THE GLEN HOUSE,
Previously mentioned as a fine hostelry, is the terminus of the stage line. Here you will meet guests who have come by stage from Gorham, eight miles distant, on the Grand Trunk Railway, or from the summit of Mount Washington, by the carriage road already described. This location is more than sixteen hundred feet above sea-level, and the clear, bracing atmosphere, the magnificent scenery, and the delightful drives in several directions, together with the excellent manner in which the hotel is kept, are sufficient to account for its popularity and success. In the matter of stage-line management, it probably has no superior in the world, that which conveys the passengers up the carriage road to the summit of Mount Washington being notably superior in point of equipment, and the well-known skill of its drivers.
Excursions may be made from here to the Carter Notch, Osgood’s Cascades, Summit of Mount Madison, Garnet Pools, Emerald Pool, Thompson’s Falls, Glen-Ellis Falls, Crystal Cascade, Tuckerman’s Ravine, and many other places of more than ordinary interest.
APPROACH TO NORTH CONWAY.—P. & O. R. R.
But again taking up our line of travel at Glen Station, the train soon emerges upon the beautiful Conway Intervales, Intervale Station being the next stopping place. The Intervale House, near by, is a pleasant abode for those who choose to tarry. A short distance beyond is North Conway, a village of multitudinous attractions, and with a popularity as a summer resort that is surprising to the casual visitor, who, although seeing much to admire, fails to comprehend the peculiar combinations which bring people year after year to spend their summers in the vicinity. Superficially, the most attractive objects conspicuously visible are the hotels. The spacious Kiarsarge House seems a veritable paradise for the traveler, and its tables are unexcelled. The views from its verandahs are superior, comprising the mountain ranges, the famous Pequaket or Kiarsarge Mountain, and the lovely Intervales, upon which the village is situated. The mountain from which the hotel receives its name is about three miles from the village, and the ascent may be made in the saddle or on foot. The altitude is 3,367 feet, and the view from the summit comprises the entire White Mountain Range, together with Mote Mountain, Rattlesnake Ridge, Sebago Lake with other bodies of water of less magnitude, and a stretch of landscape in every direction most pleasing to the eye, less grand and rugged, to be sure, than that we have been describing, but on that account more restful to the senses.
KIARSARGE HOUSE AND MOUNTAIN.—DISTANT VIEW.
The other attractions at North Conway consist of Artist’s Falls, Echo Lake, the Cathedral and Ledges, Diana’s Baths, the Devil’s Den, and a host of lovely drives in various directions, with sylvan paths for pedestrianism ad libitum.
Conway Center, five miles southeast of North Conway, is the next station, and has many charms as a summer resort. Mount Chocorua, with a sharp pinnacle, towering up 3,540 feet above sea-level, is reached from here to good advantage, as is also Walker Pond, a short distance south of the town.
We are now in the “smiling valley” of the Saco River, in the midst of cultivated farms and peaceful villages, in striking contrast with the scenery just left behind. Crossing the boundary line between New Hampshire and Maine, our next station is Fryeburg, which some poetic writer has called the “Queen of the Saco Valley.” It is indeed a lovely town, embowered in deep foliage, and affording the visitor most delightful drives. Jockey Cap, a huge granite pile, is near the village; and close by is Lovewell’s Pond, the scene of an Indian battle in 1725. Mount Pleasant is only seven miles distant, and has upon its summit a fine hotel.
MOUNT KIARSARGE, OR PEQUAKET.
Passing in quick succession the stations of Brownfield, Hiram, the three Baldwins, and Steep Falls, we reach