At Marcus Whitman High School in Rushville, New York, students who are enrolled in a college-level environmental science class participate in hands-on projects – from making maple syrup…
Blog and News
Conservation and Habitat Management with Jim Kennedy
When Jim Kennedy moved about five years ago to a new property in Hanover, New Hampshire, just down the road from where he’d lived for more than four decades, he set to work –…
Jessica Raspitha: Working on Restoration in Akwesasne
A member of the Saint Regis Mohawk Tribe, Jessica Raspitha started working with the tribe’s Environment Division as an intern during her college years, and has been a full-time employee…
Learning the Outdoors with Dawn Dextraze
From Massachusetts to Florida, the Olympic Peninsula to the Smoky Mountains to New Hampshire, Dawn Dextraze has lived in many places. Wherever she goes, she maintains a strong connection to…
Coast-to-Coast Forestry with Hayden Lake
Like many Vermonters, Hayden Lake spent a lot of time in the woods while he was growing up. Those experiences eventually led to a career as a consulting forester. Last year he took a break…
Milling Around with Joe and Lisa McSwain
Joe and Lisa McSwain are of an age when they might think of retiring, but a life of leisure doesn’t appeal to them. A few years ago, they sold the steeplejack company they’d run…
Setting Sail with Steve Denette
Steve Denette has rock climbed in Yosemite, sea kayaked along the coast of Maine and canoed the state’s inland lakes and rivers, and completed countless traverses in the White Mountains…
Into the Kingdom of Fungi with Deana Tempest Thomas
In the midst of the pandemic, Deana Tempest Thomas left her work in healthcare, purchased her childhood home in North Scituate, Rhode Island, and hatched a plan to create a small farm there.…
A Conversation with Wildlife Veterinarian Walter Cottrell
Walt Cottrell has worked as a wildlife biologist, a domestic animal veterinarian, and since 2005 as a wildlife veterinarian in various locations around the Northeast. Although much of his…
Colleen Goodridge: a Product of the Kingdom
Born in Newport, Vermont, raised in Irasburg, and having lived much of her adult life in Albany, Colleen Goodridge considers herself “a product of the Kingdom.” For the…
Into the Woods – by Snowshoe and Canoe – with Bill Novacek
Bill Novacek’s first job out of high school was at a sawmill in the Berkshires. In 1981, he moved north to Coos County in the White Mountains of New Hampshire, where his connection to…
Building Community Through Conservation with Jen Plowden
Jen Plowden grew up in the open spaces of western Maine, along its border with New Hampshire. She helped her father log with horses, explored the fields and forests with her siblings, and…
Michael Wojtech Studies the Trees
Michael Wojtech remembers being enthralled by the natural world from a young age. But it wasn’t until well into adulthood that he became fascinated, in particular, by trees. A decade…
Learning About Conservation Dogs with Lindsay Ware
In 2018, Lindsay Ware decided to combine two of her interests – conservation biology and dog training – to found Science Dogs of New England. What started as an interest in helping…
Walking Through Forests with Al Robertson
Al Robertson’s love of forests began in Germany, where he lived for several years after college. He purchased 60 acres of land in Vermont’s Northeast Kingdom in 1979 and has spent…
Getting Into the Outdoors with Megan Woods
Megan Woods is the coordinator for the New Hampshire Becoming an Outdoors Woman program, helping to introduce women to various outdoor pursuits – from hiking to hunting – and hone…
Learning the Woods with Lynn Levine
Lynn Levine grew up in Brooklyn, New York, where she attended Midwood High School, then Brooklyn College. At the latter, she earned a degree in childhood education, because, she said, there…
Poems by Percy
Northern Woodlands Poet-in-Residence, Percy deMutt, recently surveyed our readers for inspiration for a series of short poems. Behold, his fine works: Inspired by: Oliver, age 12 Oliver, age…
Tom Ryan Offers Insight Into Forestry
Tom Ryan has been a forester with the Massachusetts Department of Conservation and Recreation (DCR) since 2003. He recently shifted from service forestry – working with private…
Jackie Robidoux Helps the Animals
When Jackie Robidoux retired recently from a career in nursing, she turned her attention from taking care of people to taking care of animals. She’s long enjoyed photographing wildlife…



















