell yes to everything Stewart’s!)
— Tom Madison Jr (@tommadisonjr) May 30, 2019
the people
— C.T. May (@CTMay3) May 30, 2019
The people!
— Michael Capaldo (@consultbenefits) May 30, 2019
generally speaking, the friendly people ❤️
— Nick (@PopeVillage) May 30, 2019
The ease of living here. Before moving back here, I lived in Chicago, NYC, and DC. Upstate New York is a peaceful life where the air is clean, the traffic minimal, the cost of living affordable, and you're surrounded by beauty at every turn.
— Freeman Klopott (@FKlopott) May 30, 2019
From my suburban neighborhood, I can walk to a working farm in five minutes or drive to my office downtown in less than 15 minutes in rush hour.
— Dennis Poust (@DennisPoust) May 30, 2019
Hate it.
— Jon Campbell (@JonCampbellGAN) May 30, 2019
Wegmans, apple picking, fresher produce, fresh air, foliage, perfect place to drink tea and read
— Gwendolyn Aviles (@gwenfaviles) May 30, 2019
Ithaca I love you
EVERYTHING, after you take away the taxes and excessive regulations. Great food, can do multiple activities in same day and our Fall weather is the best
— Senator Bob Antonacci (@AntonacciCPA) May 30, 2019
Farms, cows, horses, greenery, apples, the hills, blueberries, the Baseball Hall of Fame, Saratoga Springs, Otsego Lake, the way people are not obsessed w/nyc, barns, ponds, bike riding, the price of things, kayaking, the chance to drive on low trafficked roads, the pace of life
— carolynryan (@carolynryan) May 30, 2019
The lakes.
— Daniel Gerow (@DGerowPR) May 30, 2019
The fresh air.
The simplicity.
Rochester's food and beverage scene.
Fall foliage.
Garbage Plates.
Proper (Buffalo) Wings.
Backyards and bonfires.
The fact that any day between Nov 1 and April 1 when it's above 40 degrees, every park is FILLED with people walking around saying "what a nice day!" to each other.
— Maureen McManus (@Maureen_McM) May 30, 2019
Also, Wegmans.
Where to begin?
— Andrew Gregory (@lunchboxbrain) May 30, 2019
✅ Amazing food/beer/wine (halfmoons from Utica/Paradox Brewery in Schroon Lake/McGregory Winery in Dundee)
✅ Fall! Camping, hiking, leaf peeping, etc.
✅ The people. I've been to every Upstate region and folks are generally kind and respectful. No BS.
Four seasons. Easy access to the Finger Lakes and so many other beautiful places.
— Margaret McCormick (@mmccormickcny) May 30, 2019
Wings and waterfalls.
— Vishaan Chakrabarti, FAIA (@VishaanNYC) May 30, 2019
Family values.
— Sarah Wesgate (@SarahWesgate) May 30, 2019
Beautiful lakes, rivers, ponds, fields, waterfalls.
Apple season!
The four seasons.
And the people. So many good people! Kind, real, “I don’t care how much money you make” kind of people.
The variety of engaging things and people. No other place has within a few hours' drive: the theater capital of the world, one of the world's most prolific wine regions, a natural wonder, a park so big it would swallow 5 of the big national parks, and the best people in each spot
— Dan (@TractorLaw) May 30, 2019
Cost of housing is very low.
— mike riley (@mmriley159) May 30, 2019
History.
We have lots of water.
Scenery.
Now do what don't we like.
Driving through the Adirondacks, or through the Finger Lakes. Wide open roads with beautiful scenery and great people.
— Steven Ferrari (@stevenferrari) May 30, 2019
The New York State Fair, Rochester’s lilac festival, and garbage plates
— Emily Hughes 🦔🦙✨ (@emilyhughes) May 30, 2019
Generally, a giving community with down to earth good people
— zandar (@zandar09080348) May 30, 2019
Basically no traffic or 10 minute red lights
Countryside and lakes abound
Excellent colleges and universities
Reasonable housing costs
No tornados, earthquakes or hurricanes
Wegmans, farmer’s markets
My roots are here
WEGMANS
— Betsy☘️Boo 🍿📚🎶🧜🏻♀️🍹🐶 (@betsyboo116) May 30, 2019
Wegmans
— KJ (@kjinnyc) May 30, 2019