Appalachian Mountain Club

The three members of the Town Forest Committee, working with a shoestring budget funded by the town and local supporters, spend many hours throughout the year keeping trails in shape and running events that introduce residents to the land and what it offers.

SKI

Cold? Snowy? Time to get out there for some trekking, snowshoeing or maybe even winter camping. The solitude, quiet and frozen cold of a winter landscape are great reasons to head outdoors in January and February. You can snowshoe, ski, trek or go sledding. Sleep overnight in a tent, lean-to, yurt or cabin. Tree branches may snap, and lake ice may groan as it freezes and buckles. Or maybe the only sound you'll hear is the gentle shoosh, shoosh, shoosh of your snowshoes in powder.

Fall fun not just harvest festivals, corn mazes and foliage: Try whitewater, birding, cruises. Autumn travel means harvest festivals, classic New England inns, and hikes and drives to see fall foliage.

Injured NJ hiker rescued from NH mountain, Northeast's highest peak, via 19th-century railway. An injured New Jersey hiker has been rescued from the Northeast's highest peak via an old railway.

Maine triples conserved lands to outdoors lovers' delight: 3.3 million acres now protected. Clouds from a light snowfall shroud the peaks of the Bigelow Mountain Range, which reigns over western Maine forest trails, luring snowshoers and cross-country skiers on a winter afternoon.

Maine triples conserved lands to outdoors lovers' delight: 3.3 million acres now protected. Clouds from a light snowfall shroud the peaks of the Bigelow Mountain Range, which reigns over western Maine forest trails, luring snowshoers and cross-country skiers on a winter afternoon.

Maine triples conserved lands to outdoors lovers' delight: 3.3 million acres now protected. Clouds from a light snowfall shroud the peaks of the Bigelow Mountain Range, which reigns over western Maine forest trails, luring snowshoers and cross-country skiers on a winter afternoon.

Appalachian Mountain Club offers 2-for-1 deals for kids' lodging. The Appalachian Mountain Club is offering an all-inclusive two-for-one lodging deal for children 12 and under when accompanied by an adult.

Travel briefs. Leaf-peeping in Iowa: Mississippi River, bridges of Madison County

Travel briefs. UNESCO adds Dolomites to world heritage list, drops Dresden

Maine Woods Discovery travel packages being offered. Many visitors to Maine associate the state with lobsters, coastal towns and Acadia National Park. But a new project called Maine Woods Discovery is hoping to promote tourism to the state's lakes, woods, mountains and other inland areas.

Tips for taking volunteer vacations on a budget. You could pay a lot of money for the privilege of donating your labor to a worthy cause somewhere around the world on a volunteer vacation. Or you could just throw your sleeping bag in the car, drive to a nearby park, and for as little as $150, spend a week in the wilderness rebuilding trails with other nature-lovers.

New books about volunteer vacations. Looking for a trip that will make a difference?

Stranded NH teenager brings lesson home for scout troop: 'Never hike alone in snow conditions'. The 17-year-old stranded on New Hampshire's Mount Washington put his Eagle Scout skills to the test, sleeping in the crevice of a boulder and jump-starting fires with hand sanitizer gel.

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