New Hampshire outdoor adventures offer zip lines, rafting, snow sports for all ages

New Hampshire > State > Outdoor Activities > Outdoor Adventures

With its towering, majestic mountains and dramatic lakes, New Hampshire is a natural draw for people who like to challenge their bodies and minds out in nature. Fortunately, the people who live there and love outdoor adventure have developed some great places to play rough outdoors. Much of the outdoor adventure escapades in New Hampshire are made to accommodate people of all ages, kids, and the less-athletic among us. Start by considering the ways to get off the ground: zip lines, ropes courses, canopy tours, parasailing: wow! If you don’t favor a vacation on the ground or in the air, there is canoeing and kayaking, river rafting (some in white water), fishing. In winter, the environment glides easily into snow-based adventure: mountain bike trails become Nordic ski trails and snowmobiles stitch tracks through the woods. Accommodations welcome families, offer resort amenities, and include rustic surroundings in cabins and cottages.

Find more great outdoor adventures at Explore New England.

Ice Castles

24 Clark Farm Road North Woodstock, NH, 03262 Phone: Toll-Free: 888-407-4054

Dazzling displays mean you’ll crown these artful ice castles top winter attractions

Add some sparkle to your winter with a visit to the breathtaking Ice Castles, a magical masterpiece of ice thrones, sculptures, tunnels, slides and fountains. Walk along the enchanted forest path, admiring the hand-carved sculptures that seem to glow from within with their embedded LED lights. Or, better yet, take a horse-drawn sleigh ride (for groups up to 12 people) through the award-winning attraction. Set to open in early January, the winter wonderland features the work of ice artisans who grow and harvest up to 10,000 icicles a day. All in all, about 20 million pounds of ice go into creating the magical ambiance, aided by music and multicolored lights (and special fire shows on Friday and Saturday nights).

Bear Rock Adventures

545 Beach Road Pittsburg, NH, 03592 Phone: Toll-Free: 866-663-9777

Embrace your inner trailblazer with family-friendly ATV rides with Bear Rock Adventures s

Discover the Great North Woods’ jaw-dropping vistas, diverse landscapes and wildlife from the back of a Polaris ATV or side-by-side with Bear Rock Adventures. Pick your adventure with customized itineraries, perfect for families and thrill-seekers alike, and explore over 1,000 miles of Ride the Wilds interconnected trails on half, full, or multi-day excursions. Bear Rock Adventures provides a safe, turnkey way to ATV with the latest gear including safety helmets and goggles, cutting-edge GPS and Bluetooth technology as well as storage compartments for your riding gear, maps, picnic lunches and selfie sticks to capture the ultimate memory.

Great Glen Trails

Route 16 at Pinkham Notch Gorham, NH, 03581 Phone: 603-466-3988

Outdoor adventure for summer and winter explorers

Four-season adventure awaits your family at Great Glen Trails in Pinkham Notch. In warmer months, head out on scenic trails for a hike, a run, or bike ride through the majestic White Mountains. Join a guided bird watching tour or paddling trip on the Androscoggin River. In winter, cross country skiing and snowshoeing are the way to get around on a trail system of easy and rolling terrain. Skiers of all abilities can find their own level of activity, challenge, and fun. Trails are groomed with both double tracks and a skating lane and run through the forests at the base of Mount Washington. Or you can jump onto the SnowCoach and tour the mountain in winter from a comfortable seat. Outdoor fun for all tastes!

Winter Dog Sledding Muddy Paw Sled Dog Kennel & Raft Jefferson New Hampshire

Muddy Paw Sled Dog Kennel & Raft NH

32 Valley Road Jefferson, NH, 03583 Phone: 603-545-4533

Outdoor adventure, Alaska style. Take a sled dog ride!

Who are the experts at combining play and work? The answer is: dogs. Muddy Paw Sled Dog Kennel in the White Mountains of New Hampshire is the home of about 80 sled dogs, and they support the business by taking guests on sled dog rides – their favorite thing to do! This unique adventure is very hands-on and up-close. Meet the dogs that will take on the harness to whisk you along mountain paths, year-round. Summer rides are on comfortable dog carts, with a dog team in harness, just like on a sled. Another summertime arm of the business, Raft NH, offers mild-to-wild rafting adventures with a licensed Maine guide.

Morningside Flight Park - Enjoy the exhiliration of tandem hang gliding today!

Mt. Washington Valley Chamber of Commerce

It really is a great outdoors in this varied mountain valley region

The great outdoors is even greater than that in the Mount Washington Valley region, starting with the best skiing, downhill and cross-country, in the East as well as amazing ice castles and glacial caves to visit. Hiking trails through meadows and up spectacular mountains, ziplining, rock-climbing, moose tours, ropes courses. mountain coasters and every form of boating are all waiting for you. Walk to waterfalls, across wooden bridges and through gorgeous towns and villages. Explore water parks, family farms, indoor and outdoor skating rinks (learn to curl!), golf courses, fairs, festivals and farmers markets. And here’s an added adventure: The distances between these great outdoor activities for the whole family? Short, short, short, making your trip fun, fun, fun.

