The other day we were desperate to get outside for a short walk so we headed down to one of the closer snowmobile trails.  The snow wasn’t too deep and we knew that snowmobiles wouldn’t be on the trail, and we were excited to explore a new area in our hometown of Bethlehem.  We parked at the corner of Trudeau Road and Route 3, put Alden in the backpack and headed out on the trail.

Andrew carries Alden at the beginning of the walk.

The start of the trail.

We had driven by this parking area many times and seen cars at all times of the year, but this was the first time we had ever walked on the trail.  The trail is an old railroad bed that travels within the White Mountain National Forest, so it provides an ideal place to walk.  Today we passed only one woman walking her dog while we were out there.  We were pleased to find some extensive wetlands and a beautiful view of the mountains of the northern Pemigewasset Wilderness.  The wetland flows into Beaver Brook which then flows into the Gale River.

Family picture!

We found some open water where the water flows downstream.

We taught Alden a new word: “Moss” and pointed it out hanging from many of the trees above us.  We also saw ravens flying overhead and heard them making a racket even when we couldn’t see them.  Alden kept asking “What’s that noise?” We walked for about 25 minutes or so and then turned around to head back.  Lindsay’s back was starting to ache from carrying the backpack with Alden but Alden objected when Andrew tried to swap.

The evergreen trees take center stage in the winter.

We encountered a kiosk with a map along our walk that showed a few alternative trails from the main one, and also noticed some impressive stands of mature trees that will be worth more exploration on a future visit.  Hope you enjoyed our blog post today! Take care and get outside!

Lindsay and Alden pose for a scenic picture.