The Granite Freedom Trek on Saturday, October 17, 2026, will now hike Mount Willard in Crawford Notch, with a 10:00 a.m. meeting time at the AMC Highland Center.

Based on the forecast reviewed by our guide, the originally planned Mount Pierce route could experience summit wind chills near 1°F. On the guide’s recommendation, we’re switching to Mount Willard.

Mount Willard offers sweeping views of Crawford Notch on a roughly 3.2-mile round-trip hike with about 900 feet of elevation gain. We’ll enjoy the mountain scenery and a chance to catch the remaining fall color, gather for photos at Saco Lake, and head to Basecamp Brewing in Lincoln for a meal together.

Updated schedule: Saturday, October 17

• 10:00 a.m.: Meet at the AMC Highland Center, 2779 Route 302, Bretton Woods, NH.
• 10:15 a.m.: Walk to the Mount Willard trailhead and begin the hike.
• Around 1:00 p.m.: Group photos at Saco Lake, near the Highland Center.
• Around 1:45 p.m.: Depart for Lincoln. Allow approximately 50 minutes for the drive, plus traffic.
• 3:00 p.m.: Lunch at Basecamp Brewing, 25 S Mountain Dr, Lincoln, NH.

Post-hike times are approximate and may change with trail conditions and the group’s pace.

Parking

Please use the designated day-use area of the Highland Center lot. AMC currently charges $10 per vehicle, payable at the lodge front desk. Arrive early enough to park, pay, and meet by 10:00 a.m. Carpooling is encouraged.

Dress for cold weather

Even on this lower route, temperatures may be near freezing, with wind at the exposed overlook. Bring layers you can adjust during the climb and while we stop:

• A moisture-wicking wool or synthetic base layer. Please avoid cotton.
• An insulating fleece or puffy jacket.
• A windproof, waterproof outer shell.
• A warm hat, gloves or mittens, and a neck gaiter.
• Waterproof hiking boots with wool socks, plus spare socks.

What to bring

• Microspikes for potentially icy sections. Trekking poles are also recommended. Contact the organizers beforehand if you need help obtaining traction gear.
• Water and a packed lunch or substantial snacks—we won’t eat at Basecamp until 3:00 p.m.
• Hand and toe warmers.
• A headlamp, small first-aid kit, and personal medications.
• A fully charged phone.
• Bright clothing for visibility during fall hunting season.

Save the trail map before you leave

Cell service in Crawford Notch is limited. Review the Mount Willard Trail map on AllTrails beforehand. AllTrails Plus or Peak subscribers can download the map for offline use. Otherwise, save a screenshot or bring a printed map as a reference.

On the trail

Please stay with the group and follow our guide’s directions. The guide may adjust the pace or turn us around if conditions warrant. Stay well back from the edges of the exposed ledges, particularly if surfaces are wet or icy.

If you have concerns about the hike or medical information relevant to your participation, contact the organizers privately before Saturday. We also recommend leaving a dry change of clothes in your car for afterward.

Already registered?

Please reply to the participant update email to confirm you’ve seen the new route and 10:00 a.m. meeting time. If you purchased tickets for others, forward the update to everyone in your party. If you have questions or can no longer attend, reply to that email or contact brakey@fsp.org. Day-of phone contacts are included in the participant email.

Big views, great company, and a meal together afterward. We can’t wait to see you Saturday!

Across five years of New Hampshire Fish and Game records and 222 towns, higher legislative liberty scores from the New Hampshire Liberty Alliance (NHLA) showed no strong association with more bear reports. Apparently, the bears haven’t been reading the NHLA scorecards.

The scores measure representatives’ legislative votes, not residents’ beliefs. The 2021–2025 records test a statewide association, not the book’s account of earlier events in Grafton.

What the statewide records show

Fish and Game supplied five years of records containing 2,496 statewide reports from 2021 through 2025. They include sightings, agricultural and general conflicts, public-safety concerns, feeding reports, and reports involving sick or injured bears. The 2,496 entries are not a count of bear attacks.

The largest five-year totals were Berlin with 114, Moultonborough with 91, Littleton with 88, Lancaster with 78, and Conway with 75.

Do towns with higher liberty scores report more bear conflicts?

We matched bear reports to town averages derived from the NHLA’s 2026 House Liberty Ratings. The comparison included 222 municipalities, of which 205 had complete ratings coverage and 17 had partial coverage.