America's Stonehenge

105 Haverhill Road Salem, NH, 03079 Phone: 603-893-8300

Mysteries abound at this incredible seacoast site

The forests near Salem, NH are home to this remarkable maze of rocks, stone chambers, and megaliths that may have been left by ancient visitors. But who were they? The question has stymied scholars for generations. The megalith filled pine woods eerily appear to be similar to those built throughout Great Britain by Druid priests. Adding to the mystery is the fact that you'll find megaliths of the same type scattered around New England. This site is one of the largest collections not on private property and not off limits to visitors. Visit the museum and enjoy the orientation film and gift shop that offers books with more information. In winter months the one-hundred-plus acres are also great for snowshoeing.

Distinctive Inns of New England

Luxurious Accommodations throughout New England , CT Phone:

From skiing to swimming, New Hampshire inns are close to all the outdoor action

New Hampshie’s beauty and outdoor adventure options are routinely celebrated at the Chesterfield Inn and The Manor on Golden Pond, where guests are treated to warm hospitality and inviting surroundings after full days of outside activities. At the Chesterfield Inn, nestled in the Connecticut River Valley, nearby winter activities include snowshoeing, tubing, ice skating and snowmobiling, while warmer weather brings hiking on nearby trails, canoeing and kayaking on the river, golf, horseback riding and swimming in the lake. At The Manor on Golden Pond, overlooking Squam Lake and the foothills of the White Mountains, take a boat tour of the lake in an antique 1935 launch boat, hike up nearby Rattlesnake Mountain, golf at several championship courses or ski at one of five major resorts. Of course, tax-free shopping is another year-round draw, with plenty of unique shops offering everything from craft beer and spirits to specialty foods, apparel, gifts and so much more.

Lakes Region Tourism Association

61 Laconia Road Tilton, NH, 03276 Phone: 603-286-8008 Toll-Free: 800-605-2537

In the Lakes Region, your adventurous side will want to come out and play

No one celebrates the outdoors quite like New Hampshire's Lakes Region. With the area’s bounty of mountains and lakes, you have your choice in the winter of ski resorts, a hundred miles of snowmobile trails – and Santa’s Village, of course. In the sunshine seasons, choose from scenic gondola rides, ziplines through forests, great fishing, hundreds of miles of hiking trails through jaw-dropping scenery, boat cruises across crystal-clear Lake Winnipesaukee and several water parks. Pump up that adrenaline with rock and ice climbing, skydiving or exploring glacial caves. Or take it down a notch with golf, a walk through Shaker village gardens or a cog railroad ride up Mt. Washington. From moose tours to mountain biking, this area has it all.

Raft NH

196 Main Street Gorham, NH, 03581 Phone: 603-545-4533

Guided rafting adventures a perfect day on the river in the Great North Woods of N.H.

You can take a walk to be part of the great outdoors: Or you can go whitewater rafting! At Raft NH, you will be up close and personal with the Androscoggin River – the section below the Pontook Dam – when you sign up for the Class II river runs. This laid-back day on the river means rafters from ages 6 and up can experience sections of milder rapids and calmer water, perfect for a swim. Class II trips are geared toward families and whitewater beginners, but everyone will enjoy their day in the White Mountains and Great North Woods of northern New Hampshire. The rafting adventure includes a guide, safety gear, comfort gear, a small snack and transportation to and from the raft base in Gorham.

Glen House

979 NH Route 16 Gorham, NH, 03581 Phone: 603-466-3420

Adventures around every corner, every season, at this mountain resort

There really is an outdoor adventure everywhere you look in the Mt. Washington Valley area, and there’s no better place to start the fun than the Glen House, a 68-room resort with panoramic views of the White Mountains. From your luxurious room at this four-season resort, you can plan your skiing, snowshoeing or skating adventure in the winter, fat biking or hiking in the spring, a tour or self-drive up the amazing Mt. Washington Auto Road in the summer and hiking in spectacular foliage in the fall. At the base of the Auto Road, which reaches more than a mile into the sky, is Great Glen Trails, with guided kayaking and whitewater tours as well as biking trails.

Morningside Flight Park

357 Morningside Lane Charlestown, NH, 03603 Phone: 603-542-4416

Adventure park pleasures from fishing to paragliding

Soar above the earth in the beautiful Connecticut River Valley at an outdoor activity park that offers a huge range of activities and services. Discover the thrill of a lifetime in hang gliding and paragliding, guided by folks with 30 years of experience in flight instruction. Lessons are offered to people of all skill levels and ages. Enjoy zip-lining and canopy tours, laser tag, fishing, swimming and kayaking. At a cozy campground surrounded by old-growth forest you can pitch your own tent or move into a set-up platform tent with full- or queen-size beds. The campground has many play and housekeeping features: fire pits, playing fields, picnic areas, a community kitchen, restrooms and bathhouse. You’re within easy reach of Boston, Hartford, Montreal, and New York.

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Great North Woods

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Merrimack Valley

Monadnock

Seacoast

White Mountains