One of the things we had never done, but certainly something Elenka wanted to do was to ride the cog railway to the top of Mt. Washington. We can now say that is done. We pulled out of the driveway just after 6 AM, grabbed a couple of coffees and were at Marshfield Station in New Hampshire at about 8. The weather was quite heavily overcast, and we debated a bit about an alternative schedule for the day, as we watched a couple of trains head to the top loaded with passengers. Towards the top the sky looked to be clearing, so we 'bit the bullet' and bought tickets. In retrospect, it was a smart thing to do. The clouds continued to break and at the top you could even feel the warm sun through the cloud cover. The cog railway takes you pretty much straight up the mountain using the 'cog system' to get the job done. Believe it or not, the railroad up the mountain, the dream of Samuel Marsh, has been in operation since 1869. When Marsh displayed his plans for what he wanted to do, he was thought to be totally insane. At the time one of the NH legislators said he might as well continue his tracks straight to the moon. The engines, one steam and 5 bio-diesels, make their runs basically on the half hour. It was a fun-filled adventure for us both up and down. We highly recommend taking this trip to the 6,288 ft. summit. In Elenka's words, "That was so cool and so interesting!"
Now, I have climbed the mountain 5 times (Elenka 4), but this was certainly a different take on 'mountain climbing'.
This mountain has a very special meaning for both Elenka and me.
You see, on a trip down in the fall of 1973, I asked Elenka to marry me.
AND she said yes!
Making me both a very lucky and happy man.
What a wonderful adventure, and what a special place for both of you. Now you can say, "I've been to the top of the mountain…"
ReplyDeleteSometimes you need to aim high to get a clear idea of what lies ahead. It certainly was a sentimental journey for both of you. I'm happy that you told us the personal story today; made my day bright with promise. Good things happen to good people!!
ReplyDeleteGreat, I didn't expect the final surprise!
ReplyDeleteYes, Mount Washington is a very special place. And yesterday was our first retirement mini excursion....excellent day it was. <3 xoxo
ReplyDeleteA sweet place for you and Elenka! Glad the day turned out to be so wonderful. I can remember seeing so many bumper stickers that said "This car climbed Mt Washington". Haven't seen one in a while though.
ReplyDeleteI've climbed that mountain several times... it really is a pleasure to be up there (though maybe not in bad weather.
ReplyDeleteI see the Save One spammer continues to show up.
These are fun. We road the cog railway to the top of Pikes Peak! It was 90 degrees in Colorado Springs and about freezing up there. I had to buy a jacket. But I think PIkes Peak is about 14K feet. Have you actually climbed mountains? There's a fascinating article in the most recent National Geographic about a team trying to climb a mountain in Asia. They didn't make it.
ReplyDeletevery cool.
ReplyDeleteNow that sounds like a very fun trip. I haven't been on a cog railway since I was about 18 years old and that's a long time ago.
ReplyDeleteHow cool! The Earth's windiest spot!
ReplyDeleteMount Washington Observatory's famous 231mph wind gust, a world record for more than 60 years,
ALOHA
ComfortSpiral
=^..^=
I haven't been there! Yet another place to visit. Sounds like a wonderful revisit for you and Elenka.
ReplyDeleteWhat a sweet story! Sounds like a wonderful excursion for you both. I took my first cog railway ride this past July to the top of Mt. Pilatus near Lucerne, Switzerland. It is supposedly the world's steepest cog railway and the scenery was gorgeous.
ReplyDeleteYou are correct! Mt Washington is the oldest and second steepest.
ReplyDeleteSweet! Special place with special memories and a good adventure.
ReplyDeleteI'd love to take a train like this. Glad that the trip brought up happy memories for you. :)
ReplyDeleteWhat a fun time. I'm very afraid of "open heights", but I should put this on my list of things to do! I'm glad that you and E. were able to enjoy this experience and recount the memories of the proposal. I do believe that the engagement, and ultimate marriage, was a "win-win"!
ReplyDeleteWell, what a trip and love the back story. We rode a cog railroad up Pikes Peak several years ago. Great wonderful views but no air, talk about sluggish until we loaded up for the return trip.
ReplyDeleteAh, such a special place for you and Elenka!
ReplyDeleteA lovely story Birdman.
ReplyDeleteA lovely story Birdman.
ReplyDeleteOh, that is sweet! I haven't been to Mount Washington in 30 years but I remember it was an amazing place!
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