Bellingham

Set at the confluence of Whatcom Creek and Bellingham Bay, City Center is Bellingham’s cultural capital, with its highest concentration of museums, bars and eateries. Locals refer to City Center as "downtown Bellingham," and flock here in the evenings and on weekends, bouncing from shop to shop along wide sidewalks, enjoying happy hour on a starlit brewery patio, or attending events and festivals held throughout the year. Historic theatres and museums surround City Hall in the northwest corner. Homes within walking or biking distance of downtown are in extremely high demand, whether they're condos and apartments inside City Center's boundaries or single-family houses in adjacent communities. <br><br>Subareas within the neighborhood include the Waterfront District, a collection of harbors and former wood-pulp industrial sites, and Old Town, where 19th-century brick storefronts surround the mouth of Whatcom Creek. The city is planning to redevelop these areas over several decades, adding new parks and high-density housing, though plans are in the early stages as of 2024.<br><br>City Center is packed with cafes, bars, and breweries. Old Town Café was first opened in 1904 as The Mobile Restaurant, then renamed in 1967; with a rustic, exposed-brick interior, the café serves house-made pastries and sources its ingredients from local vendors. Schweinhaus Biergarten is an outdoor beer garden decorated with fairy lights and offering German beer and sausages. A handful of waterfront restaurants surround Squalicum Harbor, including Lombardi’s Italian Restaurant & Wine Bar, founded in 1987 and offering regional dishes from Northern Italy. For groceries, residents can head to Trader Joe’s about a mile away, or visit the downtown Bellingham Farmers Market on Saturdays from April to December. “Our farmers' market is an amazing attraction,” says Julian Friedman, owner and real estate agent with Julian & Company of the Muljat Group. “Some of the best purveyors and farmers come from all around to sell their produce or handmade crafts.”<br><br>Local landmarks, theaters and museums are concentrated in the northwest. City Hall is here, as well as the central branch of the Bellingham Public Library, and the First Baptist Church of Bellingham, founded in 1883. The Pickford Film Center is the only non-seasonal independent cinema between Seattle and Vancouver and a central feature for Bellingham’s cinephile community, screening a mix of classic films and new releases. Mount Baker Theatre, built in 1926 as a silent movie house, now hosts touring musicians and performers. Smaller museums like the SPARK Museum of Electrical Invention tend to attract tourists with interactive displays and activities, but the Whatcom Museum is more of a mainstay with locals; featuring a mix of art exhibits and historical artifacts, this museum pays tribute to Whatcom County and the Lummi and Nooksack peoples who first occupied the local land.<br><br>Downtown Sounds, a free, weekly outdoor concert series held on Bell Street for five weeks each summer, celebrated its 20th anniversary in June 2024. Larger downtown events include the Northwest Tune-Up Festival, a four-day music festival held each July at Waterfront Waypoint Park; in addition to the main music stage, the event celebrates Pacific Northwest culture with a craft beer garden and several dirt bike pump tracks. During the annual Bellingham Celtic Festival in September, downtown businesses celebrate Celtic culture with individual concerts, workshops, and other activities over the course of a weekend. <br><br>Most City Center residents live in apartments or condos, but along the neighborhood’s north edge, there are a handful of Craftsman houses and bungalows built between 1900 and 1920, shrouded in overgrown shrubbery and mossy pine trees. When one of these historic properties goes on the market, it sells for between $500,000 and $1 million, depending on the home's condition. On the neighborhood’s south side, mid-rise condo complexes from the early 2000s offer one- or two-bedroom units with private balconies; prices range from $350,000 to $650,000. As the city redevelops the Waterfront District over the next several decades, more high-density housing options like condos and apartments will be added.