Skiing and summer mountain activities in New England
Skiing and summer mountain activities in New England
Ski or snowboard in the White Mountains of New Hampshire, the Green Mountains of Vermont and the mountains of western and central Maine. In southern New England, Connecticut and Massachusetts have small local ski areas with vertical slopes of less than 300 meters/1000 feet. There are many ski areas for everyone from beginners to advanced skiers/boarders. Many areas extend their seasons to year round by providing alpine slides and summertime activities. See the state articles for ski area listings.
New England skiing is unlike skiing in the western United States. Instead of open slopes above tree line, New England ski areas have relatively narrow trails carved through thick woodlands. New England's variable weather continues in winter. The skier or boarder may experience mild weather with temperatures above 10 Celsius/50 Fahrenheit or bitter cold with high winds delivering wind chill temperatures of -30 or less. Rain or snow may fall at any time. Rain often coats the snow with ice, and snow is often wet and sticky. The result of these conditions is that skiing and snowboarding in New England require attention to conditions. To deal with mild or dry conditions, all major New England ski areas make snow through the night and groom their slopes in the early morning.
Traditional Summer ActivitiesBeaches abound along New England's coastline from Connecticut to just south of Portland, Maine. Here vacationers may swim or simply soak up the sun. Swimmers may find the waters north of Cape Cod to be cold, especially in Maine. Inland, swimming is available in New England's thousands of lakes and ponds, and the water is usually warmer. Almost every New England town has at least one "swimming hole". Swimming areas include those operated by the federal National Park Service in Cape Cod National Seashore and Acadia National Park, large state-owned beaches with parking for hundreds of cars, and local city or town beaches. In addition, local inquiries may reveal the locations of unmapped swimming areas, some quite scenic, along local streams or shorelines.
New England also offers plenty of opportunity for boating whether it be in sheltered bays and harbors along 9,900 km/6,100 miles of coastline, or on inland lakes, ponds, and rivers. Local yacht clubs usually conduct sailboat races for many different classes. Offshore cruises are offered from coastal tourist towns. These cruises include "whale watch" boats, other nature cruises to observe shore birds, and sailing on traditional sailboats such as Maine's "windjammers". Those cruising out to sea north of Cape Cod should bring a jacket or sweater no matter how hot it may be on land. Inland, outfitters offer whitewater rafting on Maine's rivers. Kayakers and canoers have plenty of opportunity to put their craft into local lakes, ponds, and rivers at state-owned boat launching areas. Rentals are often available in larger waterfront towns. Be advised that many local areas ban jet skis and have "no wake" areas for motor boats.
Bicycling is popular in New England. Being densely populated with lots of traffic, the southern New England states of Connecticut, Massachusetts, and Rhode Island present little opportunity for road biking. However, they make up for this with "rail-trails", which are paved sections of abandoned railroad track dedicated to bicyclists and pedestrians. Information on rail-trails is available from the Rails-to-Trails Conservancy . In northern New England there is less traffic on roads, however, they are hillier than roads in southern New England. Many of New England's state parks have trails for mountain biking. These trails follow old dirt roads. Mountain biking on hiking trails is usually prohibited. Both Cape Cod National Seashore and Acadia National Park offer ample opportunity for bicycling along scenic routes free of motor vehicle traffic. Biking opportunities abound on New England's many offshore island destinations where roads are usually flat and cooled by sea breezes. Most major tourist destinations have shops that rent bicycles.
Hiking is popular in New England. There are long distance hiking trails in the region, including the Appalachian Trail, which courses through all of the New England states except Rhode Island to its terminus on Mount Katahdin in Maine, and the Long Trail, which traverses Vermont from Massachusetts to Quebec. Although there are hundreds of miles of hiking trails in the region's state and federal parks, bear in mind that most hiking trails do cross private property, and the owner's rights are to be respected. Most of New England's mountains are thickly forested, but there are extensive areas above the tree line in Vermont and especially New Hampshire and Maine. On these mountains climate conditions are similar to those in Labrador far to the north, and the lack of trees affords wonderful long distance views. The Appalachian Mountain Club (AMC) has its headquarters in Boston and local chapters throughout the region. AMC operates campgrounds and lodges throughout the region, most of which are reachable only by hiking. New England's trails are generally maintained by volunteers organized by AMC's chapters or other organizations such as the Green Mountain Club or the Connecticut Forest and Park Association . These organizations offer detailed maps and other hiking information.
The Most Frequently Asked Travel Questions about New England
Where To Stay & Best Hotels in New England - updated May 2024
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New England Travel Guide from Wikitravel. Many thanks to all Wikitravel contributors. Text is available under Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0, images are available under various licenses, see each image for details.