The finding held whether we compared total reports or reports per 1,000 residents. This is a comparison of legislative voting records and reported wildlife encounters; it does not establish that liberty causes or prevents bear conflicts.

About that book…

Matthew Hongoltz-Hetling made Grafton’s libertarian experiment into a cautionary tale about small government and large wildlife. In NBC10 Boston’s The Free Town, Fish and Game bear biologist Andrew Timmins says Grafton did not have a high level of complaints (7:06–7:13), and that there is no evidence of a bear-population spike or sudden increase in conflicts during the period discussed (8:31–8:43).

The book’s own chronology complicates its political framing: in chapter 1, “A Feline Feeding,” Jessica Soule dates her concerns about Grafton’s unusual bear behavior to summer 1999, before the Free State Project began in 2001. Apparently, the bears got an advance copy of the libertarian agenda. Her account places concerns about unusual bear behavior before the movement’s arrival. That does not rule out later changes in conflicts.

After a woman was injured in Grafton on June 16, 2012, Fish and Game described unusually high bear activity statewide, an early spring, and a seasonal shortage of natural food. Associated Press reporting documented increased complaints elsewhere in New England that summer.

The local Free Town Project and the statewide Free State Project were distinct, despite overlap among participants; contemporary reporting documented the distinction in 2004. The author argues some encounters went unreported, and complaint records cannot capture every encounter. That limits what the logs can tell us. One town’s experiment is not the whole movement.

Your bird feeder has entered the chat

Whatever their views on taxation, bears appear interested in a free lunch. Chickens appear in another attractant category, listed in 616 entries. These categories can overlap.

For anyone choosing a New Hampshire community, bear reports offer useful local context. Read them alongside population, surroundings, and the kinds of incidents being reported. A town’s legislative score describes its representatives’ voting records; its bear logs describe reported wildlife encounters.

Choose your town thoughtfully. Secure your garbage.

Explore towns with Find Your Place →
Compare bear reports alongside other community information in our moving tool.

Sources and methods

Fish and Game explained that a missing town-year means zero reported conflicts. Separate incidents at the same property are counted separately, while duplicate staff calls about the same incident are counted once. The department said its methods and coverage were consistent across the years supplied.

Two statewide entries were in Wentworth’s Location, an unincorporated place; the remaining 2,494 were in incorporated municipalities.

The analysis uses Fish and Game’s town-level bear–human conflict logs for 2021–2025 and accompanying response letter received October 13, 2026; the NHLA 2026 House ratings snapshot checked October 6; and town population estimates from the 2020–2024 American Community Survey.

NHLA scores describe legislators’ voting records, not residents’ beliefs, the number of Free Staters, or local wildlife policies. Town averages exclude unrated representatives and the Speaker. Ward-dependent municipalities and places without a usable town average were excluded. Some towns share representatives, so towns are not independent political observations.

The correlation between a town’s score and its five-year incident total was approximately −0.10. For incidents per 1,000 residents, it was approximately −0.13. Using only the 205 towns with complete ratings coverage gave a raw-count correlation of approximately −0.08.

Correlation ranges from −1 to +1; values near zero indicate little linear relationship.

The comparisons use Pearson correlations. The 2026 ratings and 2021–2025 incidents cover different periods. The population calculation uses a fixed estimate across all five years and does not account for visitors. Report counts do not capture every encounter or measure injury risk. Habitat, food availability, development, and reporting behavior may also affect the totals. This comparison cannot establish causation.

Download the sources:

Fish and Game bear–human conflict records, 2021–2025 (PDF)

Fish and Game response letter, October 13, 2026 (PDF)

Full NHLA and bear-report comparison workbook (Excel)

Featured photo: U.S. Forest Service, public domain. Photos illustrate the species and do not depict incidents in the supplied New Hampshire records.

Liberty in Our Lifetime: New Hampshire’s Wins Since 2009

Free State Project releases searchable database of 235 liberty wins, dating back to 2009.

By Hon. Eric Brakey, Executive Director, Free State Project

The Free State Project has released an expanded, searchable collection of 235 liberty wins in New Hampshire, from 2009 through 2026. From constitutional carry and school choice to tax relief and limits on government power, the database documents a growing record of freedom that Free Staters have contributed to.

Browse by year, search by keyword or bill number, or explore topics such as education, taxes, privacy, self-defense, housing, and business. Source links let you examine the laws and records behind the milestones.

What would change in your life if you moved somewhere liberty was gaining ground?

