Mount Washington in NH is the highest peak in the Northeast, at some 6200 feet. The mountain is known for severe and volatile weather; treacherous ravine skiing 10 out of 12 months a year; its auto road and ‘This car climbed Mount Washington’ bumper stickers; and the popular cog railroad that chugs passengers up and down the mountain. Since the summit can be reached by means other than hiking, I’ve never felt an urge to step foot on Mt. Washington… until yesterday, when we decided to check out the blooming Alpine Garden on the mountain’s eastern slope.
We did a 8.5 mile loop (vertical rise 3500 feet) that started on the little-used Old Jackson Road trail, then up, up the rocky Nelson Crag trail, then across the Alpine Garden trail, then down the Lion Head and Tuckerman Ravine trails. On our way down, we encountered many men with labored breath asking “Did you get to the top?” How annoying. I quelled the urge to snottily blurt that peak-bagging was not our objective – we wanted to enjoy Mt. Washington’s unique alpine ecology. But in fact, we would have gone the extra mile to the summit had the weather forecast not included thunderstorms, which started right after we finished our hike.
When I say “Alpine Garden,” don’t you picture lounge chairs, beer, and Italian butlers with platters of Swiss chocolate? Unfortunately, we were forced to take our Alpine Garden tour in the midst of mist, fog, and wind. Even though the dizzying views were obscured in the clouds, I dug the Middle Earth mise-en-scene.
My overall impression of Mount Washington: Raw awe. Pleasing fear of nature. Pretty flowers.
