Editor’s Note: Ready for Adventure
This issue's Editor's Note, straight from the desk of NH Magazine's Editor, Mike Cote
While I’m a novice thrill-seeker, I’ve ridden rocky trails on a UTV in Aruba, paddled icy waters whitewater rafting in North Carolina and hiked up steep mountains in Colorado.
You can do all these things without leaving the Granite State.
That’s the true New Hampshire Advantage.
This month, we invite you to “Find Your Adventure” (page 60). In addition to essays on whitewater rafting, hiking and off-road vehicle driving, our team of experts and enthusiasts invites you to experience surfing, scuba diving, ziplining and mountain biking.
Since I moved back to New Hampshire more than a decade ago, I’ve tried some of these excursions, but I still have a few to cross off my adventure bucket list. We bet you do, too. Our state is primed for recreation lovers of every experience level to enjoy our great outdoors.
Outdoor recreation also is an important business in New Hampshire, supporting more than 33,000 jobs, generating $1.8 billion in wages and compensation and contributing $4.2 billion to the state’s economy every year, according to federal 2024 data released in March.
New Hampshire’s all-access ticket to the outdoors helps to attract and retain residents. That’s probably not news to you, but after sloughing off the winter chill we all need a reminder, so get out there and find your adventure.
Wild kingdom
Lest we think we have the great outdoors to ourselves, Assistant Editor Emily Reily reminds us about our responsibility to nature and the precarious existence of some of the creatures that inhabit our state.
“On the Brink” (page 44) spotlights eight animal and plant species in New Hampshire that are considered threatened or endangered due to climate change, pollution, loss of habitat and other factors. They include the New England cottontail, the Saltmarsh sparrow and the White Mountain fritillary butterfly. Illustrator Sarah Richard presents stunning portraits of all eight — so you might recognize these species should you spot them in the wild.
Hitting the trails
For runners, outdoor adventure means exploring new trails. Julia Robitaille and Timm Huffman offer their favorites and how to tackle them in this month’s Run NH section (page 74). It also features Greg Heilshorn’s profile of Christopher Stock, an Army veteran who runs marathons to raise money for the USO and other charities.
Ernesto Burden, who recently was named president and CEO of our parent company,
Yankee Publishing, kicks off the section with an essay about running long distances with his dog, Bodhi, and how those excursions have strengthened their bond.
Seat with a view
What better way to top off an outdoor adventure than with outdoor dining, say, on a rooftop deck with panoramic views of Portsmouth, a lakeside table with gorgeous sunsets or on a patio that faces majestic mountains. Contributor Kara McGrath takes you on a tour of some of the best spots in the state that provide a feast for the palate, the eyes and the soul (page 18).
Save me a seat, but excuse my appearance: I might be a bit sweaty when I get there. That’s the price of adventure.