<br><br>Set on the banks of Whatcom Creek, next to the Whatcom Museum, Maritime Heritage Park showcases Bellingham’s natural landscapes as they were before European contact. The park’s biggest attractions are its fish hatchery and the Nature Plant Trail, filled with cattails, western hemlock trees and bald hip roses. Waypoint Park was built over defunct pulp mills on the banks of Bellingham Bay, and features a playground, a small rocky beach area and a spherical, metallic art installation named "Waypoint," made from old industrial equipment. The rest of the waterfront is lined with harbors, private yacht clubs and the ASB hiking trail; named for the local Georgia Pacific Aeration Stabilization Basin, this wide gravel path offers panoramic views of Bellingham Bay and the distant San Juan Islands. <br><br>Downtown Bellingham is known for its walkability and many bike lanes. “Over the course of the last five years, the predominance of bike lanes has skyrocketed,” says Jeff Braimes, Bellingham local and Realtor with eXp Realty. “There is some controversy with it taking away traffic lanes and street parking. It can be difficult to get used to, but we’re seeing more pedestrians and less reliance on cars.” Traffic and parking can get congested on the weekend when locals from all over Bellingham flock to the City Center. The amount of foot traffic leads to a high risk of crimes like burglary and motor vehicle theft; City Center receives a CAP Index Crime Score of 9 out of 10, compared to a national score of 4. <br><br>The nearest interchange onto Interstate 5 is less than a mile east; I-5 leads 89 miles south to Seattle and 24 miles north to the Canadian border. The central Whatcom Transportation Authority bus station, a hub for many of the city’s bus routes, is in the neighborhood’s northeast corner. PeaceHealth Saint Joseph Medical Center is 2 miles away, while Bellingham International Airport is about 5 miles away. <br><br>Local kids may start school at Parkview Elementary, rated B-minus by Niche, before moving on to the B-plus-rated Whatcom Middle. The A-rated Bellingham High, set just north of downtown, offers more than 35 after-school activities, including a Computational Linguistics Club and the Bayhawk Book Club.

Built into the hillside about 2 miles south of downtown Bellingham, the aptly named residential South Hill slopes downhill into Bellingham Bay, offering panoramic views of the San Juan Islands in the distance. In addition to the views, South Hill is sandwiched between Fairhaven, a historic shopping and dining village full of small cafes and boutiques, and downtown, which is more densely packed with office spaces and brewpubs. Most residents are within walking distance of one or both districts. “It’s more community-oriented here,” says Ken Harrison, South Hill resident and local broker with Madrona Residential Real Estate. “Everyone is always walking around, and the homes are closer together, so it’s more neighborly.” South Hill is adjacent to Western Washington University, but the neighborhood's high price point means there isn't much student housing here; most homes date to the late 19th- or early 20th-century, built into the hillside beside historic institutions like the Saint James Presbyterian Church, here since the 1890s. Locals can enjoy the bayside at Boulevard Park, which hosts a small concert series in the summer. <br><br>Homes in South Hill are generally built into the steep hillside, with views of Bellingham Bay and the San Juan Islands. Houses facing uphill are set close to the street and have large back decks overlooking the water; those facing downhill toward the bay are set farther back, with wide stone staircases leading to their main entrances. The neighborhood's oldest homes date from 1890 to 1950, a mix of meticulously cared-for examples of Queen Anne, Craftsman, American Foursquare and Tudor Revival; peppered among them are ranch-style homes built between 1950 and 1980 with attached garages. Smaller bungalows and ranch-style homes in need of some updates can sell for $700,000 to $1 million, while larger, recently renovated properties go for $1 to $1.5 million, depending on lot size. Closer to the waterfront, condo complexes from the 1970s offer two-bedroom units for between $500,000 and $800,000, while three- and four-bedroom units sell for $850,000 to $1 million.<br><br>Given the age of most properties in this area, house inspections can become a sticking point in the buying process. "It's important to get the sewer lines checked," says Julian Friedman, owner and real estate agent with Julian & Company, powered by the Muljat Group. "A lot of homes are old, and the lines are old. If something happens, it can become a pretty big expense, so it's better to check."