Josie’s Cabin at Mount Van Hoevenberg’s Cross-Country Ski Center hosts an interactive natural history series on select Saturdays. (Photo provided — Diane Chase)

Being active and outside in winter is just one opportunity to get the full Adirondack encounter. With visiting family and friends, we like to have options that can please a wide range of abilities while still being able to be tourists in our own town.

Learning about local history doesn’t have to be boring or create an eye-rolling extravaganza. Some venues are conducted at local restaurants for a dinner experience while others connect film, music, or workshops to highlight the information in fun and interesting ways.

The Lake Placid-North Elba Historical Society Winter Lectures kicks off on Jan. 17 with a range of monthly topics at various restaurants around the area. Each lecture starts at 7 pm. For more information go to lakeplacidhistory.com or call 518-523-3830.

On select Saturdays throughout the winter, day-pass guests or holders of a Mt. Van Hoevenberg ski pass can warm up at Josie’s Cabin while listening to an Adirondack naturalist, historian, or entertainer. For more information call 518-523-2811.

The Adirondack Mountain Club offers free monthly lectures from January to March on a variety of topics including “Moose, Winter Ticks, and Climate Change.” Each one hour lecture starts at 8 p.m. and is held at the High Peaks Information Center at Heart Lake. Call 518-523-3480 or go to adk.org.

The Saranac Laboratory Museum, 89 Church St., is open year-round. In addition to their regular museum hours, enjoy historic walking tours and Movie Mondays as part of the museum’s year-round winter programing. Call 518-891-4606 or go to historicsaranaclake.org.

On Jan. 13, the Peace with Justice Group is conducting its annual Martin Luther King, Jr. coffeehouse at the First Presbyterian Church in Saranac Lake. The free event, 7 to 8:30 p.m., will have historic readings, music, and stories as well as activity stations for all ages.

Tupper Lake’s Wild Center has an ongoing Feature Farmer series focusing on local food. Meet the people that are growing our food, taste some samples, and buy directly from the farmer. Later in the season there are photography workshops, Wine and Twine art classes as well as Winter Family Weekends. Some lectures are included with admission while other activities cost an additional fee. Call or go to www.wildcenter.org for the complete schedule and winter hours of operation.

A bit farther afield is the Fort Ticonderoga Fort Fever Series and the ADKX (formerly named Adirondack Museum) Cabin Fever lecture series. Both museums host monthly/bi-monthly lectures on a range of topics highlighting life in the Adirondacks. These are just a few options to learn more about the vast history of the Adirondack Park. I hope you find the perfect way to spend your time.

Diane Chase is the author of the Adirondack Family Activities guidebook series, Adirondack Family Time: Your Four-Season Guide to Over 300 Activities.” For more family-friendly

activities go to www.AdirondackFamilyTime.com.