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Many Ways to Conquer Mount Washington
By Tom Gibson
I
came to Mount Washington in the Presidential Range of New Hampshire's
White Mountains largely because of an irresistible urge to hike to the
summit. I had read in countless outdoor magazines about how it's the highest
mountain in the Northeast at 6288 feet and home to some of the most severe
weather on earth. Over many decades, it has gained a cult status as a
mecca for hikers, climbers, and backcountry skiers.
But there's another side to the complex mountain. Some 300,000 people venture to the top in a typical year, and they don't all go by foot. Some experience it either by taking the famed Mount Washington Cog Railway or driving up the Mount Washington Auto Road. You can get a science lesson on the peak's harsh weather and take in panoramic views that extend into surrounding states on a clear day.
Part of the aura surrounding Mount Washington stems from its storied history. The first trail to the summit was built in 1819 by local settlers, and a bridle path came later. By the mid-1800s, tourism on the mountain flourished. A hotel was built at the summit in 1852 to accommodate the tourists arriving on foot and horseback, and another one, the Tip Top House, came the following year. Building these structures proved difficult and time-consuming, as materials had to be hauled nine miles by horse over rough trails, and workers had to climb each day from a camp two miles down the mountain.
Today, tourists don't stay at the summit, but rather, they flock to the hotels, lodges, and bed and breakfasts that dot the area around Mount Washington. The stretch along Route 16 between Conway and Glen and Jackson and along Route 302 between Glen and Bartlett forms the commercial heart of this year-round resort area and a major gateway to the Presidential Range. A three-hour drive from Boston, it draws sizable crowds.
To escape the humanity, I stayed at the Joe Dodge Lodge at Pinkham Notch, part of the hut and lodge system operated by the Appalachian Mountain Club in the White Mountains. It lies at the base of Mount Washington and serves as the quintessential gateway for hiking the summit. Indeed, the trailhead lies at the back door.
After checking in at the
lodge, I ventured to the visitors center at Pinkham Notch, where a topographic
display of the area shows the extensive trails on the mountains. I chatted
with a guy at the counter who said daytime temperatures at the top of
Mount Washington had only reached into the 30s on recent days. The next
day's forecast called for a high in the 60s with clear skies and 15-mph
winds -- a balmy day for early September.
With the sun shining brightly, I started on the four-mile hike to the summit following Tuckerman Ravine Trail, which brought me to the base of the ravine, a famous bowl-shaped landmark full of sheer, ominous, rock-strewn faces. The trail made its way up the middle of the ravine with rocky steps zigzagging back and forth. Treeline came part way up, after which nothing but scrub brush grew. When I came to Tuckerman Junction at the top of the ravine, clouds started blowing in from the west over the top of the ravine, giving me a hint of what Mother Nature could do up here on a whim. Beyond the junction came a seemingly endless field of rocks, with cairns -- pyramid-shaped rock piles -- about 100 feet apart and yellow arrows painted on rocks marking the trail. The trails are well marked so you can follow them in a fog. With a heavy mist shrouding the mountain top and visibility dropping to 200 feet, I saw the value in this. Then, when it seemed I would never get there, I heard the whistle of the cog railway shrieking through the fog at the peak and steam hissing from its locomotive. The four-hour journey, complete with leg cramps, had reached its end.
At the summit, the 59-acre Mount Washington State Park bustled with activity. Tourists who had taken the road or train up mingled with hikers, and many tourists snapped photos at a sign marking the summit. A museum in the observation building has exhibits on the mountain's geology, meteorology, plant and animal life, and history, and a cafeteria and gift shop also await. Weather instruments said it was 55 degrees with winds blowing 36 mph. An expansive semi-circular observation deck covers the top of the building. Nearby, a collection communication towers, microwave dishes, kerosene tanks, and generators power the facilities.
Weather is perhaps the most alluring aspect of Mount Washington's storied history. People began occupying the summit in 1932 to gather weather data. Scientists recorded world record 231-mph winds there in 1934, and it sees snow every month of the year. Wind exceeds hurricane force (75 mph) over 100 days a year. With wind constantly blowing, fog commonly freezes in winter and coats everything with rime. Why such extremes? The peak lies in the paths of both major storm tracks and air mass routes that affect the Northeast, and its high elevation and topography create an acceleration effect on the wind.
The Mount Washington Observatory
at the summit provides atmospheric information to the national Weather
Service and records weather data. Personnel there also carry out a wide
range of research projects on wind, ice, and fog -- they're currently
researching airplane wing icing -- and offer educational programs. The
observatory also has an offsite location, the Weather Discovery Center
in nearby North Conway, which has interactive exhibits and presentations.
For those not willing to endure the hike, the Mount Washington Cog Railway offers a fun way up the mountain. Built in the late 1860s, it ranks as the world's first mountain-climbing cog railway and the only one still powered entirely by steam. The second steepest railway track in the world, it has an average grade of 24 percent over the course of its 3600-foot rise. One trestle, called Jacob's Ladder, angles at 37 percent.
To climb such grades, a cog, or gear, driven by the locomotive meshes with a gear rack installed in the center of the track. The locomotive's four-cylinder engine drives a shaft with a small gear on it that in turn powers the large cog. The locomotives have been rebuilt many times over the years, but their basic design remains unchanged. Coal has replaced wood as the fuel, and aluminum cars have replaced the wooden originals. Black smoke billows out the smokestack, along with a few coal cinders, as the train chugs slowly on the three-mile ascent, which takes an hour and 15 minutes. Before or after the ride, be sure to check out the museum at the base with its displays and presentations, along with the gift shop and restaurant.
The eight-mile-long Mount Washington Auto Road provides yet another way up the mountain. It was completed in 1861 as a carriage road to replace the hiking and horse paths that had been built. For a winter treat, visitors can take a sightseeing tour in a snowcoach, actually a van equipped with bulldozer-like treads.
So how did I rate the hike up Mountain Washington? Epic. One of the best of all time. But the engineer in me yearns to try the cog railway next time so I can experience the sounds and smells of a novel old railroad. Then again, they hold a bike race up the Auto Road every summer, and even with its tortuous grades, that might prove satisfying as well. It just shows the many facets of this one-of-a-kind mountain and the myriad ways you can explore it.
For More Information:
Mount Washington State Park: 603-466-3347
Mount Washington Cog Railway: 800-922-8825, 603-278-5404, www.thecog.com
Mount Washington Auto Road: 603-466-3988, www.mt-washington.com
Mount Washington Observatory: 603-356-8345, www.mountwashington.org
Mount Washington Observatory's Weather Discovery Center: 800-706-0432,
603-356-2137, www.mountwashington.org
White Mountains Attractions: 800-346-3687, www.VisitWhiteMountains.com
Mount Washington Valley Chamber of Commerce & Visitors Bureau: 800-367-3364,
www.mtwashingtonvalley.org
Appalachian Mountain Club: 603-466-2727, www.outdoors.org
Progressive
Engineer
Editor: Tom Gibson
2049 Crossroads Drive, Lewisburg, PA 17837
570-568-8444 * progress@jdweb.com
©2004 Progressive Engineer