<br><br>South Hill's located between two large shopping and dining corridors, Fairhaven Village and Downtown Bellingham, and most residents live within walking distance of one or the other. “South Hill is very quaint, but it’s sandwiched between these two growing areas,” Harrison says. Fairhaven offers cafes and locally owned bookstores housed in 19th-century brick buildings; residents can head to Haggen for groceries or fuel up at the Filling Station, a burger joint decorated with vintage license plates and gas station signs. Downtown Bellingham is densely packed with boutiques, coffee shops and eateries amid office buildings and colorful murals. Horseshoe Café has been serving classic American fare, all-day brunch and specialty cocktails here since 1886, and down the street, the Bellingham Farmers Market is open every Saturday from April through December. <br><br>Every fourth Friday in June, July and August, the city hosts a free concert at the stage in Boulevard Park. Locals can bring a picnic blanket or dance around with their neighbors while enjoying tunes by local and area musicians.<br><br>Niche gives the local Lowell Elementary School a B-plus and ranks it the second-best public elementary school in Whatcom County; the active Lowell PTA organizes events throughout the year, including a used book fair and talent show. Fairhaven Middle School is also rated a B-plus and offers over a dozen after-school athletic programs, including wrestling, track & field, and basketball. The A-rated Sehome High, which moved to a newly constructed building in 2019, includes a 400-seat theatre, two gyms and a library. <br><br>Set right on the waterfront, Boulevard Park is a popular spot to watch the sunset over the San Juan Islands, with a narrow stretch of rocky beach, and a wooden boardwalk that extends over the bay for a quarter mile. Adjacent to Western Washington University, Sehome Hill Arboretum offers miles of unpaved trails and a tall watchtower set among pine and redwood forests.<br><br>Interstate 5 is found a few miles east and runs north-south through Bellingham, traveling 91 miles south to Seattle and 41 miles north to the Canadian border. Fairhaven is 1 mile south and downtown Bellingham is 2 miles north; most South Hill residents live within walking distance of one or the other. Locals can bike to either location via the bike lanes on State Street, and the Whatcom Transportation Authority’s Route 1 bus makes stops in Fairhaven, on State Street and in downtown. Train tracks run along the bayfront and lead to the Fairhaven Amtrak Train Station about a mile away; passing trains can be heard throughout the day. Peace Health Saint Joseph Medical Center is 4 miles away, while Bellingham International Airport is 7 miles away.

Set 4 miles south of downtown Bellingham, Fairhaven is one of the city's most popular areas, with a wide selection of locally owned shops and restaurants. “The vibe of Fairhaven is older, very cute, and has a whole lot of character that people really love,” says Keith Ferris, a longtime Bellingham resident and local broker with Madrona Residential Real Estate. The main commercial corridor on the neighborhood's east side, often called Fairhaven Village, is popular with both tourists and locals; here, most businesses are set in historic brick buildings from the late 19th through early 20th centuries. Housing within walking distance of the village is in high demand, even among buyers from neighboring communities like South Hill and Edgemoor. Condos and apartments are generally set near the shops, while most single-family homes are found along the neighborhood's southern border. On the neighborhood’s west side, Marine Park provides a small waterfront space, while the Alaskan Ferry port and Fairhaven Amtrak Station are major transportation hubs for the whole city. Fairhaven Village's high foot traffic is consistent throughout the year, occasionally boosted by festivals and events like the annual holiday Winterfest. <br><br>Shops and restaurants are clustered on the neighborhood’s east side, usually housed in historic brick buildings from the late 19th and early 20th centuries; some businesses offer a brief history of their particular building on their website. The commercial area often gets a lot of foot traffic, enabled by wide sidewalks and old-fashioned wrought-iron streetlights. The Black Cat restaurant is a local staple, offering upscale spins on American comfort fare, and a selection of house cocktails. On the weekends, residents can get brunch at places like Skylark’s Café, which has lots of outdoor seating for guests to enjoy the nice summer weather here; nightlife options include 1-Up Lounge, a cocktail bar with pinball, tabletop and video games. Locally owned shops include boutiques, jewelry stores and Village Books and Paper Dreams, a popular independent bookstore since 1980. Residents can get groceries at the Haggen next to Fairhaven Village.