Page 2 of Camping in the White Mountains 2007

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Thursday morning was 45'. We decided to drive up the Mount Washington Auto Road. We listened to a informational CD on the drive up. Clouds rolled in near the top, which limited our view, but it was still an impressive site and a lovely day. A couple of pictures from the way up, and the sign indicating the hike we took last year (Tuckerman Ravine).

Man sitting on rocks beside the Mount Washington Auto Road with mountains behind him

Mount Washington Cog Railway train crossing the rocky summit area with black smoke trailing behind

Trail sign in the alpine zone pointing toward Tuckerman Ravine Trail, Hermit Lake Shelter, and Pinkham Notch

There used to be an inn at the top of the mountain! It is still there as a historic building. Great stove. Note the extremely thick walls.

Stone Tip-Top House on Mount Washington with wooden stairs leading to the entrance

Man standing in the doorway of the Tip-Top House on Mount Washington

Low stone wall of the Tip-Top House with small windows set into the thick masonry

Two people inside the historic Tip-Top House beside an old service counter

Rows of simple bunk beds inside the historic Tip-Top House

Long dining table with checkered tablecloth inside the historic Tip-Top House

Woman standing beside a large cast-iron stove inside the historic Tip-Top House

In addition to this historic building, there is the Mount Washington Observatory, that does the weather monitoring and scientific observations, plus a cafe, water, bathrooms and other amenities. (This small building, now a shop but once the weather observatory, is chained down so it wouldn't blow away.)

Mount Washington Observatory tower rising above rocks and summit buildings

Summit building on Mount Washington held by heavy chains against high winds

Sign on a summit building noting the record wind speed observed on Mount Washington

This next picture is of my favorite sign.

Trail sign pointing toward Crawford Path to Summit and Gulfside Trail, including the distance to Mount Katahdin

I can just see people who are hiking the Appalachian Trail (all 2174 miles of it) going "Yes! Only 332.4 miles left." For those who don't know, the trail ends on top of Mount Katahdin in Maine. Personally, I'd rather have it end at the bottom, preferably a nice inn with hot baths and a masseuse.

Last year, of course, we hiked Mount Washington. It certainly was faster to drive up. After our lunch on the mountain top, two young woman approached us and asked if we could give them a ride down. They had hiked up but didn't trust themselves to hike down. There are buses and the railroad, and many people do seem to hike one way and use transportation for the other way. They had obviously not intended to do this, but were smart enough to realize it would be an issue to hike back down. So Paul rearranged the stuff we had in the back of the truck, and we brought them down and dropped them off at Pinkham Lodge (the AMC lodge).

We then walked across the street and hiked a short but steep hike to Square Ledge, which provides an excellent view of Mount Washington. Here is Paul doing a little trail maintenance.

Man standing under a huge overhanging boulder along the trail in the woods

And doing a little climbing.

Man climbing a steep rock face on the Square Ledge trail

(Click here for the 'real' story on that.) And a few pictures showing the view, plus one showing the steepness of the short trail.

Mountain view from Square Ledge overlooking a broad forested valley

View down from Square Ledge to the road and buildings far below, surrounded by early fall forest

Woman standing on a rocky ledge with mountains and evergreen trees behind her

Woman on a steep rocky section of trail beneath a tall cliff face

We then walked Lost Pond Trail, which is part of the Appalachian Trail. We met Joe, from Salem Massachusetts, who was up for the weekend, and he mentioned that this trail linked to the Glenn Ellis Falls trail, and then another path back to the lodge (Direttisimio Path or some such name). So we hiked the rest of the way with Joe and are glad we tried these other trails instead of back-tracking. Glen Ellis Falls is a well-maintained walkway designed for a lot of traffic.

Small waterfall cascading through rocks in the forest

Tall waterfall pouring into a pool between steep rock walls

Woman and man standing in front of a waterfall at the base of a rocky gorge

Friday morning was the warmest: 49'. That might not sound all that warm, but we really noticed the difference between the 1st morning's temperature and the last. We packed up and left by 10 AM, going down the Kangamangus Highway again. This time the apple seller was there (although his Macouns weren't quite as good as they were last year, his cider was excellent). Then on home, where we met Dan and Kristen for the weekend. (See the "home" pages for info on that visit.)

In case you are wondering the camping meal plan: Supper the 1st night was pasta with tomato sauce and bread from the Italian market near our house, Tutto Italiano. Breakfast Tuesday was oatmeal (instant), toast, apple and banana with peanut butter. Lunch (on the mountain top) was hummus, tabouli, and lettuce in a roll-up plus snacks. Supper was fire-baked potatoes with chili, plus cornbread (which I had made at home). Wednesday breakfast was scrambled eggs with cheddar cheese, toast, and fruit w/ peanut butter. Lunch was hummus, tabouli, and lettuce in a roll-up. Supper was fire-baked potatoes, baked beans with smartdogs, and brown bread. Thursday breakfast was wild-rice pancakes, inspired by our trip to Minnesota and the restaurant at Superior Shores. Lunch was ... SURPRISE ... hummus etc. (We used to have peanut butter & jelly sandwiches on our hikes, but have switched to hummus.) Supper was parched wild rice mixed with white rice, lentils, green peas, and some cucumbers & tomatoes from the garden. Our final camping breakfast, on Friday, was the same as the 1st: oatmeal, toast, fruit with peanut butter.

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Updated April 2026