As a culminating activity for this unit students will take a field trip where they will hike a relatively easy trail in the White Mountains. With the assistance of a trail guide, students will hike a trail, clean the trail, clear the trail, and learn about any special aspects that the trail they are on has to offer. For instance, students might learn that some folks think the trail crews build all those stone steps and bog bridges to keep your feet dry and to make it easier for hikers. Not so. These features are built to stabilize soils and prevent erosion. Sometimes those efforts have a secondary effect of making things easier or more comfortable for the hiker.

Students will also become familiar with the following terms prior to hiking their trail:

Water Bar — a log or rock that diverts water, preventing it from running down the trail and creating an unsightly trench.

Step Stones — laid along a trail so that hikers' boots don't accelerate erosion. In low, wet ground, stone isn't always readily available, so bog bridges made of logs are built instead. While logs will eventually rot and need replacing, they also "float" better on wet ground than rocks.

Stone Staircases — used in steep sections of trail to prevent erosion from foot traffic. Without one, hikers may pioneer a route around an obstacle. Make sure those stones aren't too big: Hikers tend to walk around steps much higher than eight inches.

Switchbacks — make a trail easier on hikers' legs, but to some hikers they can seem to make a trail too long, and seeing the trail above tends to encourage people to cut off a switchback.