<br><br>The homes closest to Fairhaven Village are mainly condos and apartments in mid-rise luxury complexes or sometimes set above shops and restaurants; studio and one-bedroom units sell for $300,000 to $450,000, while two-bedroom units sell for $600,000 to $800,000. Single-family homes are found in the southern end of the neighborhood, within a mile's stroll of the Village along narrow, paved and sidewalk-free roads. Craftsman cottages built between 1890 and 1940 are common here, but there are also midcentury minimal traditional homes; both styles have two or three bedrooms and range from $700,000 to $1 million. Many single-family homes here have large driveways and parking spaces rather than garages, and their lots are bordered on all sides by mature oak and maple trees.<br><br>Fairhaven Village hosts many festivals throughout the year. One of the largest is the annual, month-long Winterfest each December, with activities like horse-drawn carriage rides, a holiday tree lighting, and an art walk featuring local artisans. In the spring, the community dresses in period clothing and celebrates its founder with an annual Dirty Dan Harris Festival, which features live music, street vendors and a chili cook-off.<br><br>Amid the neighborhood's shops, bars and restaurants, locals can take a break at the Fairhaven Village Green, an open grassy lawn with a stage for live music. The 2-acre Marine Park, set on the banks of Bellingham Bay, is one of the few waterfront spaces in south Bellingham, offering a small rock beach and picnic area with beautiful views of the water and nearby islands. <br><br>“Fairhaven is a transportation hub,” says Ken Harrison, a Bellingham resident of 36 years and local broker with Madrona Residential Real Estate. “You can catch the train, ferry and bus service, and that’s all only minutes away.” The local Fairhaven Amtrak Station connects the city to Seattle, 88 miles south, and Vancouver, 95 miles north. A few Whatcom Transportation Authority bus routes pass through the neighborhood, including some that stop at the Amtrak station, where locals can park and ride. At the Bellingham Cruise and Ferry Terminal, locals can catch a boat ride to several ports in Alaska. Peace Health Saint Joseph Hospital is 7 miles away, and Bellingham International Airport is 10 miles away.<br><br>Local kids can attend Lowell Elementary School before moving on to Fairhaven Middle, both rated B-plus by Niche. The A-rated Sehome High was recently renovated with an entirely new building, designed to let in more natural light and furnished with new smartboards and other teaching tools.

Set next to Western Washington University, 3 miles south of downtown Bellingham on Interstate 5, Happy Valley is popular with college students and faculty, featuring a mix of apartments and condos on the north and single-family homes on the south. The north side tends to get more foot traffic, with fast-casual restaurants and national chains like Starbucks within walking distance of apartment buildings. In these areas with high foot traffic, there is a higher crime risk, including burglary. Happy Valley has a Cap Inex crime score of 5, compared to a national score of 4. However, locals report that the student population generally doesn’t cause much disturbance, partly thanks to the university’s lack of Greek life. “I’d say there are about equal amounts of students and primary residents,” says Ken Harrison, a Bellingham resident of 36 years and local broker with Madrona Residential Real Estate. “The freeway is noisier than the students.” The neighborhood’s south side offers Craftsman and midcentury homes separated by mature oak and fir trees, as well as some undeveloped wooded enclaves that can be explored through narrow gravel trails. Locals can also enjoy the natural landscape at the Sehome Arboretum, consisting of over 175 acres of native foliage just north of Happy Valley.<br><br>Commercial spaces are mostly found on the neighborhood’s north side, within walking distance of apartments and condos. Here, a small shopping plaza is anchored by a Haggen supermarket, as well as national chains like Starbucks, Petstop and Insomnia Cookies, a popular spot with college students that serves warm cookies until 3 a.m. on the weekend. Nearby locally owned restaurants include fast-casual and take-out establishments like Tandoori Bites, which serves Indian food, and Busara Thai Cuisine. JJ’s In and Out Food Market sits in the neighborhood’s northwest corner, close to the university, and serves as a small neighborhood convenience store and deli.