Mountaineering may seem like a useless and excruciating endeavor. Why would anyone put themselves through the pain and toil of trudging up a mountain for little reward?

Though hikers and climbers know, the reward is in the doing. The reward is in the challenge and witnessing the grandeur of Mother Nature. Its about changing your perspective. Upon a snow swept, windy and oxygen depleted summit, your mind becomes still.

The Most Dangerous Small Mountain

Climbing the highest mountain in the Northeastern United States is no easy feat, but from examining its modest 6,221ft height, it can initially appear not so intimidating.

Mount Washington in The White Mountains of New Hampshire, is at the epicenter of the convergence of northern weather fronts, which causes pressure to rip up over its summit producing routine hurricane force winds and crazy winter weather which can manifest in all seasons. It has been called the most dangerous small mountain in the world because of these unique conditions and its modest height, along with it’s accessibility have contributed to the more than 160 deaths which have occurred on the peak since 1869. On average, a rescue team is called to assist hikers in duress about 25 times a year, in all seasons.

The Mount Washington Observatory which was built at the summit in 1932, is occupied year round by Scientists who monitor the mountain’s unique weather every day. In the summertime, visitors can ride a railway to the summit and visit the observatory, or they can drive their car on the Mount Washington Auto road which is cleared of snow by June.

This fairly easy access in the summer months makes the mountain appear quite tame and safe to many, which unfortunately leads many unprepared and unknowledgeable hikers to one of the numerous routes and trails on the peak.

Just this November, over 20 unprepared hikers had to be rescued after finding themselves in blizzard conditions near the summit while lacking winter hiking gear. Many of these hikers assumed the Observatory would be open for them to take shelter, but of course it closes to visitors in October.

Winter Hike December 2025

I have now climbed to the summit of Mount Washington on 4 different occasions. My first time was with a Guide in March of 2018 up the Amonoussuc Ravine trail. My second summit was up the Lions head winter route in January of 2023. The third, in the month of August over The Presidential Traverse which scales all the highest peaks in The White Mountains.

My fourth summit was through the west facing slope near the Cog Railway tracks. It was about an hour drive to the trailhead from North Woodstock. I came with my 70 liter pack, and a complete layering system: Base layer, First fleece, Second fleece, Parka and Wind Jacket. For my lower body, I wore long underwear, Vermont tough wool socks, climbing pants and Wind pants. The outer two layers (Parka, Wind Jacket and Pants) remained in my pack for most of the climb. I also had three different sets of gloves, ranging from a thin glove, to the ski glove, to wool mittens.

I decided against crampons and leather boots and went with hiking shoes and microspikes. I also left my ice axe at home and instead went with trekking poles. While the Lions Head Route certainly requires an ice axe and crampons, my research indicated that I could do without these tools for this particular route along the COG.

Today, there were other hikers and skiers out on the route and I saw about 12 others skinning up the route on skis. Others had snow shoes.

The route was steep and quite a trudge, though not technical in any sense like Huntington’s Ravine or Tuckerman’s which required ropes and ice tools. The biggest hazard in the beginning, seemed to be keeping an eye out for skiers tearing down the slopes.

Most of these skiers didnt climb all the way to the summit, rather they stopped at the 4000ft marker.

The higher I climbed, the more spectacular the views became and I began to feel that familiar mountain high. The White Mountains of New Hampshire, may be quite small to other North American Ranges, but you wouldnt know it being half way to the summit on the side of them. There was still elevation gain here, along with steep ridges and an icy arctic tundra in the alpine zone which was carved by hurricane forces winds.

As I neared the summit, the view of Mount Clay, Mount Jefferson and the rest of the Northern Presidential Range glowed in an icy white panorama.

The climb to be sure, was still exhausting and a difficult physical process. It was just essentially one foot in front of the other, while being assaulted by sharp gusts of wind. I was forced to put on all my layers at this point, while completely covering my face with a thick balaclava. Exposed skin here was just frost bite in the making.

Arriving at the summit, I wasnt alone, as there were about 6 other hikers who also completed their climbs. The Observatory building was completely iced over and appeared like a small outpost in antarctica. The hearty scientists were hunkered down inside, and continued their 24 hour monitoring of some of the harshest and most unique weather in North America.

For a few moments, I found that stillness of mind, which temporarily transcended my tired body. Scanning the glorious surrounding Presidential Mountain range, there was that space and freedom.

I could only take a couple minutes though, as the cold and wind prevented prolonged idleness.

Beginning the descent, as is typical of type 2 fun endeavors, the stillness of mind faded into thoughts of Cheeseburgers and fries.

After about 5 hours of climbing, I returned to the parking lot at the base of the trail and COG railway.

Upon completing this fourth summit of the highest mountain of the Northeast, and considering my other climbing achievements in The Whites and across the country, I feel I am now able to analyze the appeal and hazards of these mountains.

To be sure, reading about Mount Washington and its hazards are one thing, it’s a completely different task trudging up its slopes and standing at the summit. It was abundantly clear how folks have continuously gotten themselves into trouble in these peaks.

Deceiving Features of Mount Washington

Mount Washington is deceiving because of three important features:

1. Its modest height. At 6,288ft, the mountain is seemingly much smaller compared to the more popular Rocky Mountain Range in the western half of the United States. For the uninformed and ill prepared, there is a basic assumption that because Washington is much shorter than the 14ers of Colorado, this means it’s a much easier climbing objective. Besides the altitude, Mount Washington and the other peaks in The Whites, have some of the same hazardous features as bigger mountains out west, including avalanches. Also, people fail to take into account, elevation gain and prominence. Many hikes of 14,000ft mountains in Colorado begin at or close to 10,000ft. That is of course about 4000ft of elevation gain during a hike. Depending on the route on Mount Washington, you can get anywhere from 3800 to well over 5000ft of elevation gain. In comparison, the North Ridge trail on Mount Elbert (14,440ft) in Colorado gives one about 4400ft of elevation gain.
2. The Auto Road Access and Cog Railway Effect. Because the Railway and Auto road provide access to the summit of Mount Washington during the summer months, this makes the mountain appear quite pedestrian and tame. Many people assume that because you can drive to the summit in the Summer and visit the Observatory, it probably is fairly safe hike as well. This false assumption also leads folks to believe that the Observatory is open during the Winter months as well, which it obviously is not.
3. The Unpredictability of the Weather. Yes most folks know that the weather on Mount Washington is crazy, but they dont know just how crazy. There can be blizzard conditions in any month of the year and the temperature in the winter months can quickly drop below -40 degrees with windchill. With routine 80mph plus gusts, and white out conditions, there is a reason why many Mountaineers use Washington as a training ground for higher mountains across the world.