New Hampshire Rail Trails (New England Rail Heritage) [Perfect Paperback]

Charles F. Martin (Author)

Book Description

Series: New England Rail Heritage | Publication Date: April 10, 2008

New Hampshire Rail Trails is the most comprehensive guide yet written on multi-use rail trails in New Hampshire. Charles F. Martin has logged hundreds of hours and even more bicycle miles exploring every available trail on the rights of way of this state's former railroads. With inviting prose, 95 meticulous maps, and 180 photographs of railroad artifacts, scenery, and trail conditions, he shares his experience and expertise in this well-researched guide, which includes capsule histories of the railroads that operated here followed by detailed descriptions of the trails that have taken their place. Each trail description includes ratings of the trail surface condition and the scenery that can be seen from the trail; a list of permitted uses (from walking and biking to horseback riding and snowmobiling); clear instructions for parking and for accessing the trail; and comprehensive notes on natural and historical sights, as well as railroad artifacts, that trail users will see along the way.

Editorial Reviews

Review

This is the way a rail trail guide should be written, melding railroad history and description with trail descriptions. Along with first-class maps, this is certainly the best overall book ever done on rail trails in the United States. --Craig Della Penna, Executive Director of Northeast Greenways Solutions and former New England Field Representative for the Rails-to-Trails Conservancy

A must for every trail aficionado's bookshelf! This book has the added pleasure of being two books in one: a quick history of the rail lines that covered New Hampshire and a thorough guide to those rail lines which are now enjoyable trails. --Lelia Mellen, New Hampshire Projects Manager, National Park Service

Martin weaves in what local rail groups have done recently [and] photos of what you might see along the way as well as history facts of the trail area.... Martin's researching and biking skills (he has logged hundreds of miles on the trails) have paid off; this book is sure to be a hit with local residents, tourists, and railroad fans. --Kearsarge Magazine, February 2008

About the Author

In his professional life, Charles Martin is an operations research analyst whose career has focused on decision support software. With a bachelor's degree in mathematics from Harvard and a Ph.D. from the University of California, Berkeley, he is currently Director of Product Management for Valogix LLC, an inventory optimization software firm. In his personal life, Charles has always enjoyed an active life in the great outdoors and exploring beautiful new places. An expert whitewater paddler, his first book was Sierra Whitewater: A Paddler s Guide to Rivers in California s Sierra Nevada (now out of print). Charles has been active in the rails-to-trails movement since 2002, when he started working with the Friends of the Bruce Freeman Rail Trail in Concord, MA. Since moving to New Hampshire in 2005, he has been an active member of the Friends of the Northern Rail Trail in Merrimack County, as well as a board member and current treasurer of that group. New Hampshire Rail Trails is part of his effort to encourage improvement of rail trails across the state, to expand their use, and to spread appreciation for them and the New Hampshire scenery and history along them.

Product Details

• Perfect Paperback: 304 pages
• Publisher: Branch Line Press (April 10, 2008)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0942147103
• ISBN-13: 978-0942147100
• Product Dimensions: 8.9 x 5.9 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,050,241 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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