<br><br>The 175-acre Sehome Hill Arboretum sits just north of Happy Valley, a wooded oasis densely populated with redwood and oak trees dripping with moss. Visitors can explore the native landscape through winding, narrow gravel trails leading to a tall wooden observation tower. “The tower overlooks all of Bellingham and the bay—you can even see into Canada,” says Keith Ferris, a longtime Bellingham resident and local broker with Madrona Residential Real Estate. “Anyone who lives near there and goes to Western Washington University can cut through the arboretum to get there.” More gravel walking trails wind through the neighborhood, including the Connelly Creek Trail, which passes through patches of undeveloped land on Happy Valley’s east side. On the south side, Happy Valley Park provides space for locals to get together with an open play field, picnic tables organized under a green gazebo and a large playground.<br><br>On Happy Valley’s southern half, single-family homes are mixed with multiplexes, while condos and apartments are concentrated in the northern half. Home styles include Craftsman bungalows built between 1890 and 1910, which feature gable-front roofs and covered front porches, as well as split-level and ranch-style homes from the 1970s and 80s, which have minimally decorated vinyl exteriors. Local institutions feature similar midcentury architecture, including Our Saviour’s Lutheran Church, which has stood in its current building since 1962. Across styles and time periods, three-bedroom properties needing repairs can sell for between $400,000 and $600,000, while renovated homes with updated kitchens and bathrooms can sell for $600,000 to $800,000. Condo complexes on the north side built in the early 2000s offer studio and one-bedroom units for between $250,000 and $300,000, as well as two-bedroom units for $300,000 to $350,000. Flat, well-maintained streets are lined with sidewalks and mature pine trees. Though some homes built before 1950 have since been updated with carports, many homes still lack garages. However, wide shoulders on both sides of the road provide ample space for street parking.<br><br>Happy Valley Elementary School, rated B by Niche, sits at the center of the neighborhood, within walking distance of most homes. After attending Happy Valley Elementary, local kids can move on to the B-plus-rated Fairhaven Middle before graduating from the A-rated Sehome High. Sehome High students can take classes in sports medicine, broadcast journalism and engineering. In addition to public schools, there are a few Montessori programs for pre-kindergarten, elementary and middle school students within Happy Valley, including Samish Preschool and Cascades Montessori Middle. Montessori programs aim to cultivate socio-emotional intelligence by encouraging students to follow their curiosity and collaborate with their peers in a relatively unstructured environment. <br><br>Interstate 5 runs along Happy Valley’s east border, stretching 87 miles south to Seattle and 42 miles north to the Canadian border. Locals can get to downtown Bellingham, 3 miles away, or Fairhaven, 2 miles away, on Whatcom Transportation Authority’s Route 14 bus. Peace Health Saint Joseph Medical Center, Bellingham’s only major hospital, is about 5 miles north. For wider travel, Bellingham International Airport is about 8 miles northwest.<br><br>Western Washington University has about 14,000 undergraduate students, many of which are enrolled in business, education and computer science programs. The university is most known for its long-term commitment to sustainability and the overall laid-back vibe, without any kind of Greek life system. Many students are attracted to the natural landscape and outdoor lifestyle in Bellingham—the university’s recreation center even offers two 30-foot climbing walls and a 12-foot bouldering wall. In addition to student life, Western Washington is a major employer for Bellingham, many of which are drawn to Happy Valley so they can live close to work.

