Looking for a good hike this weekend? One with pleasant trails, lots o' views, an open ledge for lunch, and not too far in trail or road miles?

I've got just the thing: The Green Hills Preserve.

Huh?

Yeah, just across our western frontier in New Hampshire. And just minutes from the traffic snarls and shopping madness of North Conway.

That's right. You'd never believe that 5,000 acres of wildlands could be so close to the bustle of the infamous tourist Mecca.

But it is. And you'll love it!

You can avoid the worst of the hubbub in getting there: Take the North-South Road off Route 302 just before town. Look for Artist Falls Road and go right underneath the railroad tracks. Then right again on Thompson Road to the trailhead. Voila! You 'dere!

On with the pack and off you go, around the gate, and up the wide dirt track to the information kiosk a couple minutes up the way.

Pick up a trail map and continue on... Peaked Mountain and Middle Mountain are your goals. Do 'em clockwise for a nice 6-mile loop hike.

It's easy walking for awhile under a thick hardwood canopy. Then left uphill after a junction before slabbing across the mountainside. The last pull takes you through a semi-open forest of red and white pines across stretches of rock slabs.

It's great walking!

Top out on Peaked Mountain and settle in under the lone red pine there for lunch and a nap. And a heckuva a view of North Conway below and the shapely pyramid of Middle Mountain, your next objective.

Backtrack a bit, then turn east for Middle. Climb gradually up along the backside of the mountain before opening up on a slab, take on one final rise and call it good. Step down a few paces to a ledge and fine views of the valley and mountains beyond.

Retrace your steps to the last junction and streak downhill beside a bubbly stream, following it most of the way back.

With any luck you've wiled away a good 3-4 hours doing not much but putting one foot in front of the other, letting the mind wander freely, chowing down on a tasty lunch and enjoying a cold beverage, snoozing in the shade and maybe taking in a few pages of your latest adventure book.

All good. That's what a good day hike is all about. And Peaked and Middle are two of the best I've been up in awhile.

Try 'em. You be liking 'em, I'm sure.

For bonus time, stop at Weston's Beach at the bridge over the Saco River in Fryeburg for a swim. Can't be beat I tells ya.

Many thanks to Mainer and hiking fanatic Jeff Romano for tipping me off to this wonderful hike. You can find a description of it, and 59 other fabulous hikes, in his new book: Best Loop Hikes: New Hampshire's White Mountains to the Maine Coast.

Pick up a copy and get on out there. The best hiking of the year is on it's way!

Map of the Green Hills Preserve near North Conway NH.

Trail sign en route.

Under a thick canopy of hardwoods on the lower reaches of the trail.

Scenic window to Mount Washington from side of Peaked Mountain.

Hiking through park-like pines high on Peaked Mountain.

Middle Mountain from top of Peaked Mountain.

Enjoying my cooler lunch on the peak.

The Green Hills Preserve is managed by the Nature Conservancy.

A TNC trail marker.

Hiking the narrow path between the pines.

Busy North Conway from Middle Mountain.

There's nothing like a post-hike dip in the Saco River in Fryeburg.