"Thoreau Country" is a term that often refers to the region in and around Concord, Massachusetts. But during his lifetime, Henry David Thoreau traveled to other sites as well, to observe their natural habitats and meet their people.
Baxter State Park, 64 Balsam Drive, Millinocket, Maine
http://www.baxterstateparkauthority.com
Henry said of Katahdin, "It is even more grim and wild than you had anticipated, a damp and intricate wilderness, in the spring everywhere wet and miry."
Cape Cod National Seashore, 99 Marconi Site Road, Wellfleet, Massachusetts http://www.nps.gov/caco
Henry visited this part of his home state several times and said of the singular peninsula: "A man may stand there and put all America behind him."
Estabrook Woods, Concord, Massachusetts
http://www.estabrookwoods.org
A group dedicated to preserving this natural resource within the confines of the town of Concord. Henry walked there often.
Fort Ridgely State Park, 72158 County Road 30, Fairfax, Minnesota
http://www.dnr.state.mn.us/state_parks/fort_ridgely/index.html
Thoreau visited the nearby Lower Sioux Indian Reservation during his 1861 trip to Minnesota.
Franconia Notch State Park, Franconia / Lincoln, New Hampshire
http://www.franconianotchstatepark.com
Includes the site of the former Old Man of the Mountain, "The Great Stone Face."
Great Meadows National Wildlife Refuge, 73 Weir Hill Road, Sudbury, Massachusetts
http://www.fws.gov/northeast/greatmeadows
Thoreau often sauntered in this region, along or over the Sudbury and Concord Rivers.
Mackinac State Historic Parks, Mackinac Island, Michigan
http://www.mackinacparks.com/
Thoreau spent several days in this area iin 1861, on his way back to Concord after spending a month in Minnesota.
Minute Man National Historic Park, 174 Liberty Street, Concord, Massachusetts
http://www.nps.gov/mima
Though no North Bridge spanned the river during Thoreau's time, he wandered the property and even participated in the dedication of the original monument.
Monadnock State Park, Route 124, Jaffrey, New Hampshire http://www.nhstateparks.org/ParksPages/Monadnock/Monadnock.html
One of Henry's favorite mountains. He climbed it four different times and spent a total of eleven days at the summit.
Mount Greylock State Reservation, Rockwell Road, Lanesborough, Massachusetts
http://www.mass.gov/dcr/parks/western/mgry.htm
Thoreau once spent a chilly night atop Mount Greylock, with only a wooden plank to use as a blanket.
Mount Washington Observatory, North Conway, New Hampshire
http://www.mountwashington.org
Thoreau saw Mount Washington and climbed to its summit several times. In 1858, he wrote in his journal: "I got up about half an hour before my party and enjoyed a good view, though it was hazy, but by the time the rest arrived a cloud invested us all, a cool driving mist, which wet you considerably, as you squatted behind a rock."
Ney Nature Center, 28238 Nature Center Lane, Henderson, Minnesota
http://www.neycenter.org/
Located on bluffs overlooking the Minnesota River, this acreage was a farm when Thoreau passed by it in 1861. He noted that the region included the Big Woods. Remnants of that uncut resource remain here.
Niagara Falls State Park, Niagara Falls, New York
http://www.niagarafallsstatepark.com/
Thoreau and Horace Mann, Jr., spent five days in the Niagara Falls region during their 1861 trip to Minnesota. They botanized on Goat Island. You still can, too.
Quinsigamond State Park, 10 North Lake Avenue, Worcester, Massachusetts
http://www.mass.gov/dcr/parks/central/quin.htm
Nearly every time that Thoreau visited his Worcester friends, H.G.O. Blake and Theo Brown, they made their way to the Lake Quinsigamond shore.
Sudbury, Assabet and Concord Rivers, Massachusetts
http://www.nps.gov/rivers/wsr-suasco.html
Thoreau's favorite rivers are now part of the National Wild and Scenic Rivers System.
Thoreau Farm Trust, 341 Virginia Road, Concord, Massachusetts
http://www.thoreaufarm.org
An on-going effort to preserve the house that Henry was born in.
Thoreau's Path on Brister's Hill, Walden Street, Concord, Massachusetts
http://www.walden.org/Conservation/bristerhill.htm
Set in the heart of Walden Woods, this self-guided trail honors Thoreau, his words and work. Granite markers cite some of his own observations, which come to life before the visiting eye.
Thoreau-Wabanaki Trail, Maine Woods Forever, PO Box 692, Dover-Foxcroft, Maine
http://thoreauwabanakitrail.org/index.html
Honoring Thoreau and his Penobscot guides’ historic journeys and ensuring conservation of these water routes for future generations to enjoy.
Wachusett Mountain State Reservation, Mountain Road, Princeton, Massachusetts
http://www.mass.gov/dcr/parks/central/wach.htm
Another one of Henry's favorite mountains. After walking to the mountain from Concord in 1842, he penned the essay, "A Walk to Wachusett."
Walden Pond State Reservation, 915 Walden Street, Concord, Massachusetts http://www.mass.gov/dcr/parks/northeast/wldn.htm
See a replica of the house Henry built and lived in for two years, two months, and two days. Visit the actual site along the edge of one of the most beautiful bodies of water in New England.
Walden Woods Project, 44 Baker Farm, Lincoln, Massachusetts
http://www.walden.org
An organization dedicated to preserving the land, literature and legacy of Henry David Thoreau, to foster an ethic of environmental stewardship and social responsibility.
White Mountain National Forest, 719 North Main Street, Laconia, New Hampshire
http://www.fs.fed.us/r9/forests/white_mountain
Includes Mount Washington and Tuckerman Ravine. In 1858, Thoreau wrote in his journal, "It is unwise for one to ramble over these mountains at any time, unless he is prepared to move with as much certainty as if he were solving a geometrical problem."
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