You don’t have to endure an 18-mile death march and scramble up some rockstrewn trail to experience the beauty of the Adirondacks – there are plenty of opportunities to get your nature on while hardly breaking a sweat. The VIC has more than 25 miles of trails on 3,000 acres (most of which are easily walkable), where you can walk through marshes on long boardwalks, explore forests, paddle rivers and ponds, and more; take a self-guided tour or sign up for an interpretive walk. For cross-country skiers, the VIC tends to get snow early and keep it late – so when other area trails are sketchy, the VIC may be in good shape. The VIC is also a cultural destination, offering gallery exhibitions, live music, kids’ camps during school vacations and more. (Oh, about the name: VIC stood for “Visitor Interpretive Center” when the state owned it, but Paul Smith’s College just went with the abbreviation after taking over.)