Set 5 miles from downtown Bellingham on Interstate 5, South Bellingham (often referred to as the South neighborhood) sits on the city's outskirts with narrow country roads and large stretches of undeveloped forested land. Newly constructed homes and condos sit closer together on the neighborhood’s northern edge, with the south side featuring expansive trail networks leading to the Chuckanut Mountains. Property values are bolstered by local schools, including the recently renovated Sehome High School, and the area’s low crime risk, receiving a Cap Index score of 2 out of 10, compared to a national score of 4. In addition to trails, locals can visit the sprawling Fairhaven Park or head into Fairhaven Village, 2 miles away, for various dining options. Despite the neighborhood’s quiet vibe, it still maintains a close-knit community feel through local organizations like the volunteer-led Chuckanut Center, which offers classes on gardening and other skills. Most homes are found on the neighborhood’s north side, including homes dating back to 2000 and plenty of new construction. Recently built New Traditional-style homes often feature white gable trim, stone detailing and large porches or balconies, with three-bedroom properties selling for $700,000 to $850,000. Two-bedroom condos built in the late ‘90s sell for between $400,000 and $450,000, while three-bedroom units with attached garages sell for between $600,000 and $650,000. Further south, more Minimal Traditional-style homes from the early 1900s sit on quarter, half or multi-acre wooded lots with more of a rural feel. Investment properties needing repairs can sell for $500,000 to $750,000, while renovated properties on multi-acre lots can sell for $800,000 to $1 million. Homes sit on secluded lots surrounded by pine and fir trees, organized along narrow, paved country roads. The South neighborhood’s sprawling layout and lack of sidewalks mean most residents won’t be able to walk to shops and restaurants the way they can in nearby areas like Edgemoor and Fairhaven. Like many Bellingham elementary schools, Happy Valley Elementary School, rated B by Niche, has a very active PTA organization. The association organizes events for families and students, including an annual Free Book Fair, where donated new and gently used books are available for kids to take home. Families can also attend the school’s Spring Fling festival for fair games, temporary tattoos and free food. After attending Happy Valley Elementary, students may move on to the B-plus-rated Fairhaven Middle before graduating from the A-rated Sehome High. In 2019, Sehome students were moved into a newly constructed building designed to include more windows, letting in lots of natural light. “We work with a lot of people looking for homes zoned for Sehome High School,” says Keith Ferris, a longtime Bellingham resident and local broker with Madrona Residential Real Estate. “It’s very highly sought after.” South Bellingham is bordered on the east by Interstate 5, which leads about 90 miles south to Seattle or 45 miles north to the Canadian Border. The Whatcom Transportation Authority’s Route 105 bus stop along Old Fairhaven Parkway just north of the South neighborhood, taking residents 2 miles to Fairhaven and 5 miles to downtown Bellingham. Peace Health Saint Joseph Medical Center is about 7 miles away, and Bellingham International Airport is about 10 miles away. Locals in South Bellingham have to travel outside the neighborhood for shopping and dining needs. The nearest Haggen grocery store is located a little over 2 miles away in Fairhaven, one of the biggest commercial districts in Bellingham. In Fairhaven, locals can head to Skylark’s Hidden Cafe for classic American fare with live music in the restaurant’s festive beer garden every Friday and Saturday in the summer. Mambo Italiano Cafe offers fresh seafood and pasta dishes made from family recipes. The natural landscape is among South Bellingham’s biggest draws, complimented by large, sprawling parks. The 136-acre Fairhaven Park encompasses grassy fields, redwood forests and the waterfalls of Padden Creek. Visitors can explore the park by traveling on paved trails between pickleball courts, playgrounds, and basketball courts. “The dynamic of Bellingham is very trail-oriented,” Ferris says. “It’s a super outdoorsy town in general, and that’s ingrained in every neighborhood.” The Interurban Trail is one of several walkways that wind through South Bellingham, leading to the Chuckanut Mountains. Hikers pass by, babbling creeks and tall pine and redwood trees as they travel the dirt pathway. Housed within Fairhaven Park, the Chuckanut Center is a volunteer-run facility that fosters community while helping locals develop new skills. Residents can take classes in beekeeping and cheesemaking through the center or attend the monthly Weed and Feed event, a social gathering where community members can mingle, learn gardening skills, and enjoy a free meal afterward. In addition to these events and classes, the center operates several community gardens where visitors can tend their own plot or help tend the Victory Garden, which donates its harvest to local organizations.

