#22 NEW HAMPSHIRE

Entering New Hampshire from the east I was impressed with how wild and untamed it appeared. NH has the second highest percentage of forested land in the country, after Maine. We marveled at the White Mountains and the frequency of “Moose Crossing” signs. Mount Washington looms at 6,288 on the horizon. We westerners may scoff at such a vertically challenged peak but Mount Washington reputedly has the worst weather on earth with hurricane force winds recorded an average of every three days .

In Bill Bryson’s hilarious “A Walk in The Woods” he writes of the highest surface wind speed, an unfathomable 231 miles an hour, being recorded by Salvatore Pagliuca, a meteorologist at the summit weather observatory on Mount Washington on April 24, 1934.

“Mount Washington sometimes gets a little gusty, to put it mildly, and this was a particularly breezy day. In the previous twenty-four hours the wind speed had not fallen below 107 miles an hour, and often gusted much higher. When it came time for Pagliuca to take his afternoon readings, the wind was so strong that he tied a rope around his waist and had two colleagues take hold of the other end. As it was, the men had difficulty just getting the weather station door open and needed all of their strength to keep Pagliuca from becoming a kind of human kite. How he managed to reach his weather instruments is not known, nor are his words when he finally tumbled back in, though “Jeeeeeeeesus! Would seem an apt possibility.”

I can‘t help but wonder if there was resentment on the part of the rope holding colleagues. Their participation was not inconsiderable but their names appear nowhere in the record books. Our weather driving along Highway 2 was not so dramatic. It was rainy and dreary – perfect for spotting a moose or two I anticipated. No moose crossed our sights and no gale force winds buffeted us as we continued to Littleton, our home du jour.

Littleton, NH is a charming albeit rather decrepit former mill town. We had a superb meal at Bailiwick’s located in the basement of the Thayer’s Inn. The food and service were unimpeachable. We left satiated and were admonished to look out for moose on our return to the hotel. We’ve been looking! Apparently the moose population has exploded and the problems are widespread. The next morning armed with the “Downtown Littleton Walking Tour – featuring over 20 historic sites!” brochure we went for a walk in the drizzle and viewed them all in 20 minutes. I would definitely return to this town as a weekend getaway if only it were a bit more convenient.

Do I look like the bear on Bryson's book cover? Maybe a little?

Some other interesting New Hampshire trivia courtesy of Wikipedia and AAA:

The New Hampshire Primary, historically the first primary the American presidential election cycle, this year the third. The primary has often been decisive in shaping the national contest. (In 2008 Obama and McCain were unequivocal victors.)

Peterborough, NH is the inspiration for the town of Grover’s Corners in Thornton Wilder's play Our Town.

Bob Montana, the original artist for Archie, attended Manchester Central High School for a year, and may have based Riverdale High School in part on Central

The first free public library, started in 1822, was Dublin, NH’s Juvenile Library The first public library, supported with public funds, founded in 1833, was Peterborough Town Library was the first public library.

Each year over 250 moose are killed on NH highways. Wow! How many managed to cross the road safely? And still not one sighted by us.