Mount Washington - 2 Seasons in 1 Day

We decided to go on another driving weekend before we had to leave the country. The plan was to take the Kancamagus Highway, spend the night in North Conway, and then go up to Mount Washington the next day. We would end off at the Lakes the next day.

Unfortunately, it rained throughout the first day. The Kancamagus Highway was covered with clouds and mist. In such bad weather, there was not a thing to see. So we had no choice. We had to go shopping. So we went first to Tanger, and then to the North Conway outlets. Now I realise why North Conway is considered a shopping destination. It is full of outlets! But by the time we got there it was almost 5pm. Dark, dreary and rainy too. We did some shopping at the outlet and then found our hotel - Comfort Inn (again). In the dark, I did not realise that we were next to a pirate-themed mini-golf course. I suppose kids have to do something whilst parents shop.

That night, I checked the weather report. It was not good. It was snowing on Mount Washington and at Bretton Woods. And there were strong winds on the mountain - over 100 km/h. Undeterred, we set off the next morning. Soon, the scenery around us turned white in colour - from the mountain-tops down.

By the time we reached the Bretton Woods resort, all was white. A snow plough must have cleared the roads early but there were still snowdrifts on the side of the roads and the trees were covered with snow. Even the signs were covered with snow - completely useless!

We drove carefully to the cog railway, only to find out that it was only travelling one-third of the way up the mountain because of bad weather (the winds were still blowing) and we would have to pay half the price. And, that the mist and fog enshrouding the mountain meant that we would not be able to see anything anyway. Unsurprisingly we decided to give it a miss. So we drove back down to North Conway.

It was a beautiful drive, past snow-covered trees, mountains, and a waterfall or two. Truly, a winter wonderland of water, snow and ice. But it was cold too! We were watching the temperature gauge in the car and it was pretty much 32 degrees Farenheit also known as Zero degrees celcius outside. And there we were walking out in (essentially) fall clothing.

But by the time we got back to Intervale (between Bretton Woods and North Conway) it had turned back to fall. The bright blue sky, the greens and reds of the trees made the snow and ice seem very far away. We had a quick lunch at a burger joint in Intervale and proceeded to retrace our route through the Kancamagus Highway in the hope that this time round, we could catch a glimpse of the beautiful scenery.