Day 146, Lakes of the Clouds Hut to Mt. Washington Summit

When we left the hut, the mountain looked benign and we hoped it would stay that way. The wind was blowing hard but without extreme gusts.

When I turned to look back at the hut and Mt. Monroe, it appeared as though the sun was about to break through the clouds from behind the mountain. That made me more hopeful for better weather than what had been forecast.

The trail going up the mountain was filled with rocks and small boulders. It didn’t take long before Uncle Puck and Dancing Bear passed me.

The route to the summit wasn't just the Appalachian Trail. The section was also known as the Crawford Path, the oldest trail in the White Mountains. Some people claim it is the oldest hiking trail in the U.S.

The higher Stick, Ralph, and I went, the more magnificent the views became. No matter what direction we looked, we saw mountain peak after mountain peak. Clouds competed for attention by displaying dramatic ripples and waves.

When sunlight was able to pierce the clouds, it splashed in narrow beams on the mountainside and valley.

As we climbed higher, the wind blew harder with stronger and stronger gusts. One gust was so strong it knocked me over.

Soon, the entire Presidential Range south of Mt. Washington came into view when I turned to look back.

I could have stayed here for hours watching as the sun, clouds, and mountains changed their appearance minute by minute. But not only did I need to keep going to reach the top, I also needed to move to maintain my balance against the wind.

The morning’s temperature remained above freezing. The rime ice we saw in this direction yesterday when we approached Lakes of the Clouds Hut was now gone. Only a few small patches of ice remained trapped between rocks.

As we neared the top of Mt. Washington, the weather began to make a big change and I could see it approaching from miles away. A thick layer of clouds was pushing in from the west. It was moving at a lower elevation than where we stood.

When we reached a ledge just over a tenth of a mile from the top, we stopped to take pictures of ourselves with this dramatic backdrop of clouds, mountains, and valley.

I had to lean into the wind for my photo so I wouldn't get blown over.

Where the trail turned to cross Mt. Washington's summit, we passed the Tip Top House. It was built in 1853 and was the oldest surviving building at the top.

The building now serves as a museum but was closed when we walked by. I doubt we would have stopped there if it had been open. We were intent on getting to the visitors center where we could get warm and figure out what to do next.

A much larger building with communication towers standing on and next to it was nearby. This was the transmitter building for a couple of FM radio stations. Other types of radio transmitters were also operated here. Until a few years ago, a TV station maintained a transmitter in the building.

A weather observatory was located in that building, where meteorologists monitored conditions and issued the forecasts we’d relied on for the last few days.

By the time Ralph, Stick, and I reached the summit, the wind was blowing so hard that it was difficult to stand in place. We wanted to take photos at the summit sign, but it was a struggle just to reach the sign.

To avoid getting knocked over by wind gusts, we quickly took turns holding the sign while one of us crouched low to brace against rocks to take the picture.

A sign near the top warned of the dangers of being on the mountain in bad weather. It said “many people" have died here, but that almost seemed to underplay the risks. More than 150 people have been killed on this and the other mountains of the Presidential Range since record-keeping began in 1849.

The three of us had a couple options for getting off the mountain. One was to take the cog train down. As a railroad buff, Stick didn't make it a secret this was his preferred mode of transportation.

The train has been running tourists up and down this mountain since 1869 and lays claim to being the world's first mountain-climbing train. There’s only one other train like it, which is in Switzerland. They are able to climb a steeper grade than other trains by using a rack and pinion system in the track and locomotive.

Though it would have been fun to ride a piece of history, this would be expensive for us. We would be required to buy a roundtrip ticket for the ride down to Bretton Woods, which is where Omni Mt. Washington Resort Hotel is located. Then to return tomorrow we would have to buy another roundtrip ticket.

We elected instead to go down by way of the Mt. Washington Stage. If that sounds like riding a horse-drawn wagon down the mountain, it’s exactly what the ride was at one time. Today, 15-passenger vans are used.

The stage's ticket office was located near the visitors center in a building dating back to when horse-drawn wagons were used. The stage is now operated by the same company that owns and operates the auto road to the top.

We didn't just save money with a lower ticket price for this ride than the train. For the stage, we would be able to use the same ticket tomorrow for a ride back up the mountain. That assumed, of course, that bad weather wouldn't keep the road closed.

Our driver, Alexa, delivered us to the Appalachian Mountain Club’s Pinkham Notch Visitor Center and Joe Dodge Lodge a few minutes before noon.

To get from there to the hostel where Ralph had left his car, he called and scheduled for a local shuttle driver to pick us up. The driver couldn’t do that until 2:30, but that was fine for us. The visitors center had a lunch room. Now we had plenty of time to eat lunch.

While we were there, JP arrived after hiking down from Osgood Tentsite.

We also saw Yung Gandalf, who told us he had made the climb over Mt. Washington yesterday when the weather was so beautiful.

He said a long line of tourists waited to take photos at the summit sign. Though he hated to do it, he rudely cut in line to take a photo of himself. He knew his daylight was limited for reaching a place to stay and had no time to wait his turn in line.

Our shuttle driver arrived on time and took all three of us to The Notch Hostel. We hoped to stay there if there were any vacancies. Unfortunately, Bookie told us no bunks were available.

So after another decision-making discussion, I called around to find a room in Gorham. The first couple of motels I called were full, but a low-cost motel had a vacancy for a room with three beds. That was perfect for us.

We made the long drive to Gorham in Ralph’s car and checked into the room. After getting cleaned up, we went to dinner at a restaurant called SAaLT Pub.

The restaurant was a much nicer place than hikers would normally go to, but at least we had showered first and didn’t feel out of place. In fact, our waitress was a former hiker, whose trail name was Base Weight.