Wannalancit District Boy Scout Klondike Derby

Photo by Greg Lindstrom / Monitor staff

Members of Canterbury Troop 296 navigate trails between statons. Thirty-one patrols competed in various events- such as first aid, fire building and orienteering- during the Wannalancit District Boy Scout Klondike Derby on the grounds of St. Paul's School in Concord on Saturday, February 4, 2012.Purchase photo reprints at PhotoExtra »

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Thirty-one patrols competed in the Wannalancit District Boy Scout Klondike Derby on the grounds of St. Paul's School in Concord on Saturday, February 4, 2012.  The patrols had to navigate a course with a sled, which carried all their supplies for the day.  At various stations along the course, the patrols competed in wilderness activities, such as first-aid, fire building and orienteering.

Photo by John Tully / Monitor staff

Derek Small, executive director of The W.I.L.D. Center and Zoological Park of New England non-profit, holds Chester, an Albino Burmese Python, during Wildlife Encounter: Global Safari, an educational program held at the Pleasant View Retirement community on Sunday afternoon, January 29, 2012. Based in Rochester, Small has been doing shows for about 10 years.Purchase photo reprints at PhotoExtra »

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Derek Small, executive director of The W.I.L.D. Center and Zoological Park of New England non-profit hosted a Wildlife Encounter: Global Safari educational program at the Pleasant View Retirement community on Sunday afternoon, January 29, 2012. The show hosted various animals from around the world in the community's auditorium.

Photo by Alexander Cohn / Monitor staff

Morning sun lights the northern Presidential range from the meadows of Great Glen as temperatures rise from -19 in Pinkham Notch.Purchase photo reprints at PhotoExtra »

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Photo by Alexander Cohn / Monitor staff

Tim O'Shea and Alexander Cohn on the weather tower at the Mount Washington Observatory; Monday, January 16, 2012.Purchase photo reprints at PhotoExtra »

When I was getting ready to move to New Hampshire a climbing friend asked me if I was planning a winter ascent of Mount Washington once I moved. I honestly hadn't thought about it. In the three years since then I have been to the summit three times, but I have yet to climb, ski or walk to the summit in the winter.

Columnist Tim O'Shea pitched the idea for a story on a day trip to the Mount Washington Observatory. It was an opportunity that I couldn't pass up.  My mountaineering boots had been gathering dust in the closet for almost a year. Why not? Now that I have taken a snowcat to the top I feel guilty and feel the urge to get there under my own steam.  Now I just have to wait for the right day to present itself.

Photo by Erin Stubblefield / Monitor staff

Dave Paul, who dressed as Santa, loads gifts that will be delivered to thousands of underprivileged children across the state through the Operation Santa Claus program on Tuesday, December 13, 2011. This is the 51st year for the OSC program, spearheaded by the State Employees' Association.Purchase photo reprints at PhotoExtra »

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The Operation Santa Claus program is helping nearly 2,000 underprivileged children across New Hampshire this year.

This Tuesday, I photographed volunteers loading the donated Christmas presents into the back of 25 National Guard trucks. When I first arrived, I was slightly overwhelmed with the amount of activity, so I decided to focus on Santa.

He may not be present in every picture, but the idea of gift giving as part of the holiday spirit is apparent throughout.