Mt. Wachusett - Summit Enhancement: 11/05/11

The fate of the country does not depend on how you vote at the polls — the worst man is as strong as the best at that game; it does not depend on what kind of paper you drop into the ballot-box once a year, but on what kind of man you drop from your chamber into the street every morning.

Henry David Thoreau - Slavery in Massachusetts - 1854

Snow on the Approach

Winter is coming! Better hurry up. It's getting too cold to work up here!

Twin (Fraternal) Towers

Cab Closeup - NE Corner

Today’s sunrise @ 7:22 am was the latest until 2016. Last year's November 6th sunrise, at 7:30am, was the latest since 1974 and will be the latest until 2021.

A cold, clear sky looked down upon the summit of Wachusett this morning. And the gusting winds made it even colder. At the ski hut on the summit, it registered just under 30 deg. F.

Progress since my last visit the weekend before last has slowed - at least what one can see from the ground. Of course, we have also had considerable wet weather as well as a completely unexpected 15 - 20" dump of snow last Saturday!!!

The shingles on the roof have not been applied. Otherwise, it appears to be complete and ready for the crow's nest that will house the electronic equipment such as antennas. Exterior siding has been placed on the eastern face. The open "windows" have been covered in plastic sheet, surely to protect the workers in the cab.

Detail - underside of flooring in Cab

Looking from below the cab, we can see the rectangular trap door that will undoubtedly serve as the hatch for the rangers to enter the cab. The joist work and framing are certainly interesting. No one is going to fall through the floor up there, that's for sure.

Flooring Detail - North Side

SE Corner

Notice a hanging chad just below the cab inside the left-most vertical beam! Wonder if that was intentional or if it got loose?

Here's another view....

Hanging chad?

This section of the tower is supported by cross beams attached to a rectangular plate in the middle. This structure appears on all four sides ... but the western side the plate is attached with only three of the beams; the fourth beam appears to be hanging from the corner post.

Still no Roof.

As yet, there is no ladder structure that goes from the observation deck to the cab. Some framework laying on the ground however may be part of that structure. But these silver colored beams are kind of nondescript. No telling where they might go... perhaps as support for the roof of the main base?? Once again, I can see blue sky from the open door to the base so that is not yet complete - and certainly before this is all wrapped up, there will be a door in place to fill in the door-jam!

Hmmm? Wonder Where These Go?

And yet another new piece of construction material. Now this must be wood for the ramp.

Wooden Tread for the Ramps?

Facade of the Eastern Wall

The Facade continues. Below we have some of the working tools of the stonemason.

Mixer and Cement Carrier

Just how cold do you think it gets doing stone masonry work on the Summit of Wachusett?

Western Wall

Notice to the lower left of the wall a trench has been dug that apparently runs under the building foundation. I noticed a wire that seemed to go "into" the structure at that point. Perhaps phone wires since they would have to come from outside the building.