Teaching bears how to get around by themselves is vital to the Clark's training program. |
If you spend any time at all in the White Mountains, you will eventually make a trip to Clark's Trading Post in Lincoln (in fact, New Hampshire State Police have been known to stop cars heading south on I-93 to ask to see Clark's receipts).
Unlike Storyland on the other side of the mountains, you don't need a kid to get inside (well, you could get into Storyland without a tot, but then you'd have to go through the Old Woman's Shoe all by yourself).
Clark's is one of those uniquely American institutions - the roadside attraction that just keeps growing and growing, all lovingly tended by descendants of the founders. Started way back in the 1920s as a huskie-dog training camp, Clark's today is best known for its trained-bear acts. But there's oh-so-much more, from the train ride through the woods to the museums of "Americana" (and New Hampshire is just chock-full of "Americana," since thrifty Yankees never throw anything away - they just give it to Clark's) to the get-yourself-soaked bumper boats (extra fun: Proudly wear your Red Sox hat, then gun for anybody wearing a Yankees cap - before they come after you).
Here are some pictures from our recent trip, showing how Clark's is ...
