Mt. Moosilauke (1936) - Summit Camp Hospitality
". . . We decided to climb Moosilauke and to see for ourselves what it was like on top. Accordingly after getting directions for finding the foot of the trail from Ford Sayre at the Hanover Inn, my husband and I set out in beautiful weather last Saturday forenoon. Ford remarked that the trail was four miles long, but it seemed like six; however, that did not deter us as we are used to hiking and climbing.
We made the climb in three and a half hours of actual going, which seems pretty good for an "elderly couple" like ourselves. John Hardham '36, the "Hutmaster" welcomed us and brewed a cup of tea for our warmth and comfort, and then we looked around a bit. It was very cold and windy on top, but the view was fine and with the map, we located most of the outstanding peaks, lakes, and towns.
The big living room or lobby faced the south and west and was warmed by an old oil-burning heating stove, a huge fire-place and a small portable oil heater. Couches, settees, and easy chairs provided ample lounging places; maps, photographs, and historical write-ups decorated the walls; the dining room was gay with travel posters from many lands and clever murals painted by Oliver Butterworth representing men and women in sports costumes of various kinds.
But the heart of the cabin, house or hut, as it is variously called, is undoubtedly the kitchen with all necessary equipment for feeding a large number of people; in fact, they had served ninety people at dinner one day last week! Camp Hanoum girls and counselors were among the guests.
The boys of the "crew" take turns cooking and packing supplies up the mountain. Saturday night Jim Brigden '39 was at the helm and such a dinner as he served! Baked ham, all brown and crispy outside, stuck with cloves and juicy and tender inside, diced and buttered carrots, boiled potatoes, delicious Parker House rolls, steamed blueberry pudding with vanilla sauce, and tea. Dr. Loveland carved the ham and I served the pudding.
Just after dinner, Walter Averill '38, tall and dark-haired and wiry, arrived with his pack weighing 82 pounds, with butter, eggs, meat, fresh vegetables, etc., in the dark and rain. He protested it was nothing; that he was used to it, but to us, it seemed a marvellous feat.
There were twenty five all told, seven were women; six Dartmouth boys are there temporarily working on the trails. Some of the hikers availed themselves of the Winter Cabin just below the big house, which the DOC has kindly given for use as a Youth Hostel, but we all spent the evening together in the living room.
One of the boys of the crew (we will call him Dick Aylward) acted as host, and a royal one he was, too. He kept the fire going; produced blankets and a mattress; then gently "tucked in" the three who lay on it in front of the fire, and the two who lay cuddled together on the couch near by; then he played on the Victrola the finest of music: Wagner, Beethoven, Strauss, etc.
The candles had by this time sputtered out and there was no light except from the fire; the wind was howling wildly and the rain beat upon the windows; just the time and place for a ghost story! John Hardham spun one full of creepy details which ended in a grand climax: a loud, reverberating cannon shot!
That night the wind blew so through the closed window of our room that our candle would have blown out had we not moved the table. All night it howled and a loose shutter banged and it was very cold, so that we can't recommend the Summit House as a suitable place for a quiet, restful sleep, but that never bothers the young people!
Next morning after a good breakfast prepared by Walter this time, we set out for the foot of the mountain in a thick blanket of fog, high wind and penetrating cold; however, as soon as we got into the trees, we found shelter from the wind, the fog cleared and the sun came out and the rest of our way down was perfectly delightful!"
From "Summit House Visit" by Lillian S. Loveland, Hanover Gazette, 1936.