You could carry a firearm for self-defense without applying for a state license. Your family could find more ways to educate your children based on their own needs and your own values. You could keep more of the income you earn. And if you brought a professional license with you, there could be a clearer path to continuing your career.

These are some of the practical freedoms behind “Liberty in Our Lifetime.” Here are five milestones worth exploring.

2017: Constitutional Carry

In 2017, New Hampshire removed the license requirement for carrying a concealed pistol or revolver for people otherwise legally permitted to possess firearms.

For a liberty-minded person weighing a move, that is a substantial difference: exercising the right to carry for self-defense without first asking the state for a license.

It is also a reminder that freedoms can expand when people organize, persuade their neighbors, and persist.

2025–2026: Education Choice Expands

Education can be one of the most important considerations for a family choosing where to live.

In 2025, New Hampshire removed the household-income threshold for Education Freedom Accounts, opening eligibility across income levels. These accounts let participating families direct education funding toward approved schools, programs, and services that fit their children’s needs. Enrollment caps, priority rules, and other eligibility requirements still apply.

Homeschool freedom has advanced, too. A 2022 law affirmed that homeschool portfolios remain parents’ property and removed a fixed test-score benchmark. In 2026, the Home Education Freedom Act went further, repealing mandatory recordkeeping and evaluation requirements, limiting government regulation of home education, and strengthening families’ privacy protections. A declaration is required only when withdrawing from public school or accessing public school programs.

Together, these changes give families more room to shape an education around their children.

2025: The Interest and Dividends Tax Ends

New Hampshire repealed its Interest and Dividends Tax for tax periods beginning January 1, 2025.

For residents who previously owed the tax, that means keeping more of the income generated by savings and investments. It is a concrete victory for people building financial independence, saving for their families, or planning retirement.

A freer life includes more control over the resources you have worked to earn.

2023: Bring Your Professional Skills to New Hampshire

Moving should not mean leaving your career behind.

A 2023 law created a licensing pathway through New Hampshire’s Office of Professional Licensure and Certification for professionals with active licenses in good standing from other jurisdictions, when their licensing requirements are substantially similar to New Hampshire’s. Applicable background checks and professional rules remain.

For prospective movers in licensed professions, that reform addresses a practical question: can I bring my skills here and get back to work?

Reducing those barriers makes it easier for people to put down roots, serve customers, and build a life in the Free State.

2012: Jury Rights Affirmed—and the Fight for Nullification

Liberty also depends on limits to what government can do.

Jury nullification—the jury’s power to acquit despite the law and evidence—is one such check. In 2012, New Hampshire enacted a law requiring courts to let criminal defendants inform jurors of their right to judge the facts and the application of the law to those facts. The state Supreme Court later interpreted the law narrowly: it did not establish a right to argue nullification or require a specific nullification instruction. That history records a legislative milestone and unfinished work.

Help write the next chapter

These accomplishments belong to the Granite Staters, Free Staters, legislators, advocates, organizations, and allies who helped achieve them.

The Free State Project brings liberty-minded people to New Hampshire, where they can join that work. Participants choose their own ways to contribute, from civic involvement and advocacy to businesses and community institutions.

For prospective movers, the collection offers two questions worth exploring: which of these freedoms would improve your life—and which future victories would you like to help achieve?

Browse by year or topic, follow the source links, and discover the growing record behind “Liberty in Our Lifetime.”

The Free State Project has not endorsed any candidate in the 2026 election. Circulating graphics claiming FSP candidate endorsements are false and unauthorized.

Graphics circulating on Facebook through New Hampshire Democratic Party affiliated pages use the Free State Project’s name and logo to falsely claim that we have endorsed candidates for the New Hampshire House.

FSP asks everyone responsible for publishing or sharing these graphics to remove them and post corrections wherever they shared them.

FSP is a nonpartisan 501(c)(3) nonprofit and does not endorse candidates. Participation in the Free State Project, or agreement with its mission, does not constitute an organizational endorsement.

“People are free to debate our ideas and criticize our organization. They should not fabricate endorsements or use our logo to mislead voters,” said Eric Brakey, Executive Director of the Free State Project. “We ask everyone responsible for publishing or sharing these graphics to remove them and publicly correct the false claims.”

FSP has submitted an election-law complaint to the New Hampshire Department of Justice concerning a post published by the “Salem, NH Democrats” Facebook page. We are documenting additional examples and reviewing further options with our board.

Media contact:
Eric Brakey, Executive Director
Free State Project, Inc.
brakey@fsp.org