Mount Washington

We left Vermont behind and made our way to the White Mountain area of New Hampshire. We checked into the Royal Inn at Gorham, NH and started to explore the area. One of the first things we discovered was what was left of the Grand Trunk Railroad. Below is a picture of one of their old steam engines with its coal car.

The picture on the opposite page was taken by a helpful stranger on the top of Mount Washington. I think my outfit makes me look like an astronaut standing on the moon. When we started planning this vacation, I put it in God's hands to make it all come together and make it affordable. He blessed us tremendously, including the

weather He gave us the day we went up to Mount Washington. It is notorious for strong winds and fog/clouds that obscure the view. The winds on this mountain have been recorded as high as 200 mph. The wind was maybe 10 mph that day and the sky was clear. We had wanted to ride the Cog Train to the top, but discovered we could drive to the top on the Auto Road. Our little Chevy Cruze made it up the steep climb and tight curves just fine. Great little car.

Top left picture: One of the Cog trains sitting at the top of the mountain waiting to load up passengers to take them back down. Top right picture: Another Cog train taking passengers down. Bottom right photo: A slice of the view from the top of the mountain. Bottom left: Lee standing in the doorway of the Tip Top House. Inside are sleeping quarters, dining room and kitchen where those climbing or ascending on horseback, before there was an Auto road or Cog Train, could spend the night before heading back down the next day.

Top left: Me looking like an astronaut again
Top right: Look close and you will see 3 of the Cog trains going down the mountain.
Bottom left: Structures they use for gathering information about weather, winds and other scientific data.
Bottom right: You can see some white buildings with red roofs. The scene is miles away from Mount Washington both down and across. The top picture on the next page is still from the top of Mt Washington using my zoom full on. Below it is a picture of the building as we stood a few yards away. It turned out what we had seen from the mountain was the Omni Mount Washington Resort which was our next stop. It is a beautiful hotel built in the early 1900's by a Railroad Baron. Lots of history in connection with this place. It is a magnificent structure inside and out. They don't make them like this anymore. Too bad. Old fashioned luxury at its best.