Keene (New Hampshire)

Keene is a city in southern New Hampshire.

Understand
Keene is the county seat of Cheshire County and has been a local center of commerce and culture for a long time. This is reflected in the profusion of pretty buildings in town, only a few of which are pictured in this article.

Keene is also believed to be the inspiration of the fictional town of Brantford in Jumanji. Scenes from the film were shot here.

By car
Keene is most easily accessible by taking I-91 in Vermont to Exit 3 and getting on VT-9 in Brattleboro. Then head into the traffic circle until VT-9 continues and follow it over a small bridge into New Hampshire (VT-9 becomes NH-9). Follow NH-9 about 15 miles to Keene. From the east, Keene is accessible via NH-101. NH-9 also connects Keene to Concord to the northeast.

Hiking
Highland Hill & firetower, Greater Goose Pond and Drummer Hill, Beech Hill Preserve, Beaver Brook Falls, Horatio Colony Trust.

Recreation
Keene offers a variety of recreational areas.

Wheelock Park, Central Square, Robin Hood Park, Otter Brook Dam Recreation Area

Buy
Keene, as well as New Hampshire as a whole, is a great place to shop due to the lack of a state sales tax. Keene has a wide array of shops and stores selling almostall things. Below are just a few examples of where to shop when in Keene:

Eat
Keene also features several major chains of mid-scale restaurants, each of which have their own bars. On Winchester St. are Pizzeria Uno, 99 Restaurant, and Applebees. Located off Winchester Street, at the Monadnock Marketplace, are Chilis, Longhorn Steakhouse, and the Olive Garden.



Main Street area
The Main Street (Downtown) area of Keene hosts several bars and nightclubs.



Churches
Emmanuel Baptist Church of Keene], First Baptist Church of Keene, Sturtevant Chapel, Hope Chapel, Keene Assembly of God, St. Bernard's Catholic Church, United Church of Christ, United Methodist Church.

Go next

 * Mount Monadnock is 12 miles to the east on NH-124 in Jaffrey. There is a small parking lot where NH-124 crests over the mountain.  Just before Jaffrey Center, there is a sign pointing to the entrance to Monadnock State Park.  The trails from both locations lead to the summit.  Mount Monadnock is the highest mountain in southern NH and perhaps the most accessible for novice hikers, as well as being the most climbed mountain in the entire world.  No special equipment is needed to climb the mountain and it can usually be done in about four hours round trip for a healthy person.
 * Brattleboro, Vermont is about a 40-minute drive to via the Franklin Pierce Highway (State Route 9 West) and US Route 5 South and has even more beautiful buildings for you to look at.