Mount Washington is seen at dawn from North Conway, New Hampshire. Winter adds a whole host of new challenges for those hardy souls who venture up the Northeast's tallest mountain peak.

Gary Gustafson, 58, leads Linda Dewey, 54, up an icy trail on the summit cone of Mount Washington in New Hampshire. The hikers waited about four weeks for a calm day before attempting to climb the mountain that is notorious for its erratic weather.

A sign marks the 6,288-foot summit of Mount Washington, New Hampshire.

Rime ice covers rocks on the summit of Mount Washington in New Hampshire. Rime ice occurs when freezing fog hits stationary objects in frigid conditions.

Nathan Iannuccillo, 23, of Smithfield, R.I., takes a lunch break after climbing more than 4 miles to reach the summit of Mount Washington, New Hampshire. Sharp steel crampons give him traction on the icy trails.

A hiker leaves the summit of Mount Washington, New Hampshire. The snow-covered peaks of the northern presidential range can be seen in the distance. They are, from left, Mounts Clay, Jefferson, Adams and Madison.

Rime ice extends horizontally from a pole at the summit of Mount Washington. Rime forms in the direction of the wind-driven fog that often blows across the summit at hurricane force.

Ryan Eyestone, 31, of Portland, Maine, takes photographs near the weather instrument tower of the Mount Washington Observatory on the summit.

A scientist knocks rime ice off the weather instruments at the top of the Mount Washington Observatory at the summit.

Rime ice extends horizontally from a metal pole at the summit of 6,288-foot Mt. Washington. The Associated Press/Robert F. Bukaty