August 18 – 25, 2018
This week we were in the Granite State – New Hampshire – home of White Mountain National Forest and the Presidential Mountain Range. One of the most well-known and beloved sites in New Hampshire was the Old Man of the Mountain (Great Stone Face or the Profile). This profile was formed by a series of five granite cliff ledges on Cannon Mountain in the town of Franconia. The formation was 1200 feet above Profile Lake and measured 40 feet tall and 25 feet wide. It was first noted in the records of a Franconia surveying team around 1805 and first made famous by Daniel Webster when he wrote:
Nathaniel Hawthorne used the Old Man as inspiration for his short story The Great Stone Face published in 1850.
The Great Stone Face, then, was a work of Nature in her mood of majestic playfulness, formed on the perpendicular side of a mountain by some immense rocks, which had been thrown together in such a position as, when viewed at a proper distance, precisely to resemble the features of the human countenance. It seemed as if an enormous giant, or a Titan, had sculptured his own likeness on the precipice. — The Great Stone Face, Nathaniel Hawthorne
Although every effort was made to preserve and maintain the profile, it collapsed to the ground between midnight and 2 a.m. May 3, 2003.
Danforth Bay RV Resort
Our home for the week was Danforth Bay RV Resort. We had hoped that this (or The Bluffs, the adjacent 50+ RV resort) would be potential summer seasonal destinations for us. Both parks had gravel sites with some grass for living areas and some paved roads. Our pull-through site was in the middle of an oval area with seasonal sites situated under the trees on the perimeter of the oval. It was a popular race track for bikes, scooters, and skateboards during the day. Both parks had great amenities and although there were some nice sites in The Bluffs, they already had a long waiting list for seasonal sites.
Kancamagus Highway
For our first exploration of this scenic area of New Hampshire we drove the “Kanc” . The Kancamagus Scenic Byway is a 34.5 mile drive that takes you through a path cut through the White Mountain National Forest with beautiful views of the White Mountains, the Swift River, Sabbaday Falls, Lower Falls and Rocky Gorge. The Kanc takes you to an elevation of just under 3,000 feet at its highest point at Kancamagus Pass on the flank of Mt. Kancamagus near Lincoln, NH.
Cannon Mountain Aerial Tramway
When we reached the end of the Kanc in Lincoln, we took I-93 north to the Cannon Mountain Aerial Tramway in Franconia. There an 80 passenger cable car took us to the 4080 foot summit of Cannon Mountain where, on a clear day, you can see the mountains of four states and Canada. At the summit is an observation deck, walking paths, and a cafe.
Old Man of the Mountain Memorial
Earlier in this post I mentioned that the Old Man of the Mountain collapsed in 2003 so you might wonder how Bill took the photo at the start of this post.
With the collapse of the Old Man of the Mountain on May 3, 2003, New Hampshire lost a beloved icon. Since that day, friends of the Old Man from throughout the Granite State and beyond have continued to celebrate the strength and spirit of the Profile. The Old Man of the Mountain Legacy Fund, with the support of hundreds of people, has created the Profiler Plaza in Franconia Notch as a lasting monument to honor the Old Man.
The Profiler Plaza was dedicated in June 2011 and includes seven steel “profilers” that recreate the visage of the Old Man looking over Franconia Notch as well as 1,000 paver stones whose engravings impart memories of many people who love the Old Man. — Old Man of the Mountain Legacy Fund
Mount Washington Cog Railway
Later in the week we had reservations for the Mount Washington Cog Railway. We left the camper around 8:15 a.m. for the drive to the Base Station at Bretton Woods. There we boarded the 10:00 a.m. biodiesel train for the one hour trip to the summit. The weather at the Base Station was sunny and warm – a perfect day. The train consisted of a single car with an engine attached to the rear of the car. The engine pushes the car to the summit. The journey took us through four microclimates and the air temperature dropped dramatically. The 6,289 foot summit has an alpine climate and is shrouded in clouds most of the time.
The weather of Mount Washington is notoriously erratic. This is partly due to the convergence of several storm tracks, mainly from the Atlantic to the south, the Gulf region and the Pacific Northwest. The vertical rise of the Presidential Range, combined with its north-south orientation, makes it a significant barrier to westerly winds. Low-pressure areas are more favorable to develop along the coastline in the winter due to the relative temperature differences between the Northeastern United States and the Atlantic Ocean. With these factors combined, hurricane-force wind gusts are observed from the summit of the mountain on average of 110 days per year. — Wikipedia
Although we didn’t experience winds approaching hurricane-force, the wind was whipping and the wind chill was 26 degrees. Our jackets and jeans were no match for the chill. The visitor center became an welcome refuge especially since visibility was poor.
Time to move on
We enjoyed our adventures in New Hampshire but it was time to move on to Massachusetts and the home of Bill’s least favorite NFL team. Remember, he’s a Broncos fan. Tune into the next post to see how that worked out.
