An Evolving Landscape, White Mountains – It amazes me how much the landscape of the White Mountains changes over time. Many visitors to the White Mountains think of the area as being "stuck in time" because of its national forest designation. The reality is lots of change occurs naturally and by man. I thought it would be interesting to show scenes that no longer exist in the White Mountains. These scenes all disappeared over the last ten years.
Above is what is left of the old bridge abutment along the East Branch & Lincoln Railroad at the Redrock Brook crossing (Franconia Brook Trail) in the Pemigewasset Wilderness. The East Branch & Lincoln Railroad was a logging railroad that operated from 1893-1948. In 2011 high waters from Tropical Storm Irene caused most of the abutment to collapse. You can see what it looked like before Tropical Storm Irene here.
Above is the Resolution shelter, an Adirondack-style shelter that was torn down because of safety issues in December of 2011. It was located off Davis Path in the Dry River Wilderness of the White Mountains. Every time I stayed in this shelter it was during snow storms. It was a cool shelter! See how the Resolution shelter looked when it was being dismantled here.
One of my favorite trail signs in the White Mountain National Forest used to be the green Pemigewasset signs. I always thought these signs defined the character of the Pemi Wilderness. The last time I recall seeing these signs was in 2004 or 2005. I would like to see these signs come back. Maybe a group can campaign to bring them back in the future. You can compare the Pemi signs here.
The above and below footbridges in the Pemigewasset Wilderness are now gone. Forest Service dismantled the suspension bridge (above) in 2009 and the steel bridge (below) in 2010. These bridge removals upset a few of the smaller hiking groups in New England. All I can say is thank god for the Wilderness Act.
The hiker in me finds some of these changes sad, but the photographer in me enjoys being able to document the ever changing White Mountains landscape. I think it would get quite boring photographing the same static environmental scenes over and over. View more scenes that no longer exist in the White Mountains here.
Happy image making..
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Owner of ScenicNH Photography LLC
Erin Paul is a professional photographer, writer, and author who specializes in environmental conservation and historic preservation photography mainly in the New Hampshire White Mountains. His work is published worldwide, and publication credits include: Appalachian Mountain Club, Appalachian Trail Conservancy, Backpacker Magazine, and The Wilderness Society.
ScenicNH Photography LLC
Specializing in environmental conservation and historic preservation photography mainly in the White Mountains region of New Hampshire, Erin Paul’s photography and writing focuses on the history of the White Mountains, and telling the story of abandoned places and forgotten historical sites.