Two experienced hikers were rescued after an hours-long ordeal in which they became stranded in waist-deep snow and whiteout conditions on New Hampshire’s challenging Mount Washington.

The temperature at the summit was 2 degrees below zero (minus 19 Celsius), with sustained winds of 50 to 60 mph (80 to 96 kph) at the time, Holmes said. McKee and LeLacheur were stuck at an ...

By late Sunday, the Mount Washington State Park snowcat, a ski resort groomer-type vehicle, started up the mountain’s auto road with nine rescuers and arrived at the summit just before midnight.

“That snow has nothing to stick to,” said Amy Cotter, a weather observer and education specialist with the Mount Washington Observatory at the peak at 6,288 feet (1,916 meters). “That snow gets ...

“That snow has nothing to stick to,” said Amy Cotter, a weather observer and education specialist with the Mount Washington Observatory at the peak at 6,288 feet (1,916 meters). “That snow gets ...

This image provided by the New Hampshire Fish and Game Department shows rescue hikers leaving on foot from the summit, on Mount Washington, N.H., Sunday, Feb. 2, 2025.

“That snow has nothing to stick to,” said Amy Cotter, a weather observer and education specialist with the Mount Washington Observatory at the peak at 6,288 feet (1,916 meters).

The two friends had hiked New Hampshire’s challenging Mount Washington trail a month ago. They returned and did it again Sunday after trekking through neighboring peaks in the White Mountains ...