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RAILS & TRAILS

itinerary

HISTORIc RAILS ANd cARRIAGE TRAILS

Having worked in tourism for some twenty years I felt like I knew everything there was to know about Valley history. I had proof read over a zillion brochures and travel guides but this particular day in Jackson I realized how little I remembered. My plan was to do some research so I could share with you a bit of White Mountains history.

Our first stop is the Wentworth Resort in Jackson Village. Built in 1869, the main inn has been painstakingly restored and when I stepped onto the wrap around porch, I closed my eyes and tried to see myself stepping onto this exact porch in the nineteenth century. Around the porch historical pictorials are mounted that take the viewer back to the early years of New Hampshire tourism when businessmen and socialites brought their families to the White Mountains via railroads to “summer”. (Until I moved to New Hampshire, I had never used the word summer as a verb) The Hotel has a historic room filled with documents and scrapbooks of an earlier era.

Depending on the season, enjoy the many fun things to do in Jackson, maybe an art show in the common, a concert at the town hall or hanging with your traveling companions and a couple of ice cream cones beside Jackson Falls. The widely visited Falls is part of

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Above: Enjoy the historic pictorials at The Wentworth Resort © Karen Stancik PhotographyCover: Conway Scenic Rail Road Notch Excursion, Courtesy of CSRR

the Wildcat River, a national wild and scenic river that rises from the White Mountain National Forest and tumbles over a series of boulders making it the centerpiece of Jackson Village.

Before you hit the Falls – stop by the one of the local cafes for coffee and fresh pastry, or ask for a picnic lunch to take with you, walk the circuit around the common and the Wentworth Golf Course, go through the 1867 Covered Bridge. Way back when horse and buggy carried guests to their summer retreats at one of the grand hotels in Jackson. Drive the scenic Five Mile Circuit Road and stop for a veranda break at the Eagle Mountain House, a second Valley treasure from 1879. There are several B&Bs in Jackson owned by some of the nicest folks. So if you are looking for a upscale B&B with formal dining and spa or a country home with breakfast in the owners kitchen Jackson has a lot of hospitality.

Travel north into Pinkham Notch, first mentioned in history in 1784 when Jeremy Belknap camped there before climbing Mt. Washington. Stop at any of the scenic vistas to view the ravines climbed by Belknap. In 1836 Daniel Pinkham built the first road through the notch that was named for him.

Left: 1.Scenic Jackson Falls, the centerpiece of Jackson Village © Karen Stancik PhotographyAbove: Pinkham Notchm © Karen Stancik Photography

Stop by Glen Ellis Falls. What would that hike have been like before the rock stairs and handrails were added to make the trek to the cascade easy. The seventy-foot falls is only a short .3-mile walk down the stone staircase. Don’t forget your camera – believe me, you won’t want to “run” back to the car!

Continue north to the Joe Dodge Lodge for a coffee and another history lesson. The Lodge sits at the base of Mt Washington at 6288’ the highest peak in the northeast. At the Lodge you can get hearty home

cooked meals, and participate in naturalist or history programs by the Appalachian Mountain Club. You can spend the day or simply wander through the lobby exhibits and sit with the hikers ready to ascend the summit. In winter many hikers climb just to Tuckerman’s Ravine to ski the bowl or simply to watch those more adventurous.

Top: Only the most adventurous hike up and ski down Tuckerman Ravine Bottom: Great advice at the base of the Mt. Washington Auto Road © Karen Stancik Photography

Above: The Mt Washington Observatory and Museum is atop the highest peak in the northeast © Karen Stancik Photography

Venture on pass Wildcat Ski area on the right and Great Glen Trails on the left. I could be talked into an adventure to be found at either location, but that’s for another day. Today is all about rails and verandas and carriage roads. So let’s cruised through the Notch to the base of Mt Washington.

Decision time – drive or ride to the summit. You can do either. When I go I reserve a seat on the coach and within fifteen minutes I am on the Auto Road, opened in 1861. Squeezing the armrest and listening intently to the driver’s tour, I occasionally peer over the edge of the road to the gullies below. There is a sign at the base warning the Auto Road is not for the faint of heart. At the top walk into the Tip Top House, built in 1853 to host workers and then guests and be sure to visit the Mt Washington Observatory Museum. On September 11, 2011, 10 years after the fall of the towers, in remembrance, huge American flags were placed on top of all forty-eight 4000-

Top: The Mountain View Hotel in Whitefield Right: Sunrise from the top of Mt. Washington © Karen Stancik Photography

foot mountains in New Hampshire. Placed there by hikers to pay tribute to our country; from the top of Mt Washington, when the clouds parted, I saw five of them.

The Mountain View Grand in Whitefield is your next destination. The staff at the Grand will welcome you and encourage you to enjoy a few minutes on the front veranda with a cup of coffee or whatever floats your boat. Linger as long as you like or stay

the evening, but we’ve got a lot more miles to go on our journey back to the era of the grand hotel.

Just down the street from the Mountain View Grand is John Wingate Weeks Historic Site. When I first visited, it was mid-week early fall, the park was closed but I noticed a few cars at the gate. The estate was built on the top of Mt. Prospect, by Weeks, a leading conservationist, US Congressman, US Senator and Secretary of War. He was also responsible for the Weeks’ Act of 1911, which allowed the US government to purchase private land for conservation. To date, nearly 20 million acres of forestland is protected. The 420-acre estate with its 360-degree views was where the Weeks’ children summered, before giving the estate to the folks of New Hampshire to enjoy. So I grabbed the camera and started my walk. Not knowing how far I would actually have to go, I was relieved when meeting a couple who assured me I was almost there.

