Like any mountainous area, the White Mountains feature attractions that involve moving oneself closer to the action. You can drive to the top of Mt. Washington (6,288 feet), take a cog railway, or hike to the summit. We stayed a little closer to sea level, but we still took a perfect mountain hike.

The Flume Gorge Trail in Franconia Notch takes visitors up a crevasse into the heart of Mount Liberty. We hiked past streams, waterfalls, boulders and across covered bridges.

A boardwalk and stairs took us close enough to the walls and water that, well, let’s just say I didn’t linger in some of the scarier stretches. Now I learn from the website that the boardwalk and stairs are removed at the end of the month for the winter. Mt. Washington is expecting snow today. The fairytale world of red-treed peaks is ephemeral. It’s vanishing, leaf by leaf and flake by flake, even as I write this post.