Have you ever wanted to stay overnight on Mt. Washington in New Hampshire without facing the unpredictable weather? You may soon have the opportunity to do so. WMUR reports that the Mount Washington Cog Railway is proposing adding new luxury lodging on the mountain. There would nine rail cars would be converted into luxury sleeper cabins, in which four separate bedrooms would fit in each sleeper cabin. The rail cars would fit seventy people including staff members between them all, and would also feature a restaurant. A new train station would also be added to shuttle guests between the sleeper cars and the summit. The project would cost $14 million and take between five to seven years to complete.
This follows news from a couple of months ago where the Cog Railway plans got approved for snowcat skiing. They hosted the snowcat skiing for at least one weekend this ski season. There have been hotels in the past on Mt. Washington, but the Cogs proposal for a thirty-five-room hotel on Mt. Washington a couple of years ago was rejected by the local community and environmentalists.
Environmentalists have varying concerns about the project, especially about damaging the mountain’s alpine zone. Various alpine flora and fauna, such as the Robbins Cinquefoil(unique to the White Mountains), and the American Pipit(songbird) could have their habitats wrecked. Then there’s the issue that the sleeper cars clearly aren’t going to fit with the mountains aesthetic. A Change.com petition has amassed nearly 15,000 signatures calling for the termination of these plans. You can view the petition here.
Image/Video Credits: WMUR, The Mount Washington Cog Railway
This article was originally published by Unofficialnetworks.com. Read the original article here.
