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| On Saturday, July 21, we set out
to find Dixville Notch ("notch" is a New Hampshire term meaning
mountain pass). Dixville Notch is where the first precinct votes are
cast on Presidential election days. Early in the trip, we spotted a
black bear feeding on blueberries along the highway. |
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| We passed Mount Washington
Hotel, located at the foot of Mount Washington, but didn't stop in.
We have traveled up the mountain on a couple of other occasions and chose
not to do that on this trip. Mount Washington is the highest peak in
the Northeastern United States at 6,288 ft and the most prominent
mountain east of the Mississippi River. It is famous for dangerously
erratic weather. In April of 1934, observers measured a wind gust of
231 mph, which remains the highest wind speed ever observed by man in the
western and northern hemispheres. At the top of the mountain
is a weather observatory and research center. Mount Washington's official
record low of −50 °F was recorded on January 22, 1885;
however, there is also hand-written evidence to suggest that an unofficial
low of −59 °F occurred on January 5, 1871. Snow has
been recorded at the summit in every month of the year, with snowfall
averaging 311 inches per year. Temperatures above 72 °F at the
summit have never been recorded. The road up Mount Washington is
often closed due to weather. |
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| We also passed by Trinity United
Methodist Church, in Whitefield, where we would attend services on Sunday. |
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| The drive through the White
Mountains was a beautiful one and the traffic was light, making for an
enjoyable day. |
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| We spotted another covered
bridge near Groveton, dated 1852. |
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| We stopped at the Family Dollar
Store in Colebrook to buy some crackers to go with our Vienna sausage
picnic then traveled on highway 45 to Beaver Brook Falls National
Area. We stopped at the picnic area and enjoyed the scenery as
Harley enjoyed the smells of a new place. |
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| What a place for a picnic!
Does this family look happy or what? Harley says, "Put me down,
Mama. I gotta smell and pee on some stuff!" |
