Quote Originally Posted by Crankin View Post
Yeah, if you don't reserve places near ski areas early, it's difficult. We are going the week before the February school vacation, though, so it's easier, as well as the fact this is very far north, near the Canadian border. We love the Northeast Kingdom of Vermont, it's the place where there will be snow, if there's any snow to be had, and there's a growing number of cool restaurants and breweries. There's only one downhill area near here, so there's none of that vibe we find in Stowe, where even the nordic centers are expensive.
I am not sure what the difference is, between a state reservation and park. It's not a wilderness area by any means, and since we were not at the main trailhead, I can't comment on the facilities. Some state parks here do not have camping (in fact, most), so in typical Massachusetts fashion, it makes no sense.
Northeast Kingdom of Vermont? Love it!

In Indiana, I think the main difference between a state wilderness area and a state park is the kind of facilities (camping, picnic spots, parking, signage, etc.) that has been invested. Some state parks have camping, some do not. Last October I and a friend took on a 10 mile hike for my 57th birthday in a state wilderness area. The main thing I remember that I considered a substantial difference (outside of the miles of gravel roads to GET there) was the lack of trail signage that played out in an unexpected way. We parked in a very small lot at the trail head of a 10 mile loop. There was a hitch a couple miles in where we wound up off the trail as we followed what we thought WAS the trail...until it disappeared in a creek and didn't pick back up the other side. That's not unusual, and we easily figured it out. That was not the problem. The problem was that the trail name ends in the word "loop". On the highly stylized trail map we found online that turned out to be basically useless, it LOOKED like a loop trail. Some hours later we reached the other end of the trail...but it did not end at the parking lot where we started. There were no signs directing us to the parking lot. There were no signs at all and it was quickly approaching dark.

Thankfully I did have a memory of driving past a feature we were looking at on the way to the parking lot, and I looked down a large field to see some people coming out of the woods - about a quarter mile away. They were headed our way so I caught up with them as quickly as I could and found out that the parking lot where we had started was across two fields and through the woods, about a half mile away. They laughed and shook their heads about the number of first timers who got lost for the same reason. Considering how few people we had seen that day, I could see how there could be a problem the wrong time of the year. The lesson, of course, was to not trust that a loop trail really IS a loop. There was no cell signal there, no way finding markers outside of a couple of tree markings, and the lesson was a good reminder. It was a great day however, and there was no harm from the little adventure at the end. I DID make a map by exporting the GPS points in my phone and posted it online for others. I had hoped to repeat the hike this year, well that can't happen with the 2 surgeries, but hopefully I can do it next year, and without the shin splints this time!