Issues → December 2006 → Travel →
Four Winter Outings in New England
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Over nearly five hours, we follow numerous animal prints and see every track pattern but the waddlers. Squirrel, fox, deer, fisher, marten, ermine, shrew, and mouse tracks are abundant. We track a moose, finding its scat and some hairs left behind in its tracks, as well as a snowshoe hare. Once we flush out a grouse. Finally, the sun sinks down in the sky and the temperatures drop. It is time to head back to where we started, the AMC's visitors' center.
Afterward, we make our own tracks to the luxury of The White Mountain Hotel and Resort in North Conway, where we will spend the night. We treat ourselves to dinner in The Ledges Dining Room and to a soak in the outdoor hot tub. Weary after a long day in the woods, we fall asleep with full bellies and thoughts of the creatures making their way through the woods, leaving their stories for others to find tomorrow. -- Kathryn LoConte
Appalachian Mountain Club, Pinkham Notch Visitor Center, Rte. 16, Pinkham's Grant, NH. Rates: one- to two-day workshops free and fee-based; call or visit Web site for more information. 603-466-2727. outdoors.org
Appalachian Mountain Club
Join the Curious Naturalists animal tracking and snowshoe workshop with the Appalachian Mountain Club (AMC). Rates: one- to two-day workshops free and fee-based; call or visit web site for more information. [DETAILS]
White Mountain Hotel and Resort
The hotel has 80 rooms and 13 suites available from $89 to $269 (full breakfast included midweek November to mid-June). The Ledges Dining Room is locally known for its Sunday brunch buffet ($15.95). Dinner entrées: $19-$29. [DETAILS]
Moat Mountain Smoke House and Brewing Co.
Go for the beer, stay for the barbecue and wood-fired pizzas. Entrées: $7.95-$23.50. [DETAILS]
Jack R. Williams Toboggan Chute, Camden, ME
"It'll be over in nine seconds," says Stuart Young, operator at the toboggan chute. It's a statement that brings little comfort as our toboggan is tipped from a horizontal loading position onto the near vertical starting pitch of a 400-foot wooden toboggan run. The rumble of the sled sounds like a freight train, yet above the crescendo can be heard screams of surprise and delight. The chute is the only one of its kind remaining in New England and is host to the annual U.S. National Toboggan Championships.
We tuck in our elbows, lean back, and hold on tight. This is definitely different from just swooshing down that backyard slope. First built in 1936 and restored in 1960 and 1990, the track has a vertical drop of 70 feet. The wooden sled shimmies against the side boards as it gains momentum -- up to 45 mph. The toboggan is momentarily suspended in air at the end before gliding out onto ice-covered Hosmer Pond, sometimes even sliding all the way across. The toboggan slows until we gain traction with our feet to stand up on the ice. Beaming grins. Bright eyes. In a moment, we are trudging up the hill for a second run. -- Katrina Yeager
Jack R. Williams Toboggan Chute, Camden Snow Bowl -- Parks & Recreation, 20 Hosmer Pond Rd., Camden, ME. Tickets: $2 per ride. 207-236-3438. camdensnowbowl.com
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