Appalachian Mountain Club

06/02/2026

Trail crew history from the archives. 🎞️⚒️

By the 1950s, AMC’s professional Trail Crew was well established, but there was always more work to do on White Mountain trails. In 1956, a group of avid hikers from Appalachian Mountain Club Connecticut Chapter (CT AMC) formed the Connecticut Roving Trail Crew (CRTC) to help.

Each summer, CRTC members spent a week or more patrolling trails, pruning back vegetation, and clearing blowdowns to keep routes open and cared for.
This photo shows the Connecticut Roving Trail Crew taking a break between South Twin and North Twin on July 17, 1962.

Then and now, we’re still so grateful for the volunteers, crews, and trail communities who show up for the places we love. 👏

05/31/2026

Oh hey, moose 🫎👋

The Maine Woods camera traps have captured all kinds of visitors, including a few long-legged locals making their way through the 100-Mile Wilderness.

These cameras are helping AMC researchers better understand which species are moving through restored stream habitats, and how healthy waterways support the larger landscape around them.

What other animals do you think stopped by? Drop your guesses below.👇

05/29/2026

05/29/2026

Celebrate Bike Month by planning your next ride in the Maine Woods. 🚴

AMC Maine Woods Initiative Gravel Biking Weekends return in 2026 with three weekends designed for cyclists of all experience levels. Each event brings together scenic rides, skill clinics, evening programs, lodge meals, wood-fired sauna time, and a welcoming community of riders.

Choose your ride:
🚲 Summer Gravel Weekend | July 31-Aug. 2 | Medawisla Lodge & Cabins
🍂 Equinox Gravel Weekend | Sept. 18-20 | Medawisla Lodge & Cabins
🚵 Mountain Biking Weekend | Oct. 2-4 | Gorman Chairback Lodge & Cabins

Registration is simple: book your stay at the host lodge for the event dates, then opt into Gravel Weekend during checkout. Learn more and book your stay:

Explore AMC’s Maine Gravel Biking Weekends with curated gravel rides through the 100-Mile Wilderness, cozy lodge stays, and skill clinics.

05/28/2026

What do all these species have in common❓

🔄Their Life Cycle!

Spring ephemerals are short-lived perennial plants that complete their entire life cycle of sprouting, blooming and setting seed typically before the canopy leafs out.

This strategy allows them to avoid the deep shade and perhaps most importantly. It gives spring hikers a reward for getting out on trail during what most considered the “mud season.”

Photos By: Madelyn Wood (AMC Researcher)

1. Painted Trillium (Trillium undulatum)
2. Starflower (Lysimachia borealis)
3. Yellow Trout Lilly (Erythronium americanum)
4. Canada Mayflower (Maianthemum canadense)

05/27/2026

A win for science in the White Mountains, but not the last💚

The Hubbard Brook Experimental Forest will remain open despite the reevaluation threats as part of the recent U.S. Forest Service reorganization.

This victory was made possible by bipartisan leadership and public advocacy from people like you.

As more people gear up for outdoor adventures this summer, we need to keep pushing Congress to protect the many other important research stations, like Bartlett Experimental Forest, and support the staffing and resources healthy forests depend on.

Take action today: https://outdoors.quorum.us/campaign/hubbard-brook/

05/26/2026

The 150 Relay made its appearance at Nobel View in Western Mass this past weekend! A group of cyclists brought the flag into a camp filled with flags banners and the ever important 150 cake. But we wanted to take a moment to celebrate what the 150 relay is about. The people.

The Volunteer Leadership Award is presented in recognition of AMC’s outstanding volunteer leaders who generously share their time, skills, and expertise in support of AMC’s mission. The 2025 AMC award was presented to Stephen Smith (seen on the first image)

Steve began volunteering on the trails of the White Mountains, discovering at an early age that trails and trail stewardship were his passion. After joining the AMC in 1979, he first volunteered with the Worcester Chapter, where he was instrumental in the care of the Midstate Trail. In 1999, he became an active leader with the Western Massachusetts Chapter’s Appalachian Trail Committee.

Through his leadership, dedication, and quiet ability to inspire others to volunteer, Steve helped grow the AT Committee into what it is today — a community of more than 200 volunteers who care for the Appalachian Trail in Massachusetts and help protect its cultural and natural resources. Steve remained active with the AT Committee until last year.

Thank you, Steve, for your many years of dedication to the AMC, the Western Massachusetts Chapter, and the Appalachian Trail Committee.

05/25/2026

Behind every resilient trail is a community learning how to care for it.⚒️

Earlier this month, AMC’s Trails Department hosted its 5th annual Trails Skills College in partnership with the White Mountain National Forest at Camp Dodge Trails Training Center.

More than 100 participants, AMC staff, and instructors joined us for a weekend of hands-on learning, community, and trail stewardship. Across 11 workshops, participants built skills in critical trail maintenance, rigging, chainsaw, crosscut, rockwork, and more. Camp Dodge also housed and fed more than 60 participants throughout the weekend!

We’re grateful for the staff, instructors, volunteers, participants, and partners who brought their time, expertise, and energy to this weekend. Trail stewardship takes all of us, and this community continues to show up for the trails we love. 👏🧡

05/15/2026

Come take Break and Relax for a moment 🍃

This break is on Breakneck Pond at AMCs Harriman Outdoor Center. Situated right in the middle of Harriman State park any only 1hr outside of NYC!

05/15/2026

Summer in the Maine Woods has a way of slowing everything down🌲

Spend your days paddling quiet waters, hiking nearby trails, spotting wildlife, or simply relaxing with family and friends.

Then return to a hearty home-cooked meal, a campfire, and some of the darkest night skies in New England 🌌

This June and July, stays at Medawisla and Gorman Chairback Lodges are 40% off with code MAINE40.

The kind of summer memories that stay with you start here.
👉 Book before May 28: https://www.outdoors.org/destinations/book-now/?resultFilterValue=20536,20532,20530&promoCode=Maine26&checkin=06/11/2026&checkout=06/14/2026&rooms=1&adults=1 #/room