Cannon & Loon – Family Mountaintop Fun
by Amy Patenaude
Outdoor/Ski Writer
Katie and Scott, my husband Charlie’s sister and her husband, are from Wisconsin and they came to visit us and they wanted to see our White Mountains. We couldn’t have been happier to show them off.
They were only here for a few days and they wanted to do as much as possible. The weather was warm and clear, perfect for visiting mountaintops. Charlie said we should ride to the sky.
On our way north we pulled off in Franconia Notch to see The Basin. We took a short walk around the water carved granite pool and we marveled at its swirling cold water that cooled the air and felt wonderful.
We all ‘oohed’ and ‘aahed’ at the sight of the mile long Cannon Cliff that is the west wall of Franconia Notch on our way to the Cannon Mountain Aerial Tramway. We tried to explain to them our missing New Hampshire State Symbol, The Old Man of the Mountain.
I purchased the tickets to ride the Tram while Charlie showed them the Old Man of the Mountain Exhibit. The exhibit with its many wonderful photos and Old Man memorabilia filled in the holes of what we were trying to explain while driving through the Notch. There is even an illustrated explanation of why he fell. The tramcar can hold up to 80 people but since it was a weekday afternoon we shared the ride only with about a dozen others. The operator gave a nice narration about the history of Cannon Mountain and the area. As we rode higher he explained what we were seeing all around us. We didn’t see any bears on the ski slopes but had earlier that day. The ride took less than ten minutes and we walked out of the tramcar into much cooler refreshing air. From the upper tramway terminal we looked down the cable and past the towers into Franconia Notch and a hazy view far over to Maine.
We strolled up the short path to the observation tower that sits on the summit of Cannon Mountain. We climbed the flights of stairs to the observation deck where we were rewarded with an unrestricted 360 degree grand view. Charlie and I pointed out the nearby peaks of the Franconia Range–Lafayette, Lincoln, Liberty and Flume and more peaks around us. We spent more than half an hour studying the mountain vista and enjoying the cool breeze.
We skipped the cafeteria and the bar’s “highest taps in NH” and took the next ride down. We had a different tram operator this time and he told us more wonderful things about the area. He pointed out the small old tramcar that is now part of the entrance of the New England Ski Museum. The museum is the building with ski-happy nation’s flags flying, right next to the tramway base. He recommended we visit after our ride and we did.
The New England Ski Museum is free and open daily until 5 pm. Without a doubt Bode Miller’s Olympic medals and his World Cup Crystal Globes are a unique treasure to behold. Katie learned that Olympic medals are not the same and that each host country has their own design, size and shape. Old and even ancient skis are on display along with10th Mountain Division history and the current exhibit is Backcountry Skiing.
The next day we went to Lincoln to ride Loon Mountain Resort’s Gondola to the summit of Loon Peak. The lift opens at 10 am and we arrived shortly after and we had our pick of parking places in the nearly empty lot.
The gondola cars carry up to four people and are easy to get in and out of since they slow down to a crawl at the base and summit terminals and when they grab the main cable they fly up the mountain. The ride takes about ten minutes each way.
Underneath us we saw several runners on the mountain’s work road. The mountain hosts a high level mountain running race each July and runners come here to train.
As we rose higher we could see more. Over Big Coolidge Mountain the mountaintops appeared and we could look right up the spine of the Franconia Range. It was too hazy to see Mount Washington but we could see deep into the Pemigewasset Wilderness. We climbed the observation tower. The 50 foot tall wooden tower has a roof covering the observation deck and it is surrounded by trees. There is also a short pleasant hiking path around the summit tower.
Katie and Scott enjoyed the mountain views and they could point out where we were the previous afternoon–Cannon Mountain!
We walked over to the natural summit amphitheater where weddings take place and Sunday morning services are observed. We sat here for a while enjoying our company together.
Scott and I decided we wanted to give the Glacial Caves a go. Katie and Charlie were more interested in continuing what they were doing, sitting and talking and told us to find them when we were done.
Loon Mountain’s Glacial Caves are fun and challenging but not for everyone. The path and boardwalks are wonderful but they are also very steep. If you are not comfortable on the first stairway, turn back. The path leads through a maze of large granite boulders on the side of the mountain surrounded by thick forest. All the caves can be bypassed by staying on the main path. Most children and many adults will have many laughs wiggling and winding through the side paths through the caves. I confess we didn’t make it through all the caves because um, well, because I wasn’t sure we’d make it through the one named “Down & Dirty, tunnel down on your belly, twist and climb for daylight.”
We found Charlie and Katie on the Summit Cafe deck sitting together on a high bench chair chatting away. The view down to Loon Pond is a pretty sight.
There is a playground near the gondola summit terminal and many children were climbing all over the equipment and running around. The weekend holiday crowd had arrived. The ride down was enjoyable. The large parking lot was no longer empty and packed with cars. At the adventure center kids were bouncing, zip-lining and making their way up the large climbing wall.
On our way home we made a few more stops.
We visited the White Mountain Attractions and White Mountain National Forest Visitor Center in Lincoln. We watched a movie about the history of logging and the formation of the National Forest and looked all over the 3D raised topographic map of the White Mountains. We drove by Clark’s Trading Post and saw the wood fired steam train enter the covered bridge.
At the Flume Visitor Center we watched the free movie narrated by Fritz Wetherbee about Franconia Notch State Park and it has lovely photography of all four seasons in the Notch. Katie and I bought New Hampshire tee-shirts with a big bear on them in the gift shop. We each had a big scoop of ice cream, I had maple walnut, in crunchy waffle cones served up in their cafe. We were too tired to walk the Flume on this visit.
What a wonderful time we all had together. Charlie and I know we are lucky duckies to live in New Hampshire.
Have Fun.
