Meet the Team
Our guides share a joy of bringing people into their favorite destinations around New Hampshire and creating the perfect get-a-way or instructional course for you with attention to detail. They each bring their own leadership flair and enthusiasm for people and the outdoors, wearing many hats: naturalist, historian, storyteller, athlete, entertainer, event planner, author, medic, mechanic, anthropologist, botanist, photographer, wayfinder, instructor, and chef. Our guides are also professional, playful and ever mindful of your wants and needs, and their passion for the natural world is contagious. You can expect an excellent guided and/or instructional experience in wild and scenic New Hampshire in every season because we focus on your safety, fun, and learning. Please see our Booking Info page for booking information.
Lucie Villeneuve
Founder Lucie (LaPlante) Villeneuve established Outdoor ESCAPES New Hampshire, LLC in 2003. She enjoys teaching outdoor skills and nature lore while sharing her passion and respect for New Hampshire’s recreation opportunities, natural & human history, and wildlife habitats. “I started this business because my dream is to pass on the traditions of living and traveling outdoors in natural environments.”
Born and brought up near Lake Winnipesaukee in New Hampshire, Lucie is a descendant of French-Canadian woodsmen and Acadian survivors. Experiences with childhood mentors helped her feel right at home propelling herself through the wild. She hopes parents today will raise their children close to nature and find positive role models for a healthy future for all creatures.
Lucie's formal outdoor leadership training started at a liberal arts college (Plymouth State) when she added outdoor education to her child development and environmental education studies, with further training at National Outdoor Leadership School (NOLS-Canada), SOLO Wilderness Medicine School (NH), and Outward Bound (FL). She has led and participated in several multi-week canoe expeditions in Canada, and worked on an extensive moose field study for a staff member of N.H. Fish and Game. Lucie spends much of her time in the real world and is fascinated by "the way things used to be." She enjoys learning and sharing about traditional Abenaki north woods ways.
Favorite Escapes: Canoe camping trips on Native routes, canoe/kayak lessons, nature walks and talks, family backpacking trips, target archery, snowshoeing, backcountry/x-c skiing, bike tours, outdoor leadership, and scenic/wildlife/photo tours for all abilities by wheelchair-accessible van.
Born and brought up near Lake Winnipesaukee in New Hampshire, Lucie is a descendant of French-Canadian woodsmen and Acadian survivors. Experiences with childhood mentors helped her feel right at home propelling herself through the wild. She hopes parents today will raise their children close to nature and find positive role models for a healthy future for all creatures.
Lucie's formal outdoor leadership training started at a liberal arts college (Plymouth State) when she added outdoor education to her child development and environmental education studies, with further training at National Outdoor Leadership School (NOLS-Canada), SOLO Wilderness Medicine School (NH), and Outward Bound (FL). She has led and participated in several multi-week canoe expeditions in Canada, and worked on an extensive moose field study for a staff member of N.H. Fish and Game. Lucie spends much of her time in the real world and is fascinated by "the way things used to be." She enjoys learning and sharing about traditional Abenaki north woods ways.
Favorite Escapes: Canoe camping trips on Native routes, canoe/kayak lessons, nature walks and talks, family backpacking trips, target archery, snowshoeing, backcountry/x-c skiing, bike tours, outdoor leadership, and scenic/wildlife/photo tours for all abilities by wheelchair-accessible van.
Jeff Barrie
Jeff has years of experience as a nature interpreter with a focus on awareness, survival skills, wild edibles, plant and animal identification. “The two most important attributes a person needs to have in the woods is the correct attitude and awareness.” He has spent 35 years hiking and camping in the White Mountains of New Hampshire. He is experienced in wilderness survival, having attended courses at Tom Brown the Tracker School. Skills include: primitive fire making, shelter building, food gathering, primitive tool and weapons making, tracking, and awareness. He has recently completed hiking the 48 4,000-footers in New Hampshire. He also enjoys canoe camping and fly fishing.
Favorite Escapes: Primitive survival skills, day hikes, winter hikes/snowshoeing, biking, kayaking.
Favorite Escapes: Primitive survival skills, day hikes, winter hikes/snowshoeing, biking, kayaking.
Tim Golden
New to guiding but old to the woods, Tim has spent years gardening in his back yard--seed saving, composting, and gathering firewood, all without combustion engines. This means knowing many blades and keeping them sharp and in serviceable handles. These skills are transferable, and the means of practicing self-sufficiency without running to the hardware store is rather different than the ways of many handy moderners. For example, wire bindings and wooden shims are critical technology.
