Tell us about yourself! Who are you and what is your mission?
The Slim Baker Foundation is a non-profit organization created to oversee the Slim Baker Area for Outdoor Living. Our mission is to provide programs of outdoor recreation, nature study and practical conservation for residents and visitors of the Newfound area.
The Slim Baker Area is a 135-acre tract of conserved land on Little Roundtop Mountain in Bristol, New Hampshire, set up in 1953 as a memorial to Everett “Slim” Baker, a dedicated and much-loved local conservation officer with the New Hampshire Fish and Game Department. Slim dreamed of setting up a “school for outdoor living” in the Newfound Lake area, and the Slim Baker Area is the fulfillment of that dream. The Slim Baker Area is maintained by the Slim Baker Foundation, and open year-round for hiking, snowshoeing, and camping.
What have you accomplished in our community?
Educational opportunities are paramount to the Slim Baker mission and include an annual StoryWalk, showcased along one of our trails. This opportunity includes the ability to immerse oneself in literature and nature at the same time. Throughout the year we offer many additional programs including the annual Hawk Watch, Winter in the Woods and a variety of guest speakers.
Over the years, Slim Baker has partnered with many organizations to run programs on the Slim Baker property. A summer day camp, under the direction of the Tapply Thompson Community Center, has used the area and lodge for many summers. Scouts from the surrounding communities have enjoyed the area for meetings, campouts, and scouting camp, school classes visit for nature walks, and the Slim Baker lodge has housed a nature-based preschool. The Slim Baker Area is open year-round to the public, with everything from family reunions and weddings to solitary hikers finding enjoyment in the trails, views, and gathering spaces on the property.
Each year the Slim Baker Foundation provides up to five scholarships for local youth to attend the Berry Conservation Camp. The camp is operated by Fish and Game in partnership with 4-H through UNH Cooperative Extension. Programs include education in the shooting sports, hunting, fishing, camping and other outdoor skills.
What do you want to accomplish next?
Encouraging the use of outdoor spaces and increasing opportunity and accessibility to nature is the inspiration for our next goal. The Slim Baker Foundation, in accordance with its current master plan, is looking to build an outdoor pavilion on the grounds of the Slim Baker Area for use by all visitors. A covered pavilion will expand outdoor learning experiences, providing a venue for outdoor programs and an ideal location for local youth involved in the TTCC summer camp, scouting and school programs. Together with the Tapply-Thompson Community Center (TTCC), we are working together to fundraise for future improvements for both organizations with direct benefits to the youth and community. The fundraiser will directly support both organizations capital funds in an effort to build upon current and future improvements.
How can people get involved?
The Slim Baker Foundation depends on volunteer efforts and donations in order to maintain the Slim Baker Area and support Slim Baker programs. Volunteer efforts include trail maintenance, support programming efforts by teaching or leading, and overall area maintenance.
The foundation has long hoped to make the property available to an even larger number of people and provide an even wider range of facilities and opportunities for outdoor recreation. To help reach these goals, the foundation graciously accepts donations. Learn more at SlimBaker.org
