The Notch Hostel, North Woodstock, New Hampshire

This quaint hostel in the White Mountains of New Hampshire is doing more than house hungry hikers. It is helping fight for social injustice. 

The Notch Hostel is an 1890 farmhouse in North Woodstock, NH, that two young hikers from Massachusetts purchased and converted into a 30-guest hostel in 2015. Located one mile from downtown Lincoln/N. Woodstock and just minutes from Franconia Notch, Loon Mountain, and the Kancamagus Highway, this hostel is perfectly situated for any White Mountain adventure.

According to their website -

The Notch Hostel prioritizes social justice work, both in terms of making our hostel a safe space for guests from marginalized groups, and more broadly in terms of reshaping hiking culture, the outdoors industry, as well as collaboration with other social justice organizations working directly with and in support of marginalized residents of Northern New Hampshire. People from all backgrounds, regardless of race, gender, sexual orientation, ability, or background are welcome to reach out to us for lodging, and we will make every effort to ensure your stay is safe, comfortable, and extraordinary.

We are engaged in creating an anti-racist hiking culture. In 2021 we released an article calling for renaming “redlining”, a niche hiking term that is more broadly known as a devastating discrimination practices. Our efforts bore fruit—the hiking term has already been renamed “tracing” the trails. We have teamed up with Outdoor Afro Boston to provide lodging for its members. We meet monthly with local reps from Indigenous, Asian, Latinx, and other racial groups and are learning more about how to support their work. We are also the exclusive retailer for QueerBeans hats, made by a local queer/trans artist. Try one on next time you’re at the Notch or shop hats in our online store!

The hostel has been experiencing difficulties due to COVID-19 and we couldn't think of a better little place that could use our help right about now. 

From January 2022 through March 2022, a portion of all of our profits will go to keeping The Notch Hostel in business!