General Info:
The Mountain Wanderer was opened in August 1998 by Steve Smith of Lincoln, NH. We are a niche book/map retailer specializing in New England outdoors and especially in White Mountain hiking. Our most popular items are hiking guidebooks and trail maps. We carry these not only for NH but also for Vermont, Maine, southern New England and eastern NY ( Adirondack and Catskill Mountains ). We also have sections ( again, both for NH and the other New England states and eastern NY ) on bicycling, paddling, fishing ( small section ), rock climbing, nature and field guides, birding, general travel, skiing & snowshoeing, and White Mountains history ( probably our second most popular category after hiking ). We carry a great variety of trail maps more than just about any other retailer in the region. We are a dealer for US Geological Survey topographic maps, carrying all NH quads from the Lakes Region north to the Canadian border, and we also sell many raised relief maps ( the bumpy maps ). Steve has been a hiking enthusiast for over 30 years and is the author of several White Mountain guidebooks as well as serving as co-editor of the AMC White Mountain Guide and AMC Southern New Hampshire Trail Guide. In 2001 Steve and his good friend Mike Dickerman co-authored a guide to the White Mountain 4000-footers. A greatly expanded new edition of the 4000-footer book was published in 2008. Steve loves exploring the mountains in all seasons both on and off the trail ; many of these treks now appear on the Mountain Wandering blog and some are also featured in his Nooks & Crannies hiking column in the Conway, NH Mountain Ear. Steve always enjoys talking hiking with store customers, and can provide suggestions for trips suitable for any ambition level. Steve is in the store most days, though his wife, Carol ( who has a real job as a school librarian ) is pressed into service at the store in the summer and on occasional weekend days year round. Carol completed her New Hampshire 4000-footers in 2002. Steve has climbed New Hampshire's 4000-Footers in summer and winter and has bagged the New England Hundred Highest. He is a member of the AMC Four Thousand Footer Committee and is an active member and treasurer of Pemigewasset Valley Search & Rescue. He is currently the trail adopter for the west section of the UNH Trail on Hedgehog Mountain and, through the 4000-Footer Committee, the Passaconaway Cutoff. We look forward to sharing our enthusiasm for the White Mountains and the Northeast outdoors with you!