These Are The Voyages...: Mount Washington, NH

On the 24th, wearing shorts and tee shirt, I left Millinocket and drove to Franconia, NH in the midst of the White Mountains. Pretty impressive, I would say. The weather was nice when I pulled in, but my campsite was very uneven. I needed blocks under all 4 hydraulic lifts to manage to get Enterprise level.

There is almost no TV reception, and I need the signal booster for internet and cell phone access.

I caught a weather forecast. Sunny skies and moderate temperatures are forecast for Friday and Saturday, then rain for 3 days. I planned to get to Mount Washington early to take advantage of the good weather. After all, Mount Washington is said to have the worst weather on earth. The fastest winds ever measured were there, 240 mph or 408 KPH. The winter temperature often drops to -40 (-40C). Three feet below the surface the ground is permanently frozen.

Friday morning, the sky was mostly overcast, with occasional patches of blue. I decided to go for it. Nearing the Mt. Washington Cog Railway, the lower part of the mountain was clear, but the upper part was shrouded in the clouds. I noticed a wisp of steam from the steam engine climbing the cog railway as I approached.

At the railway station, it was partly cloudy, a light breeze, and temperature of about 60 to 65 (18C). The weather report for the top was 20 (-7C) with a 50 mph wind (83 KPH) for a wind chill factor of -6 (-21C). Visibility was 100 feet.

The train took us up into the clouds.

Soon, we were seeing frost on the vegetation. Not long after that, there was no vegetation that we could see.

Looking carefully at the top, some lichens and mosses could be found among the rocks. Mostly, it was just broken rock coated with ice. The combination of wind and cold and damp formed streamers of rime or hoarfrost on all surfaces.

After dutifully standing at the top, the highest point in the northeastern US,

it was time to start down. It was an interesting sensation to be in the clouds one moment, then peeking below them the next.

Driving away, the day was beautiful. These shots are taken on the slopes of Mt Washington, within 1 hour of standing on the summit in the fog and ice.