Not exactly the Observatory but MT Wash Resort

[Patrad Fischroy]

I came across this article in my readings. Looks Like the Mt Washington Resort will be getting a facelift.

"Extensive renovations are about to get under way on historic Mount Washington Resort in Bretton Woods, N.H., site of the famous 1944 United Nations Monetary and Financial Conference. Called to regulate international monetary and financial order after the conclusion of World War II, the conference was attended by 730 delegates from 45 Allied Nations. Its goal was to restore postwar Western economic order and ultimately resulted in the establishment of the International Monetary Fund (IMF), the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development, and the World Trade Organization. Listed as a National Historic Landmark, the resort hotel was built by industrialist Joseph Stickney in 1902 and features a white and red-roofed Spanish Renaissance-style architecture, including a grand veranda. It underwent major renovations in the 1990s and will soon experience extensive additional work under the development and construction management of Parsons Brinckerhoff (PB). The first phase of the renovation plan calls for a new spa, meeting space and pool complex, together with renovation of the lobby and public areas. In addition, the facility's Donald Ross golf course will be expanded, and subsequent phases will involve the development of approximately 1,000 residential units and associated infrastructure. PB will provide on-site management of the construction activities, from pre-construction to close out, including consultant selection and coordination, permit acquisition, constructability reviews, contract management, bid procurement management, quality assurance, cost and schedule control and reporting, and change order management"

Source:
http://www.acppubs.com/article/CA6444411.html

[Mike D]

Yes, development is coming to Bretton Woods. A large pedestrian shopping center is also part of the plan. I find that perplexing; I don't go the the city to hike, so why would people come to the mountains to shop? I wonder what the West view from Mt Washington will be in five years.

[KD Talbot]

Sounds like more bad news for the mountains and NH in general. It might be good for the economy, but only to the folks who own these places, not to the locals who will earn minimum wage waiting on the "rich" folk who frequent the resorts.The cancer is spreading. As if the unchecked condo building going on isn't bad enough. In the hey days of the mountains in the 1800 and early 1900's they were dotted with hotels and attractions. I thought we had reversed that trend and were returning to a more natural state of things, but it seems anyplace that is accessible will be built on. With all this building comes the desire for shopping and other services, mostly for people who come to ski or other attractions and don't care for the wilderness experience a visit to the mountains once was.
KDT

[Rich]

I doubt the planned shopping center will bring more people to the area rather just cater to the wealthy already staying at the hotel and surrounding slope side condos. Tilton seems to attract the "shoppers" wealthy or not. Either way, I hate to see development in that area. Then again...an REI would be handy...

[Mike D]

In fairness, the new owners are just responding to demand. No company would invest millions of dollars in new development if they weren't confident in the market. Even so, every new building and parking lot takes a little bit away from what people come here to see.

[Be_Prepared]

We had a company meeting at the Mt Washington Resort last summer at the end of June. We're all going back again this June. Last year, I took a group of folks that hadn't hiked before out to see Arethusa Falls one afternoon, and Mt Willard the next. This is a family weekend for our company, so we had a mixture of abilities. After the meeting, I found out that two of the families joined the AMC, they had such a good time. (The view from Mt Willard, by the way, is pretty cool, I hadn't been up in years and forgot. It's not an exciting peak at all from an altitude standpoint, maybe 2850ish, but, because it's right on the edge of Crawford Notch, it had some wow factor for the new hikers. Obviously, the Falls have wow factor built in too.)

When we were planning the meeting for this year, a few of them asked me where we were doing our hikes! (Ok, so now I need some ideas for more family friendly hikes that start somewhere reasonably close to Bretton Woods. We have about 4 hours to work with each afternoon.)

Anyway, my point was that by attracting folks to the area, we might also expose them to hiking, and then might want to come to the area for more than shopping.

[Steve M]

I say we keep the White Mountains a secret for as long as possible! My family goes the Smoky Mountains once or twice a year to camp and hike and If you are anywhere outside the Park all you see dotting the mountains are cabins that have been built for those who love the scenery but don't mind turning it into a playground. Gatlinburg, Pigeon Forge, Dollywood, and Sevierville are good examples of this. They are a shoppers paradise. They are places of recreation with theme parks, water parks, and almost anything you can imagine and have stolen the very fiber of what family time should be. In my opinion, family vacations should be times when the family gets away from their hectic, busy lives and spend even more time than they normally do at home. Spending quality time around a campfire, talking and sharing without the TV or computer or the phone to distract. Hikes can be a wonderful time to reflect and talk about issues without distractions. The attractions that have infiltrated the Smokies are a distraction and take away from the natural beauty of the land and I would hate to see the Whites become half of what the Smokies are today. One thing the Whites have over the Smokies is a harsher climate. Less people I think would be willing to put up with the winters in NH that in TENN. Hopefully!!!

[Steve M]

(Ok, so now I need some ideas for more family friendly hikes that start somewhere reasonably close to Bretton Woods. We have about 4 hours to work with each afternoon.)

For the more adventurous, You could try the Crawford Path up to Mizpah Spring hut. It may take your guests slightly longer than four hours especially if you should check out the views on Mt Pierce. My suggestion would be to take Mizpah Cutoff Trail to the Hut. Hang out and relax for a few then continue up the Webster Cliff Trail to the top of Pierce. After enjoying the views, continue to the Crawford Path junction, and Head back down the mountain. Don't forget to check out Crawford cliff if time allows.

[Be_Prepared]

That's an interesting idea, hiking up to Mizpah with them. I don't know if it's going to be too long for some of them, but, I like the idea of reaching a hut so they can see what that's like. In the summer, can you drive to the Zeeland Falls trailhead south of Bretton Woods? I haven't been up there in years, but, I seem to recall that it wasn't too long, maybe a couple miles? It's got to be one of the easiest huts to reach. I didn't think about it until I saw your post about Mizpah. Isn't Zeeland Falls the really kid friendly hut too?
If a few of them want to bag a peak, I think Mt Zeeland or Mr Hale are a reasonable hike from the hut too.
Thanks for the ideas!

[Steve M]

I have another idea for you which may be more suitable for some. Try the Ripley falls trail up to ripley falls. This trail head starts in a parking area off 302 across from the Webster cliff trail head in Crawford Notch. This area has several good possibilities. You can check out Ripley Falls and then keep going on Arethusa-Ripley Falls trail to Arethusa Falls or drop back and take Ethan Pond trail over to Kedron Flume. If they still feel like bagging a summit You could follow Ethan Pond trail to the Willey Range trail which takes you to Mt Willey (4200+). This mountain at it's peak is not above tree line but before you get to the summit there is a spectacular overlook in which you can see views of Webster and Webster Cliffs, Jackson, Pierce, Eisenhower, Washington, Monroe, and Jefferson.