The Old Man of the Mountain Returns to New Hampshire

Rejoice! After an almost-two-decade hiatus, The Old Man of the Mountain has been spotted once again in New Hampshire's White Mountains.

What New England's settlers dubbed The Old Man of the Mountain was known by generations of Abenaki as the "Great Stone Face." If you grew up in New England, you know the legend. For years, tourists and visitors in New Hampshire's Franconia Notch would marvel at the rock formation overlooking Profile Lake. Post-Ice Age erosion had carved a face out of the rock. And New Hampshire did all it could to keep those features in place for years.

That all changed on May 3, 2003. Sometime in the wee hours of the morning, the Old Man collapsed. I went on the air at WBCN that day, broke the news, and proceeded to field calls for hours from listeners reminiscing about visiting the Old Man on a drive through the Notch or a stop at Profile Lake. A memorial was dedicated in 2011 and gives you a different view, but something happed just days ago on Mount Washington that brought back the Old Man in a different way.

On the morning of January 27, 2023, the Mount Washington Observatory posted this to their Facebook page:

The post reads: "The Old Man of the Mountain made an appearance out of rime ice! Thanks to our summer summit volunteer Ken for checking out the webcams and letting us know. If you are interested in seeing what it currently looks like on the summit check out our Weather Cams."

Thanks to Mother Nature, Old Man Winter, and a keen-eyed Mount Washington Observatory volunteer, we got The Old Man of the Mountain back, if only for a brief time. Gonna have to add this one to our Wicked Winter Guide!

As we wrap up Dry January, let's break down New England's favorite beers and find out which state loves which style the most.

And when I say "we," I mean "me." I tried Dry January for the first time ever this year. I had overindulged a bit over the holidays, truth be told. Tacked on about 10 pounds courtesy of those rich, holiday-season goodies we all love to eat. Not to mention all the wonderful craft beer I was gifted. I drank most of it during the week between Christmas and New Year's. All things considered, I'm lucky to have gotten away with just the 10 pounds I packed on.

I did make two Dry January exceptions this month, however. After my first runs of the season at Pleasant Mountain in Maine back on the MLK weekend, I did treat myself to an ice-cold Coors Light, my apres-ski beer of choice. And I hoisted one last pint at Essex County Brewing Co. in Peabody with the fellas in the Autism Dad's Group I'm a part of. We've been meeting there monthly for years, and the brewery is moving, so it was a special occasion. Aside from those two examples, however, my January was dry as a bone.

Needless to say, I'm thirsty. So when The Most Popular Type of Beer in Every U.S. State, courtesy of The Shane Co., came across my field of view, my beer-starved brain drank it up. Below, I pour out a pint of each New England state's favorite style of beer. I even spotlight a brewery or packie where you can pick up a four-pack for when Dry January comes to a close. And since there's still plenty of winter left in New England, keep our Wicked Winter Guide handy. Cheers.

Sour Ale

Irish Red Ale

Belgian-Style Ale

Porter

Pale Lager

Pilsner