Portsmouth, NH Outdoor Activities

Adventurers glide past pine and deciduous trees, navigating branches at 200 feet above the ground. As they reach a treetop platform, guides wave them along onto a bridge that swings high above the forest floor. This nerve-racking scene is the norm at Alpine Adventures, where professionals have led guests soaring through the woodlands of New Hampshire's White Mountains since 2006. Today, in addition to leading guests on three distinct canopy tours, each testing adventurers' courage with swinging bridges and fast speeds, they captain off-road adventures in six-wheeled Swiss Pinzgauers. Up to 11 passengers sit protected by seat harnesses and an overhead roll cage as guides narrate and charge through fall foliage, winter flurries, or summer volleyball games. An aerial park invites thrill seekers to explore cargo nets, rope ladders, ziplines, a treehouse, a climbing tower, and many other elevated obstacles.

With access to thousands of acres of forests and fields, Carousel Horse Farm's expert equestrians take riders of all skill levels on scenic jaunts through the Maine countryside. Private or group trail rides in Casco explore the local woods, hills, and fields, sometimes including stops to fetch ice cream or to wipe down horses' windshields. Horse-drawn carriage rides, offered from Memorial Day through Labor Day, provide an opportunity to admire Old Orchard Beach in the summer. Guided beach horseback rides are also available from October 15 through April 30.