With a bachelor’s degree in Electrical Engineering and experience programming computers, Tim’s high-tech/low-tech lifestyle is a difficult balance. As humans are swept ahead with wave after wave of technology, to return to old and lost ways is rewarding. The cause to get back to the woods is great now, and Tim is here to help you do just that. Develop skills. Learn wild edibles including mushrooms. Learn about the materials available to you in the woods. Sapling technology can answer many problems, and even from deadwood found in the woods one can achieve quite a bit. Cordage making can take some strange experimental turns. Developing your own woodland culture is entirely possible, as humans have done for centuries. During a course with Tim, it is a fine time to share your own knowledge with fellow students as well as receive in kind.
Connecting with the land and balancing forest resources: On Tim’s guided trips in the Lakes Region and beyond, and at the Wicwas GrewV ground base, participants will not only learn about Leave No Trace principles to minimize environmental impact, but also develop an awareness in finding edibles, as well as building materials that can be of use in either an experiment or a serious application. When it is acceptable to take natural resources, we will do so as stewards of the woods and wildlife, which is what sustainable living is all about. We are creatures of the forest, and when we come to know it, we can care for it while using it.
Favorite Escapes: Woodland culture/self-sufficiency lessons such as primitive woodworking, wild edibles, hiking, biking backroads and rail trails, canoeing and kayaking, snowshoeing, and backcountry (x-c) skiing.
With a bachelor’s degree in Electrical Engineering and experience programming computers, Tim’s high-tech/low-tech lifestyle is a difficult balance. As humans are swept ahead with wave after wave of technology, to return to old and lost ways is rewarding. The cause to get back to the woods is great now, and Tim is here to help you do just that. Develop skills. Learn wild edibles including mushrooms. Learn about the materials available to you in the woods. Sapling technology can answer many problems, and even from deadwood found in the woods one can achieve quite a bit. Cordage making can take some strange experimental turns. Developing your own woodland culture is entirely possible, as humans have done for centuries. During a course with Tim, it is a fine time to share your own knowledge with fellow students as well as receive in kind.
Connecting with the land and balancing forest resources: On Tim’s guided trips in the Lakes Region and beyond, and at the Wicwas GrewV ground base, participants will not only learn about Leave No Trace principles to minimize environmental impact, but also develop an awareness in finding edibles, as well as building materials that can be of use in either an experiment or a serious application. When it is acceptable to take natural resources, we will do so as stewards of the woods and wildlife, which is what sustainable living is all about. We are creatures of the forest, and when we come to know it, we can care for it while using it.
Favorite Escapes: Woodland culture/self-sufficiency lessons such as primitive woodworking, wild edibles, hiking, biking backroads and rail trails, canoeing and kayaking, snowshoeing, and backcountry (x-c) skiing.
Adam Leiser
Adam Leiser is a former school teacher, business owner, and college basketball coach whose love for the outdoors got him to give up all of those things to live the lifestyle he has always wanted in the mountains. Adam has been to nearly all 50 states and has hiked in some amazing places including through Haleakala and Volcanoes National Parks in Hawaii, Glacier National Park in Montana, Talkeetna Alaska and the Adirondacks. Adam has resided in New Hampshire since 2017 and has hiked every 4,000-foot mountain in the state at least twice. He is a skier, kayaker, and philanthropist who has guided for Hike for Mental Health since 2015 and has led private individuals and small groups through some difficult terrain.
Favorite Escapes: Hiking and backpacking trips in the White Mountains: June 22-mid-August, and weekends the rest of the year.
Favorite Escapes: Hiking and backpacking trips in the White Mountains: June 22-mid-August, and weekends the rest of the year.
Sonya Porter
An experienced mom, teacher, and leader, Sonya has a lot to offer families, youth, and women in the great outdoors. Raising three boys in Mount Washington Valley and being an advanced Scout leader as well as a P.E. teacher has led her to want to continue leading outdoor adventures with people of all ages.
Favorite Escapes: Hiking, camping, cross-country skiing, biking, paddling, and teambuilding activities.
Favorite Escapes: Hiking, camping, cross-country skiing, biking, paddling, and teambuilding activities.
Peter Villeneuve
Peter grew up in New Hampshire’s Great North Woods (aka The Grand North, Great North Woods), and is also a French-Canadian descendant. Childhood experiences with family and neighbors included hunting, ice fishing, dirt biking, snowmobiling, and cross country skiing. After meeting Lucie, he got into mountain biking, both technical and downhill. Together, they spent a lot of time getting familiar with New Hampshire’s year-round trails, backpack trips, and week-long paddle trips. “The best thing I like about our outdoor adventures is the fresh air and seeing everything we get to see.” Peter enjoys a career being a machinist, but due to his congenial rapport and local knowledge of New Hampshire, he is in demand for weekend adventures.
Favorite Escapes: Kayaking (calm and swiftwater rivers), mountain biking, and animal spotting.
Favorite Escapes: Kayaking (calm and swiftwater rivers), mountain biking, and animal spotting.
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