This year the Mt. Washington Auto Road, built in 1861, celebrates its 150th anniversary. Do you remember the cardboard sign “This car climbed Mt. Washington” wired on to the heavy chrome bumper of your car once you made it back to the parking lot? Driving your car up the highest peak in the Presidential Range is like earning a badge of honor. You can check the website http://mtwashingtonautoroad.com/start-your-adventure/the-bumper-sticker for global bumper sticker sightings or visit www.mtwashingtonautoroad.com for the road’s history and summer-long special events.
Eric Pinder, an observer and writer at Mt. Washington Meteorological Observatory, recalls his experiences while stationed at the observatory in his book, Tying Down the Wind: Adventures in the Worst Weather on Earth. He weaves stories of the world’s worst weather into the book, talking about lightning storms, winds and hurricanes while clarifying how weather changes.
Pinder also wrote Cat in the Clouds, the story of a stray cat befriended by Pinder and brought to the Mt. Washington Observatory. In a picture book with delightful watercolor illustrations by T.B.R. Walsh, Pinder tells the story of Nin and his life on the mountain. Nin is one of a handful of courageous cats that have lived with the meteorologists at the observatory since 1934. The appendix, “Mount Washington Mascots”, gives brief biographies and illustrations of the resident cats.
At one time, travellers sought the fresh air and scenery of the great White Hills; they rode the trails and hiked the mountains. It was a time when tourists travelled by train to hotels such as the Mount Washington in Bretton Woods. F. Allen Burt’s grandfather published the summer newspaper, “Among the Clouds” at the summit of Mount Washington. Burt wrote a history of the area, The Story of Mount Washington, prepared from materials collected by his father, Frank H. Burt. It relates the building of the first road to the top, tells the history of the first railroad to the summit and documents the U.S. military use of the mountain for experiments during WWII.
The North Country region developed from massive lumbering operations with clear cutting and sawmills needed for development into a tourist destination with elegant resort hotels designed to preserve and enjoy the wilderness. George McAvoy wrote And Then There Was One, the story of Bretton Woods, now named Carroll and the 5 great hotels of the town.
You may want to read the Concord Monitor’s recent article on the White Mountain National Forest at
http://proquest.umi.com/pqdweb?index=1&did=2384425341&SrchMode=2&sid=2&Fmt=3&VInst=PROD&VType=PQD&RQT=309&VName=PQD&TS=1309547205&clientId=79122 because this year celebrates the forest’s centennial.
And finally, if you would like your feet to say they climbed Mount Washington check the AMC Guide for the Mount Washington and the Presidential Range Trail Guide for trails.
Burt, F.A.(1960). The Story of Mount Washington. Hanover, NH: Dartmouth Press. F41.6 .W3 B88
McAvoy, G.E. (1998) And Then There Was One: a History of the Summit and the West Side of Mt. Washington. Littleton: Crawford Press TX909 .M33 1988
Mount Washington and the Presidential Range Trail Guide (2003). 7th ed. Boston, MA: Appalachian Mountain Club GV199.42 .N42 W374 2003
Pinder, Eric. (2009). Cat in the Clouds. Charleston, SC: History Press. JUV QC875 .U72 M6853 2009
Pinder, E. (2000). Tying Down the Wind: Adventures in the Worst Weather on Earth. New York: Putnam. QC861.2 .P48 2000
