Looking to do a trip to Mt. Washington on Memorial Day weekend. Would appreciate any thoughts or ideas for places to stay, other interesting places in the area. Will be coming from upstate NY.

Thanks!

Joshua

Hi Joshua,

I met you briefly at the WW&F Railway Museum booth at the Amherst Railway Society show in Springfield two or three years ago, but didn't realize who you were at the time. I was certainly glad to hear of your enthusiasm for our railway and hope you get a chance to visit us soon.

As for Mount Washington, depending upon the route you take from upstate NY to get there, you might pass North Woodstock NH, at the southern end of Franconia Notch. Clark's Trading Post (www.clarkstradingpost.com) is a rather touristy place, but they do have some nice geared locomotives and a lombard. The Hobo RR (www.hoborr.com) in nearby Lincoln NH might also be of interest. By Memorial Day, there is some chance that B&M 6000, the Flying Yankee, will have reached the Hobo for further restoration work, at which they excel.

Closer to Mt. Washington, the Conway Scenic RR (www.conwayscenic.com) is well worth a visit. They offer a variety of trips of various durations, and have an interesting collection of railroad equipment.

As for the Mount Washington RR itself, that's a real treasure, I'm anxious to see one of the new switches, which are sort of a transfer table device and much, much simpler than the old take-it-apart and put-it-back-together switches. Be sure to pack lots of money and a warm jacket, as you'll need both.

PM me for more info if you'd like.

-John

Nice microbrewery with good food in North Conway. You will be very close to Maine, and a trip to see the 2 foot is very much in order. I didn't know how close and missed my chance last fall, don't make the same mistake.

dave

As Dave poingts out, it is only a little less than two hours from North Conway to the Maine Narrow Gauge Railroad & Museum in Portland and another hour from there to the WW&F Railway Museum in Alna. While all of this takes you further from upstate New York, it does get you closer to the Maine Turnpike / Massachusetts Turnpike route back to New York, which is fairly speedy.

-John

www.wwfry.org

Hi,

One minor aspect should be noted. Try to plan your time there around a very clear weather period. I've been quite unexpectedly clouded in on the top which makes the visit less than worthwhile - which could have been avoided, had I paid more attention to the forecast.

If you are going to Mt. Washington, get there early. There are a few reasons for this - the lines won't be as long, the temps might be cool so the steam looks better and you can get pictures of the engines being serviced. Bring warm clothing! If you plan on spending the day, there is plenty to do at the top and bottom, if you are like me and try to cram too much stuff into too little time, you can get a ride in, spend some time at the top, and even photograph a few trains leaving the base station without spending the whole day. Conway is within an hour of mt.washington and you could take one of the dinner trains if they are running btw. real good food. Clark's Trading post is great and within an hour of Mt. Washington, there is stuff for the whole family and the people that run that place are top notch. They understand railfans and are very pleasent to them. I got my first cab ride in a steam locomotive there. When I did my first trip of New England, I drove directly from Mount Washington to the Maine Narrow Gauge Museum, they are another great bunch of people. Warning! if you go to the Maine Narrow gauge museum, you will get hooked on these engines!
There is so much steam to see in this area its rediculous. if you are looking for other things to do in the area, the entire region is God's country. I just went to Mount Washington on New Year's Day and I left my house at 10 p.m. New Year's eve to make it there by 8 a.m. New Year's day and the sun came up just as i was leaving Vermont and I can't begin to describe the beauty and charm of this area of New Hampshire, it cleans the soul!! (okay off of the tangent and back to the subject) If you drive from Clark's to Conway, you will be driving on the (please forgive the spelling) Kangamangus highway and there are many pull offs and overlooks that are great. The area around Clark's trading post has plenty of things to do.
Mt. Washington is a great place. It is all steam, the base station always has something moving around, it really is a step back in time and again the people really are great. Forget what i said before, spend the whole day, there is a lot to see and when you see it all, it is nice to just sit back and watch all that steam action.. Now I want to go back!
Check out my website for photographs from all these places and more.
http://members.fortunecity.com/stolzenfels