A sacrilicious summit

Sharing Pine Mountain with a Christian camp

The fall foliage is peaking in northern New England. I repeat, THE FALL FOLIAGE IS PEAKING IN NORTHERN NEW ENGLAND. I’ve just returned from a chilly voyage to New Hampshire and I can attest that now is the time to jump on a bus or rev up your car for a passage north. Think about all the people who gamble thousands of bucks on hotel reservations, airfare, or all-inclusive tours for this season, hoping that just maybe they’ll cross into New England during that brief window when the roads and trails have been transformed into corridors of crimson, gold, amber and sienna. The majority of those folks will lose their bets, but by merely subscribing to MIND THE MOSS and opening this week’s newsletter, you’ve rolled boxcars. Congratulations!

Now…go grab your boots and your fuzziest fleece. Because this week we’re paying a visit to what might just be the strangest peak in the White Mountain National Forest. Pine Mountain is a U.S. Forest Service site tucked in the shadows of Mount Madison and partially colonized by a religious organization. One of the mountain’s high points is outfitted with a freestanding cross made of tree limbs, which looms over the valley like something out of Midsommar. A “basecamp” of yurts and cabins is steps away from this cross and during the summertime, when the mountain becomes the hosting grounds for a faith-based summer camp, the summit is partially closed to the general public. But now that the campers have gone home, the fall foliage window coincides with another window: a chance to freely poke around this mysterious, hallowed place.