From Keene to Mt. Washington

My friend Bernie came to visit for a weekend. I picked her up at Manchester Airport on Friday evening and it was a nice little airport & easy to get to.  I had seen the MOUNT WASHINGTON COG RAILWAY featured on the travel channel & have always wanted to do this. On Saturday, while on our way there, Bernie made reservations for later in the day since it would take us 2-3 hours to get there from Keene. We had lunch at a restaurant at the entrance road. It was fairly crowded and the lower level of the visiter center had a timeline display and a visual show of the history og the Cog railway. The train ride itself was a 3 hour round trip with no empty seats and we were given 20 minutes at the top which I wish would have been longer. At one point the train is straight up & down on an area on the mountain called "JACOB'S LADDER! It was a little scary but exciting nonetheless! We made it to the top and the views were gorgeous! I couldn't see the 3 states that you are supposed to see on a clear day.

  I thought we would be able to since it was a clear day in the high 70's at the bottom, but on top it was 20 degrees lower and sort of overcast and windy. We wanted to go on the observation deck, but you had to be a member. There were 2 girls wenching about how cold it was, but that what happens when you wear a bathing suit & ONLY that to the top of a mountain! Where is the "stupid sign"? Going back down, the thought crossed my mind of I wonder if this thing has ever let loose? We made it down with no problems.

 On our way home, we took a differnt way since it would be all highway because it was early evening. We saw a sign that said "The BASIN" so we stopped to see what that was about. There was a parking area and a path to walk a couple trails.

There were a couple little waterfalls and it was a quaint, quiet area! The Basin was formed by glaciers and is a smooth round area of stone and water from the stream. This is in Franconia State Park. After viewing the Basin, we headed back because it was starting to get dark.

If ever in this area of New Hampshire and not afraid of heights I suggest taking the stream train. Here is the website:  Cog railway