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The Old Man of the Mountain - Page 2

© Christina Coruth

Upon seeing the Old Man for the first time when I was a child, I thought he was magical. As an adult, it's still a joy when that pile of ledges appears to magically transform itself into New Hampshire's Old Man of the Mountain. I leave you with the words that captured the essence of the experience -- Nathaniel Hawthorne:

"It seemed as if an enormous giant, or a Titan, had sculptured his own likeness on the precipice. There was the broad arch of the forehead, a hundred feet in height; the nose, with its long bridge; and the vast lips, which, if they could have spoken, would have rolled their thunder accents from one end of the valley to the other. True it is, that if the spectator approached too near, he lost the outline of the gigantic visage, and could discern only a heap of ponderous and gigantic rocks, piled in chaotic ruin one upon another. Retracing his steps, however, the wondrous features would again be seen; and the further he withdrew from them, the more like a human face, with all its original divinity intact, did they appear; until, as it grew dim in the distance, with the clouds and glorified vapor of the mountains clustering about it, the Great Stone Face seemed positively to be alive."

My source for the history of the repair work:
Back Porch Tales by Karl M Frost & Evelyn M Ellingson, 1974, in the USA.

Nathaniel Hawthorne's The Great Stone Face
http://www.pagebypagebooks.com/Nathaniel...

Old Man of the Mountain Museum
http://www.allroutes.to/franconia/manmus...
Great photos of repair work on the Old Man, climbers, memorabilia, and EH Geddes. Excellent, well worth the load time caused by the many wonderful graphics!

Franconia Notch State Park
http://www.visitwhitemountains.com/franc...

Visit NH
How to get a free Vacation planning kit
http://www.visitwhitemountains.com/

Directions to the best areas to view the Old Man, scroll to the bottom.
http://www.mutha.com/oldmanmt.html

Map of Franconia area -- Old Man & Cannon Mountain
http://www.cs.dartmouth.edu/whites/photo...
Franconia, Cannon Mountain, & Old Man
http://www.cs.dartmouth.edu/whites/franc...

Appalachian Mountain Club
http://www.outdoors.org/
Find clubs in your area.

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