The Mount Washington Auto Road (originally Mount Washington Carriage Road) is a 7.6 mi (12.2 km) toll road that extends from New Hampshire Route 16

New Hampshire Route 16

New Hampshire Route 16 is a long north–south highway in the U.S. state of New Hampshire. Much of its length is close to the border with Maine. NH 16 is the main route from the Seacoast region north to the Lakes Region and the White Mountains. The section from Portsmouth to Milton is a...

 in Pinkham Notch

Pinkham Notch

Pinkham Notch is a mountain pass in the White Mountains of north-central New Hampshire, United States. The notch is a result of extensive erosion by the Laurentide ice sheet during the Wisconsinian ice age. Pinkham Notch was eroded into a glacial U-shaped valley whose walls are formed by the...

 to the summit of Mount Washington

Mount Washington (New Hampshire)

Mount Washington is the highest peak in the Northeastern United States at , famous for dangerously erratic weather. For 76 years, a weather observatory on the summit held the record for the highest wind gust directly measured at the Earth's surface, , on the afternoon of April 12, 1934...

 in the White Mountains

White Mountains (New Hampshire)

The White Mountains are a mountain range covering about a quarter of the state of New Hampshire and a small portion of western Maine in the United States. Part of the Appalachian Mountains, they are considered the most rugged mountains in New England...

 of the U.S. state

U.S. state

A U.S. state is any one of the 50 federated states of the United States of America that share sovereignty with the federal government. Because of this shared sovereignty, an American is a citizen both of the federal entity and of his or her state of domicile. Four states use the official title of...

 of New Hampshire

New Hampshire

New Hampshire is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. The state was named after the southern English county of Hampshire. It is bordered by Massachusetts to the south, Vermont to the west, Maine and the Atlantic Ocean to the east, and the Canadian...

. The road climbs 4618 ft (1,408 m) from an altitude of 1527 ft (465 m) at the bottom to 6145 ft (1,873 m) at the top, an average gradient of 11.6%. The road was completed and opened to the public in 1861.

Operations

The Auto Road may be traversed by private vehicles, and they also have guided tours in vans, called stages

Stagecoach

A stagecoach is a type of covered wagon for passengers and goods, strongly sprung and drawn by four horses, usually four-in-hand. Widely used before the introduction of railway transport, it made regular trips between stages or stations, which were places of rest provided for stagecoach travelers...

. The toll on private cars includes a bumper sticker with the text, "THIS CAR CLIMBED MT. WASHINGTON".

Weather sensors

The road has several sensors at various altitudes on it

Events

The oldest auto race in the United States, the Mount Washington Hillclimb Auto Race

Mount Washington Hillclimb Auto Race

The Mount Washington Hillclimb Auto Race, also known as the Climb to the Clouds, is a timed hillclimb auto race up the Mount Washington Auto Road to the summit of Mount Washington in New Hampshire. It is one of the oldest auto races in the country, first run on July 11th and 12th, 1904, predating...

, was hosted on the auto road in 1904.

Every year in June, the mountain road is host to the Mount Washington Road Race, an event which attracts hundreds of runners

Road running

Road running is the sport of running on a measured course over an established road . These events would be classified as long distance according to athletics terminology, with distances typically ranging from 5 kilometers to 42.2 kilometers in the marathon. They may involve large numbers of runners...

.

In July the mountain road hosts Newton's Revenge and in August the Mount Washington Auto Road Bicycle Hillclimb

Mount Washington Auto Road Bicycle Hillclimb

Mount Washington Auto Road Bicycle Hillclimb is an annual American racing event designed to raise money for Albany, New Hampshire's Tin Mountain Conservation Center, which promotes appreciation of the environment.-Background:...

, both of which are bicycle races

Bicycle racing

Bicycle racing is a competition sport in which various types of bicycles are used. There are several categories of bicycle racing including road bicycle racing, cyclo-cross, mountain bike racing, track cycling, BMX, bike trials, and cycle speedway. Bicycle racing is recognised as an Olympic sport...

 that runs the same route as the road race. The hillclimb's most notable victor to date has been former Tour de France

Tour de France

The Tour de France is an annual bicycle race held in France and nearby countries. First staged in 1903, the race covers more than and lasts three weeks. As the best known and most prestigious of cycling's three "Grand Tours", the Tour de France attracts riders and teams from around the world. The...

 contender Tyler Hamilton

Tyler Hamilton

Tyler Hamilton is a former American professional road bicycle racer and former Olympic gold medalist. Hamilton became a professional cyclist in 1995, and during the 1999, 2000 and 2001 Tour de France was a teammate of Lance Armstrong who won those races.Hamilton appeared at the 2000 Summer...

. The climb is regarded as one of the world's toughest for cyclists - it features a greater altitude gain, and is steeper, than the Mortirolo Pass, the Monte Zoncolan

Monte Zoncolan

Monte Zoncolan is a mountain in the Carnic Alps, located in the region of Friuli-Venezia Giulia, Italy. It is one of the most demanding climbs in professional road bicycle racing, having been used in the Giro d'Italia four times and the Giro Donne once...

, and the Alto de El Angliru

Alto de El Angliru

Alto del Angliru is a steep mountain road in Asturias, near La Vega-Riosa, in northern Spain. It is one of the most demanding climbs in professional road bicycle racing...

, and is far steeper than any of the famous climbs featured in the Tour de France.

Another event, although not a race, is the annual MINIs On Top event. Now in its fifth year, the drive to the summit began with 73 BMW MINI Cooper and Cooper S vehicles and now exceeds 200 cars. The only reason more MINIs don't drive to the summit is the fact there's not enough space to hold all the cars, despite their diminutive size. MINIs On Top (or MOT) is held the Saturday of Father's Day weekend every June.