White Mountains (New Hampshire)
Coordinates: 44°16′16″N 71°18′18″W / 44.271°N 71.305°W / 44.271; -71.305
| White Mountains | |
| Range | |
| Looking south on the Franconia Ridge Trail. Near peaks are Mount Flume (left) and Mount Liberty (center). | |
| Country | United States |
|---|---|
| States | New Hampshire, Maine |
| Region | New England |
| Part of | Appalachian Mountains |
| Highest point | Mount Washington |
| - elevation | 6,288 ft (1,917 m) |
| - coordinates | 44°16′15″N 71°18′12.5″W / 44.27083°N 71.303472°W / 44.27083; -71.303472 |
The White Mountains are a mountain range covering about a quarter of the state of New Hampshire and a small portion of western Maine in the United States. Part of the northern Appalachian Mountains, they are the most rugged mountains in New England. The range is heavily visited due to its proximity to Boston and (to a lesser extent) New York City.
Most of the area is public land, including the White Mountain National Forest as well as a number of state parks. Its most famous peak is Mount Washington, which at 6,288 feet (1,917 m) is the highest mountain in the Northeastern U.S. and home to the fastest surface wind gust (231 miles per hour (372 km/h), over 100 m/s, in 1934) measured in the Northern Hemisphere. Mount Washington is one of a line of summits called the Presidential Range, many of which are named after U.S. presidents and other prominent Americans.
In addition, the White Mountains include several smaller groups including the Franconia Range, Sandwich Range, Carter-Moriah Range, Kinsman Range and Pilot Range. In all, there are forty-eight peaks over 4,000', known as a group as the Four-thousand footers.
The Whites are known for their system of alpine huts for hikers, operated by the Appalachian Mountain Club. The Appalachian Trail crosses the area from southwest to northeast.
Read more about White Mountains (New Hampshire): Origin of Name, Geology and Physiography, Attractions, Maps, Art, Literature
Famous quotes containing the words white and/or mountains:
“Less smooth than her Skin and less white than her breast
Was this pollisht stone beneath which she lyes prest
Stop, Reader, and Sigh while thou thinkst on the rest
With a just trim of Virtue her Soul was endu’d
Not affectedly Pious nor secretly lewd,
She cut even between the Cocquet and the Prude.”
—Matthew Prior (1664–1721)
“The mountains look on Marathon—
And Marathon looks on the sea;
And musing there an hour alone,
I dreamed that Greece might still be free;
For standing on the Persians’ grave,
I could not deem myself a slave.”
—George Gordon Noel Byron (1788–1824)