Top: View from The Mountain View Grand Middle: The town of Jefferson, from the Weeks estate carriage road Bottom: 360 degrees views experienced at the Weeks Estate © Karen Stancik Photography

Wildcat Mountain from the entrance road to Dolly Copp Campground © Karen Stancik Photography

made 100 years ago and then I sat in the sun all by myself.

Start heading south on 302 and you will come to the big momma of historic grand resorts in the White Mountains, the Mt Washington Hotel. It is awe-inspiring

and magnificent. Drive the tree-lined entrance and imagine yourself again in a horse drawn carriage, laden with trunks for your summer at the Hotel. Park and walk the grounds, sit on the back veranda and have another sip of whatever it is that tastes decadent while you enjoy the view of the other side of the mountain. Walk the quiet halls of the hotel and read the historic pictorials of the days of the grand hotels and the train excursions that brought guests from Boston, Connecticut and New York. The 1902 National Historic Landmark offers exquisite dining in the Grand Ballroom. The breakfast buffet is a grand tradition in itself.

You will now be in Crawford Notch, the home of Crawford Station. It is here at the mouth of the Saco River that trains from North Conway stopped to allow passengers to disembark. Horse drawn carriages would complete the trip up to the hotels and cottages. At Crawford Notch State Park you can enjoy the

The walk up the carriage road was a little over an hour; but, if you plan it better then I did, you can drive up! As I turned one final traverse I spied the tower above the trees on my right and around the next bend the carriage road opened up to a magnificent summer cottage on the mountaintop and I was all alone. I sat on the wall and studied every inch of that cottage and carriage house, the tower from bottom to top. Then I walked every porch and climbed the stairs to the viewing decks. I imagined myself the lady of the house, surveying the view and perhaps watching an incoming storm travel over the countryside. I sat in the rockers that had not yet been closed away for the winter; I peered into the windows like a little girl playing hide and seek. I snapped images of window reflections that looked as if they were

Above: The Omni Mt Washington Hotel and Mt Washington in early November, Below: View of Crawford Notch experienced by the hikers on Mt. Jackson © Karen Stancik Photography

Above: Main house at the Weeks Historic Site Left: Quiet retreat into the Weeks estate © Karen Stancik Photography

Above: Crawford Station in Crawford Notch State Park © Karen Stancik Photography

history of the notch at the AMC Highland Center, grab a bite to eat, visit Crawford Station House, fully restored, perhaps be there when the Conway Scenic Railroad arrives. On another day, start here and hike Mt Willard, one of the best hiking values in the Whites (great reward, little effort). Perhaps your timing will be perfect and you will catch the sunset over Saco Lake.

End your day enjoying the foliage and views back to North Conway, Jackson, Bartlett, Conway, or wherever you’re resting your head in the Valley. Be sure to watch for moose if it is approaching dusk.

Got the train bug and want to really experience the historical excursion … visit the Conway Scenic Railroad. The Railroad recreates the journey through Crawford Notch daily summer and fall, be sure to make reservations.

From home, jump online at www.whitebirchbooks.com and see what they have in the New Hampshire section. You’ll feel like you are a part of the majesty of the Valley when you come to “summer” and fall in love with the White Mountains.

driving directionsFrom North Conway head north on Rt 16 through Intervale and into Glen.At the light in Glen (at the Irving Station) take a right to stay on 16N. Go 2.3 miles to Rt 16A, take a right and go through the Covered Bridge. Go .5 miles and bear to the left to stay on 16A, over the stone bridge to the Wentworth Resort on your right.

Leaving The Wentworth, take a right to jump back onto 16A

Then take a right and get back on Rt 16N for 8.5 miles, to Glen Ellis Falls on your left

Continue on Rte 16N, 1.6 miles, to AMC Joe Dodge Lodge in Pinkham Notch

Continue on Route 16N, 2.7 miles, to Mt. Washington Auto Road. If you want to drive your own car take a left to the tollgate. If you want to park and take the coach, take a right into the parking lot and Visitors Center.

Continue 7.8 miles on 16N to Gorham Center, left onto Main Street, go 1.4 miles and left onto US2 for 16.8 miles. Left onto NH116 for 5.9 miles, turn right onto Mt View Road for one mile to Mountain View Grand Resort

Taking a right out of the parking lot, continue west on Mt View Road for .5 miles to US3, right on US3 for 4 miles to another right onto Week’s State Park Road to Weeks State Park

Coming out of the Park, take a left onto US 3S, after 6.1 miles turn bear left going pass the gazebo, over the small bridge and then turn right onto NH116S-142S. Go 3.6 miles turn left onto NH142S Bethlehem Road for 4.8 miles. This brings you to Rt 302. If you take a right onto Rt 302 you will enter Bethlehem Village. Go ahead for a few miles and enjoy the old homes and the antique shops. If you take a left on 302E you will head back to the Valley.

Follow US302E for 13.4 miles to Omni Mt. Washington Hotel

Follow US302E for 3.2 miles to Crawford Notch State Park

Follow US302E for 26 miles to downtown North Conway and the Conway Scenic Railroad.

Reflections of Saco Lake and Crawford Notch © Karen Stancik Photography