Day 21 Sunday 5-27

First, happy birthday to my mother - her 86th.

Great day on the Cog Railway up Mt. Washington, the highest peak in the northeast. Also where they recorded the fastest wind ever - 231 miles/hour during a hurricane I forget when. It's a weather research station as well.

Started out OK at the base but only 40 degrees at the top which is over 5000 feet I think and it rained all the way down. I thought it was cold enough to snow. It's very rugged and barren above the tree line. Started out at about 2100 ft up and took over an hour to go up 3 miles to the summit with average grade of 45 degrees. Something else. Encouraged people to get up and walk around to see views - which were spectacular - and take pictures but could barely do it because it was so steep to get to front of the car.

Built the railway in 1866 for Victorian artistrocrats to get to a hotel that used to be on the top. There is huge Victorian Hotel nearby which is the foundation of the resort area this has become. Lots of condos, ski chalets, golf courses, etc. I like the New Hampshire White Mountains better than the Vermont Green Mountains.

Interesting thing is that these are coal burning steam engines on the railway except the one we were on today which was converted to biodiesel fuel and only it's 3rd trip. The engineer that had redesigned drove it today. He's Nigel from Wales. So we are part of history, only took 120 years to get past coal.

On our way back to camp saw the Josiah Bartlett Elementary School so I guess President Bartlett on the West Wing from New Hampshire was the real thing?? haha?? Jack made a nice fire and we grilled kabobs and played some cribbage. Chilly though. Kids in the camp on a hayride. Oh, almost forgot - we saw a moose on the way back although we almost missed it. Was almost all the way across the road when we saw it -a moose does stop traffic however!