Old Man of the Mountain is gone

Manchester Union Leader ^ | May 3, 2003 | Staff Reports

[Semaphore Heathcliffe]

Islam is religion of peace

[jennyp]

Mmm, that is sad. I biked thru Franconia Notch in 1977 on an AYH tour. It's a heavenly place.

I think they should scrape the remaining outcrop off the cliff (for a "proper burial", so to speak) and carve something new for the ages into the cliff face.

[Reagan79]

I have seen the Old Man on the Mountain several times when I lived in N.H. New Hampshire is a wonderful state. We need to keep all those Mass. pinkos out. By the way Sultan I am sure glad Chavez saved the game yesterday.

[Dr. Eckleburg]

I saw this a long time ago; wasn't it called Old Indian of the Mountain, or something like that?

[metesky]

Buckeroo Death Spiral

[lsee]

I see them, too! Thanks for the chuckle!

[cantfindagoodscreenname]

You know what's really depressing for me? I live in New Hampshire and we have never visited this. Actually, I'm sure I've seen it at some point in my life since I know I've been to Franconia. But, my ten year old son has been begging me for years to take him there to see it and I just never got around to it. And now it's gone. Fortunately, he took it well.

Candi

[Iwo Jima]

A sign that the old man couldn't take it anymore. The rats have overrun the place so he said I'm outta here.

That's exactly what I thought. He couldn't live free and so he died.

[skinkinthegrass]

hehehehe...:)

[sultan88]

Glad to hear from you, Reagan 79.

[verity]

Retribution for your Democrat governess!;~)

[dansangel]

Thank-you for the explanation. I didn't know who this character was until last evening. Now that I've looked at the link you supplied, it's all very clear.

Too bad we've given notoriety to his warblings. Kind of like all the publicity (bad, but publicity all the same) that Garofalo and the Dixie Chumps have been getting.

[Buckeroo]

[Celantro]

If that's not Sugar Hill, it may as well be. Take a ride through Sugar Hill. Look up Lovitt's Cabin complex right in the area and stay there. Be sure to have breakfast at Polly's Pancake Parlot.

[Aliska]

Take a ride through Sugar Hill

First I'm gonna have to look it up in my atlas :-). Hope it's on there. Sounds like a tiny place. Cabin complex. My kind of place. Didn't know they still had any of those. And I'll bet there is real maple syrup for the pancakes. Yum. And it's a little past noon and I'm just getting around to eating breakfast :-(.

[Aliska]

I really feel a sense of loss over this and I've only been to New Hampshire for part of one afternoon, Nashua for some car races that I don't even remember.

I wonder who first noticed the formation in modern times. Surely the Indians would have been familiar with it. Did some belated research on the net because I was wondering how long that formation was like that and found this:

"The Profile is composed of Conway red granite and is an illusion formed by five ledges, that when lined up correctly give the appearance of an old man with an easterly gaze, clearly distinct and visible from only a very small space near Profile Lake. When viewed from other locations in Franconia Notch, the same five ledges have a very rough and ragged appearance, and there is no suggestion of The Profile.*

"Geological opinion is that The Profile on Profile Mountain is supposed to have been brought forth partly as the result of the melting and slipping away action of the ice sheet that covered the Franconia Mountains at the end of the glacial period, and partly by the action of the frost and ice in crevices, forcing off, and moving about certain rocks and ledges into profile forming positions. It is supposed that the Old Man of the Mountain was completed during the latter part of the post glacial period, from 2,000 to 10,000 years ago.**

"The Old Man is formed on a shoulder of Profile Mountain, which juts out abruptly into space, some 1200 feet above Profile Lake. It is composed of five layers of granite ledge, one exactly above the other, the lateral distance being 25 feet. Of these five layers one forms the chin, another the upper lip, a third the nose and two layers make up the forehead. The Old Man has been measured as being forty feet and five inches in height. It is all together, just as it appears to be when viewed from the road or lake below.*"

Credit: Link

[Celantro]

I spelled "Lovett's" wrong. Here's the link to that place, which is just near Sugar Hill. There's also The Franconia Inn in the area. Here's the link to Polly's Pancake Parlor which you MUST have breakfast at. It's in Sugar Hill.

If you'd like to do the trip on more of a budget, let me know and I'll direct you to much less expensive cabins with kitchenettes, screened porches, pool, barbecue grills, etc.

[Aliska]

Trip on a budget. Like camping out. In a tent. Some of the time anyway. And maybe I'm too old for that. Don't have access to a camper. I can't afford to pay what you have to pay nowadays for overnight lodging except for one or possibly two nights.

That is really kind of you to try to help me. When I travel , if I travel :-(, I don't like to pre-plan anything (except like day places to stop and visit). Have always been that way so I can run off here or there to see something off the beaten path. Wow! Thanks for the link to Polly's. I've been stuck on a gift idea (owe some people 3 years' worth) and I am going to order some of those maple sugar candies. And some for myself. Haven't had one of those for YEARS!

[Celantro]

Okay Aliska,

Let's line you up with an affordable vacation in New Hampshire's White Mountains. The other places I mentioned will not be cheap, but THIS PLACE certainly will be. As you will see, there's a pool, kitchen, screened porch, barbecue, etc. but best of all is that it is centrally located and if you don't mind burning some gas, there's so much to do you'll love the place.

Call the complex above and ask for a weekly rate. They have one and two bedroom cabins. There's a supermarket in the area and you can cook in if you like.

If the place sounds good to you, get back to me and I will give you ideas for things to do in the area that will easily fill up a week's time, assuming you want to be busy every day.

By the way, THIS PLACE is also nice (maybe nicer) and clean but there is no pool.

[Aliska]

Thanks. I don't need a pool. And I can't plan very far ahead. There is a family reunion in Vermont I've never been able to go to and it would be nice to work that in. I'll have to find out when it is going to be this year, if it is going to be.

As far as plans, all I really want to do are try to find the land my gr gr gr grandfather owned in Dalton and where they are buried. My parents went out there in the 60's and took a picture of the stone but I never got the name of the cemetery or thought to find out more details about that trip.

The rest of the time I just would like to drive as much as possible, not in state parks particularly, finding those old birch-lined roads and through those quaint little towns and take bunches of pictures.

I would like to eat at Polly's but I'm not real big on pancakes any more.

Thanks for trying to be helpful. I hate to make plans in advance in case something happens I can't go and then let people down.

I don't want to spend a whole lot of time on genealogy stuff either, but if I stumble across something, I want to be open to that.

Oh, and I would love to trip over to St. Johnsbury and see that. The Cheshire Grill was filmed there and I just loved the setting. Story wasn't too bad but I'm sure there are more interesting stories up around there that aren't being told.

Thanks for taking an interest. I can freep mail you once I know when I can go. I have to check out something in upper New York State for a day or two as well and hoped to work it all together somehow.