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New Hampshire is the second most forested state in the nation with 4.8 million acres of forestland. (It’s next door neighbor, Maine, tops that list.) To maintain all those handsome trees, the NH Division of Forests and Lands operates 15 fire lookout towers from early spring to late fall. They also have something called the Fire Lookout Tower Quest, which, as you may have guessed, is a challenge to visit all of the towers in the state. What happens when you? Well, you get the pretty little patch pictured above.

Download both parts of the Fire Lookout Tower Quest brochure here and here.

Sure, they might not be in line with your “values” (The headline on the Mesa Verde National Park advertisement reads: “America’s first apartment houses – today they belong to you!”), but these old Sinclair/National Park ads sure are good looking. And while searching for more on eBay, it’s impossible not to think of the last passage in the intro to Desert Solitaire.

Do not jump in your automobile next June and rush out to the Canyon country hoping to see some of that which I have attempted to evoke in these pages. In the first place you can’t see anything from a car; you’ve got to get out of the goddamned contraption and walk, better yet crawl, on hands and knees, over the sandstone and through the thornbush and cactus. When traces of blood begin to mark your trail you’ll see something, maybe. Probably not.

A bunch more after the jump. Click ‘em to read ‘em.

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Kelso Dunes is the largest field of eolian sand deposits in the Mojave Desert, covering 45 square miles. The tallest dunes rise up to 650 feet above the surround terrain. The region is protected by the Mojave National Preserve and is located near the town of Baker, California.

The Kelso Dunes are also notable for the phenomenon known as singing sand, or “booming dunes.” Enthusiasts typically climb to the top of the dunes and slide down slowly, generating a low-frequency rumble that can be both felt and heard. This effect has also been noted at the Eureka Dunes in California, Sand Mountain in Nevada, and the Booming Dunes in the Namib Desert, Africa.

See you soon, sand.

MP3: Linda Perhacs – Sandy Toes

The Matt Davis Trail starts (or ends) right before the fire station in Stinson Beach, CA and cuts through open fields of chaparral with views of Stinson Beach, San Francisco and Bolinas. It’s short, but that is one hell of a section of trail. Just about an hour from the city. Not bad, SF.

**Follow CS on Instagram: cold_splinters

MP3: The Strokes – Soma

Not sure if I’m majorly late on seeing this, but hell’s bells, I like it.

Mikael Kennedy and I spent some time down in southwest Texas this last winter, writing and shooting a story about Big Bend National Park for Garden and Gun. The article is featured in the August/September issue of the magazine, so make sure to get your hands on one. (And yes, that’s me in the photo above.)

Check back next week for a bunch of Mikael’s photos that didn’t make it into the story. They’re handsome as can be.

Cold Splinters is in Oregon this week doing some work. If you’re around, you know what to do. See you soon.

If you’re a map person, which I’m assuming you are if you’re reading this, let it be known that the U.S. Geologic Survey is having a major sale right now. Over 60K maps are only $1, like the Crater Lake beauty pictured above. Have at it here.

 MP3: Randy Newman – I Think It’s Going To Rain Today (Live)