Americana Journeys - Travel
MOUNT WASHINGTON COG RAILWAY
World’s First Mountain Cog Railway
The world's first mountain Cog Railway is up and running for the summer season in 2011 for its 142nd season.
The Mount Washington
Cog Railway which carries visitors to the Mt Washington Observatory
in New Hampshire
opens for its 142nd year. Cog railways or
rack railways, a staple in the Swiss Alps (see Mt Rigi Bahn) actually
began in the United States. New Hampshire native Sylvester Marsh who
had made his fortune in the Chicago meat packing business loved the highest
mountain in the northeast United States, but after becoming lost on the
top in 1852, decided there must be a better way of getting up and back
down again. His idea was joking called a “railway to the moon”.
The steep grade couldn’t provide traction on smooth iron rails
so a system of gear cogs were added to the rails.
On
July 3, 1869, the vertical boiler steam engine called 'Old Peppersass'
became the
first
cog-driven train to climb to the 6,288-foot summit of Mount Washington.
The engine from 1898 even got its own liquor bottle from the Old Boston
Canadian Whisky company. For the first forty years of Cog's operation,
wood-fired
boilers powered the train to the 6,288-foot summit. Around 1910, coal
was introduced. In 2009, Biodeisel engines were introduced to the mountain.
The Mt Washington Cog Railway is offering departure times to the summit
a half an hour earlier this season, with trains leaving at 8:30 a.m.,
or 9:30 a.m. most of the season. This change allows passengers about
an hour of time to check out the summit, as well as free admission to
the Mount Washington Observatory Museum.
The Train ride and Observatory Tour will run on the 2:30 p.m. train
July 12, August 23, September 13 and October 11. Starting on June 18
a steam engine runs everyday starting at 8:30 a.m. Three-hour round
trip tickets are $62 for adults (age 13-64), $57 for seniors (65 and
up), $39 for children (age 4-12) and children age three and under ride
free on an adult’s lap (limited to one child per adult). It’s
a good idea for passengers to arrive a half hour before the train’s
departure.
Special deals are
available for the last trains of the day through most of summer and
fall. A family of two adults and two children save $43
by purchasing a family pass and adults can save $9 per ticket. Tickets
for train rides on the Cog Railway can be purchased at the website.
It is recommended tickets be purchased in advance as the historic railway
journeys to the top can get quite popular in the height of the vacation
season. The Mount Washington Cog Railway is on Base Road, 6 miles off
Route 302 at Bretton Woods, New Hampshire.
For
more information including details for specials" contact The
Cog at 1-800-922-8825 or in New Hampshire at 603-278-5404 .
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