{"id":11472,"date":"2022-02-15T08:00:00","date_gmt":"2022-02-15T13:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/thefullpassport.com\/?p=11472"},"modified":"2022-03-12T08:21:28","modified_gmt":"2022-03-12T13:21:28","slug":"cog-railway-mount-washington","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/thefullpassport.com\/cog-railway-mount-washington\/","title":{"rendered":"Summiting Mount Washington on the Historic Cog Railway"},"content":{"rendered":"\t\t
What do you get when you combine the highest mountain on the US East Coast, a 150-year-old railway, and a machine-obsessed toddler? One of the best days ever! Our trip on the Mount Washington Cog Railway was a highlight of our family road trip through New England, and whether you have kids in tow or not, it’s an adventure not to be missed!<\/em><\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t The Mount Washington Cog Railway is a three-mile rack-and-pinion railway<\/a> that climbs all the way to the top of the tallest mountain on the United States<\/a> East Coast. Not only is it incredibly scenic, ascending through the tree line with views of the gorgeous White Mountains all around, but it’s a mechanical marvel and a piece of history. Although you can hike or drive up Mount Washington, there’s no doubt that the railway is the most charming and memorable way to reach the top.<\/p> The Mount Washington Cog Railway dates to the late 1860’s and is the second-steepest railway in the world. The average grade is 25%, and there’s one spot where it’s a whopping 37%. In case you, like me, are not an engineer, that essentially means that you gain 37 feet of elevation over a distance of just 100 feet. For comparison’s sake, 6% is the maximum grade allowed on a US highway. It doesn’t take long to gain a few thousand feet in altitude!<\/p> And once you’re at the top, the views are impressive. On a clear day at the summit, you can see Vermont, Quebec, Maine, and even the Atlantic Ocean in a single 360-degree turn. Those clear days can be elusive, though; Mount Washington is notorious for bad weather that can change in an instant. But that’s all a part of the adventure!<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t Of all the things we considered doing on our family road trip to New England<\/a>, the Mount Washington Cog Railway was the only one we booked in advance. This was the trip we didn’t want to miss.\u00a0<\/p> We rode the Cog on our second full day in North Conway, New Hampshire, loading up the kids in the morning for the 45-minute drive to Marshfield Base Station. The drive alone was worth the time as we passed through the gorgeous\u00a0White Mountain National Forest<\/a>. If we had had more time (or older children who didn’t need afternoon naps afterward), I would have loved to pull off at one of the many trailheads and waterfalls to explore the forest. Next time, I suppose!<\/p> At last, we turned off of Highway 302 and drove six more miles on Base Station Road to its terminus at Marshfield Base Station. The station is the Cog Railway’s departure point and sits at the bottom of the mountain welcoming visitors with the usual goods: a free museum, gift shop, snack bar, restrooms, and a ticketing office.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t Dirty diapers and the resultant wardrobe changes left us with little time to explore the station upon arrival. Instead, we made our way through the building to the boarding gates.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t Our tickets were for the B train, and I fortuitously had snagged the first two seats on the left-hand side. We were among the last to board, and it wasn’t long after we were settled with a kid on each lap that the train chugged into motion and began its ascent.<\/p> The sky was a bright and brilliant blue, though we knew anything could be waiting for us at the top of the mountain.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t The entire journey was narrated by the brakeman, who not only served as the engineer’s eyes on the tracks but also regaled us with facts and stories from the history of the Cog. He explained how cog wheels rotated beneath the train, catching on the notched rack between the parallel rails and pulling us up the steep incline.\u00a0<\/p> His commentary took a brief pause to help guide us through the switch, which allows trains to pass each other along a single track, before continuing on with gusto!<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t We were rocketing upward at a speed of<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>almost three miles per hour<\/em>\u00a0<\/span>(we would go nearly five on the way down – hold on to your hats!), so there was plenty of time to admire the scenery.\u00a0<\/span>It was such a beautiful ride, with the gold of autumn just beginning to touch the trees and a bright blue sky peeking through the clouds.\u00a0<\/span><\/p> As we ascended those same clouds grew thicker and more ominous, making me question how pleasant the weather would be at the summit.\u00a0<\/span>In the meantime, however, there was nothing to be done but sit back and enjoy as we rumbled over trestles and through the piney forest.<\/span><\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t Emerging above the tree line, the steepness of the grade became glaringly obvious. We had felt ourselves being pulled upward, obviously, but it wasn’t until we could see out to the horizon that we realized just how sharp the angle was.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t In fact, here’s a side-by-side from one of the steeper parts of the trip. I shot the first photo holding my camera perfectly horizontal out the window, while the second corrects the horizon line to where it should<\/em> have been:<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t And still, we kept climbing. Up here it was rocky and windswept, with hardy vegetation tenaciously clinging to life in an unforgiving environment. The train in front of us looked smaller and lonelier as we went along.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t When you turned around, however, the views were stunning. The trees had fallen away to reveal green mountains rolling off into the distance. They stretched all the way into Vermont and Quebec before disappearing into that wonky horizon.\u00a0<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t And then,\u00a0after a little less than an hour, we made it to the top of the mountain.\u00a0 It’s actually a state park up there!<\/a> I’m not sure what I was expecting – perhaps a viewing platform and a small building with services – but it’s actually a pretty big operation. There’s a visitor’s center with a cafeteria and (shocker!) gift shop, a research observatory<\/a>, and a museum, in addition to an extensive viewing area and good-sized parking lot for the folks who choose to drive to the summit.<\/span><\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t Our train came to a stop and we emerged into a chilly fog. This wasn’t unusual; the summit of Mount Washington is notorious for terrible weather, and especially for wind. The highest wind speed on Earth – a whopping 231 miles per hour – was recorded here in 1934. I knew when we booked the trip that it was likely that we wouldn’t be able to see much from the top, and for a few minutes, I was right. We made our way through the visitor’s center to the viewing platform and stared out into the clouds.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t But miraculously, within moments Mount Washington’s fickle weather began to work in our favor. The clouds began to dissipate, revealing that blue sky into which we had begun our adventure. Suddenly, I could make out one of the trains making its lonely way back down the mountain.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t We got our first real glimpses of the observatory and the actual summit…<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\tWhat is the Mount Washington Cog Railway?<\/h2>\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t
Our Experience Riding \"the Cog\"<\/h2>\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t