Set along Bellingham Bay, 4 miles south of downtown Bellingham, Edgemoor has some of the highest home values in the city, with listing prices seldom dipping below a million. While many surrounding neighborhoods have close-set bungalows built before 1950, Edgemoor has mid- to late-20th-century homes that sit on quarter- and half-acre lots, often with bay views. Most homes here are within walking distance of Fairhaven, a shopping and dining district that's extremely popular with locals and tourists, but the neighborhood itself offers a serene haven from the Fairhaven crowds, with nature preserves like Clark’s Point and the Post Point Heron Colony Site. The Cap Index crime score here is a low 2 out of 10, compared to the national average of 4. "You see a lot of people out walking their dogs here, and every neighborhood in Bellingham has a private group page on Facebook," says Keith Ferris, a longtime Bellingham resident and local broker with Madrona Residential Real Estate. “People post about community picnics or organize park cleanups. It’s a very positive vibe.” Edgemoor is zoned for the highly regarded Sehome High. <br><br>Housing development in Edgemoor began in the 1960s and ‘70s on the neighborhood's west side, where narrow, sidewalk-less streets run parallel to the bay. Here, split-level and raised ranch-style homes sit on quarter- and half-acre wooded lots shaded by mature pine and elm trees. Midcentury modern ranch-style homes feature low-pitched roofs, as well as exteriors faced with wood and stone. More recently built homes on the neighborhood’s east side include 1990s new traditional homes with multiple steep gables and combined stone and vinyl exteriors. Early 2000s Contemporary homes have wood exteriors, and asymmetrical low-slope roofs, with large windows and skylights. Three- to four-bedroom homes built before 1990 generally sell for between $1 and $1.3 million, while newer properties with four or five bedrooms range from $1.5 to $2.5 million. Properties with private pools and bay views can sell for between $3 and $4 million. “You have bigger homes and bigger lots here, which is something you don’t always see in Bellingham,” Ferris says. “A lot of them have views of the water, and being able to walk to Fairhaven is huge.”<br><br>Local kids may attend Happy Valley Elementary School, which is rated B by Niche; the after-school enrichment program here is run by PTA volunteers, with offerings like a chess group, a choir and an outdoor exploration club. The B-plus-rated Fairhaven Middle sits on the neighborhood’s northern edge, offering more than a dozen athletic activities, including a competitive dance and tumbling team. Students at the A-rated Sehome High can join seasonal sports teams like sailing in the fall and golf in the spring, or join the school’s Sports Medicine and Ultimate Frisbee Clubs. <br><br>Edgemoor is full of scenic greenspaces where locals can look out on the bay. At Clark’s Point, a peninsula on the neighborhood’s southern edge, two public access points allow views of the water and local wildlife. On the north side, the Post Point Heron Colony Site is a secluded nature sanctuary, popular with birdwatchers. “It’s a whole community of blue herons,” says Ken Harrison, a Bellingham resident of 36 years and local broker with Compass Real Estate. “A lot of people go down there when they’re nesting in the spring.” Bayside Swimming Club sits at the center of the neighborhood. One of only a few pools in Bellingham, it’s considered a major asset to the community, and there's often a waitlist for membership. <br><br>Though there aren’t any shops or restaurants in Edgemoor, locals have easy access to Fairhaven, a major shopping and dining hub 1 mile to the north. Full of small cafes, bars and bookstores housed in historic brick buildings from the late 19th century, Fairhaven is frequently visited by both locals and tourists as a place to stroll through shops or have a nice dinner on the weekends. Depending on their location within Edgemoor, residents can walk to Fairhaven staples like The Black Cat, which serves upscale variations on classic American fare with specialty cocktails and Sunday brunch. Locals can head to The Filling Station, decorated with eclectic vintage license plates, for a more casual feel with burgers and beer. The nearest Haggen grocery store is also located in Fairhaven, about a mile away.<br><br>Edgemoor residents can take Interstate 5 to Seattle (88 miles south) or the Canadian Border (46 miles north). The Whatcom Transportation Authority’s Route 105 bus passes through Edgemoor before traveling 1 mile to Fairhaven and 4 miles to downtown Bellingham. The Fairhaven Amtrak station is less than 2 miles away, with tracks running along Edgemoor’s west end, beside the water; passing trains can be heard throughout the day, taking passengers north to Vancouver, Canada and south to Mount Vernon. The Peace Health Saint Joseph Medical Center, Bellingham’s only major hospital, is located about 7 miles north, while Bellingham International Airport is 10 miles away. <br><br>Fairhaven is home to several events and festivals throughout the winter. Held every year on Memorial Day Weekend, the Sky to Sea multi-sport team relay race is divided into several legs -- skiing, snowboarding, running, biking, canoeing and kayaking -- that start at Mount Baker and end in Bellingham Bay. To celebrate the completion of the race, Fairhaven hosts an all-day street festival with live music, a beer garden, and food and craft vendors. In the winter, locals can walk to Fairhaven to enjoy Winterfest, a month-long celebration with seasonal activities like horse-drawn carriage rides and holiday markets.