Thursday March 29, 2007

Harold and I went rock climbing today but my camera broke so I do not have any pictures of my first day of rock this year. I talked with Harold last night and we discussed an ascent of Mount Washington or some rock. The forecast for Mount Washington was a clear, cold, windy day that would feel more like winter than spring. The valley however was to be in the 40's with wind out of the NNW. I suggested doing an ascent of Upper Refuse because of its SSE facing nature and it would be out of the wind and sunny for a good part of the day. I looked at it yesterday and it looked dry and there didn't appear to be too much ice above it. My concern comes from the history of the Black Crack holding ice. This year however there was some thin ice from some overnight freezing but I could not see anything substantial in the crack.

To get to the route we hiked up the road to the top of the cliff. From there we hiked down to the top of the Barber Wall and rappelled down a very wet Nutcracker. We then crossed the Tree Covered Ledge to the base of Upper Refuse. The road was about 30% bare with ice and snow making up the remaining 70%. The trail down from the summit and the Tree Covered Ledge was mostly bare. The climb itself was wet for the first 25 feet with water weeping out of the Black Crack but the remainder of the route was bone dry. We did the route in four pitches to the fence at the top of the cliff. We ended the first pitch at the pins on the ledge below the crux corner. From there we ended the second pitch at the trees then finished the third pitch at the top of the ramp where the appearing and disappearing pitons are or are not as the case may be. Today the pitons were not there; I can't remember if they were there the last time I did it in the fall.

From the top of the ramp we climbed the last pitch to the summit. As we were changing our shoes I looked over to the Thin Air Face and saw a group climbing what appeared to be a wet Thin Air. It was great to see another party on the cliff. My take on the condition of the cliff is that there is a lot less ice on this year than there has been in the past. Areas like the Mordor Wall and below Super Goofers (Still in Saigon to Thin Air) still have ice threatening it. I would guess there is some ice in the Standard Route on Cathedral also. Having said that, I think we can expect an early start to the rock season. My drive around yesterday made me think it looked more like the first or second week of April. One good rain storm will go a long way to clearing out the rest of the snow and most of the ice. In other words "it's time to rock" (or ski!!!).

 

Tuesday March 27, 2007

Harold entering the Cave on Standard

I have been climbing with Harold during the last week of March or the first week of April for the past eight years. When he first booked, I told him that ice might not exist in Crawford Notch and weather or conditions could shut us down on Mount Washington. He said how about rock climbing or skiing? I told him that there would be a couple of days during the week that we could do something but I wouldn't know exactly what until a couple of days in advance. Harold was game for whatever activity the conditions would permit. He came with all is gear, skis, rock shoes, ice tools and double boots. We had a great time that first year doing a number of things. This year, we've planned to go out for two days. The weather forecast on Sunday night said that temperatures would go below freezing then become mostly cloudy during the day Monday. So ice climbing was our activity yesterday.

We arrived at the Frankenstein parking lot and there was one car there. As we started walking down the railroad tracks we met two climbers heading back from the cliffs. They had wanted to climb certain routes but they were not in and decided to leave. They said Standard looked fine but they had opted not to do that route. As it turned out, we had Frankenstein to ourselves for the remainder of the day.

As I had hoped, Standard was good for the day. There is no question that soon it won't be a good idea to climb, but exactly when is anybody's guess. I'll leave it at "it won't be long". Interestingly enough, it started to rain as we walked out on Monday. I also got a report about Shoestring from someone who climbed it yesterday. Again it was climbable but it won't be long before it is melted out as well.

I am hoping that Harold and I can do some rock climbing this week. Right now we have Thursday lined up for our next day together. I will check out Cathedral tomorrow to see if any of the moderate rock climbs are in shape.

The thinning second pitch of Standard

Harold topping out on the second pitch

Fading away

Sunday March 25, 2007

Dan approaching Huntington Ravine

Spring conditions are starting to really set in. I was in Huntington Ravine on Friday and I did a day of ice climbing at Frankenstein on Saturday. Both areas are looking very spring like. The south facing gullies of Huntington look very baked and if the warmth continues it may not last very long. At Frankenstein there is very little left. I ended up doing Standard and given its condition I would assume Dracula is OK for awhile longer but I didn't get a very good look at it. One thing I can say with pretty good certainty is that ice season is almost over at Frankenstein and I doubt it will last to next weekend.

Friday I met Dan at the Pinkham Notch Visitors Center at 8am. We got our gear organized and started up towards the ravine. Dan wanted to get some experience climbing alpine gullies. He had done some rock but had never really used ice axe or crampons before. My initial thought was that we would head to Central but the day was warm and the snow in Huntington was soft enough to boot up the fan. I was worried that the snow being soft would make Central too simple for the kind of day Dan wanted so we talked some and discussed Odell's Gully. We settled on Odell's for a couple of reasons. First the soft snow in Central could make it almost unnecessary for crampons except for the short ice bulge, plus there appeared to be a party of three heading for Central ahead of us.

As we headed up to Odell's we noticed that a party was high in the gully and would probably top out before we roped up. The ice was soft and in good condition for learning how to crampon. We climbed the ice section in two pitches. Then we moved together in a short rope mode kicking steps easily up the snow to the Alpine Garden. The weather was supposed to clear but the mountain above the ravine was in a fog, in the end it never cleared. From the Alpine Garden we headed up the far north end of the East Snowfields. The snow this high was firm and perfect cramponing. We made good time to the summit climbing this good snow.

From the summit we descended the Tuckerman Ravine Trail to the Lion's Head Trail. Once we reached the top of Lobster Claw Gully we started down to the floor of Tucks. The snow in that gully was still the breakable crust that I had seen on Monday and Wednesday in Tucks, but it had deteriorated somewhat in the warmth and was starting to look like we might be rid of this crust soon. It may have even metamorphosed by Saturday. The crust prevented us from glissading but we were able to heel plunge down without crampons. In the end Dan got a wide variety of snow conditions which allowed him to get a substantial amount of experience on snow and ice in this one ascent.

Bruce and Leslie in the Cave

Saturday I climbed with Leslie and Bruce. Leslie had done some general mountaineering in Ecuador and they both had a little climbing wall experience but neither had done any outdoor ice or rock climbing. Given the soft and warm conditions on Saturday, I decided that although Standard might seem aggressive, the conditions would make it a good objective. We started by heading up the right side to the Cave. They both climbed that section well so we rappelled off and set up again to go up the center back up to the Cave. This steeper first pitch went well so it seemed prudent to continue up the second pitch. Again both were climbing well and were having fun. The last pitch brought us to the trees at the top and both were able to handle the last steep column. It was nice to see two new climbers being able to climb such a good route for their first experience. From the top we did the walk down back to our packs on the railroad tracks and back to town.

As I said above, there is very little left at Frankenstein. The Amphitheater is pretty much done. The only climb I could see getting on might be the Rock Finish, but that might be hard to do comfortably with the steep ice on Pegasus hanging over you. Standard may be OK for awhile during the week but if it stays warm it will be questionable for the weekend. I may be heading up to climb Standard early this week so if I do I will keep you posted as to its condition.

Dan climbing the ice in Odell's

A foggy Alpine Garden

Dan on the summit

A blown out Little Headwall

Leslie and Bruce on the 2nd pitch of Standard

Bruce topping out on the second pitch

A disappearing Standard Route

 

Thursday March 22, 2007

Jerry and Shane skinning up the Tuck's Trail

Yesterday was the first full day of spring and it was beautiful. Clear skies and moderate temperatures, a perfect day to go to Mount Washington. What spring means to me is a shift from climbing to skiing. I will still be doing some more climbing but I am beginning to shift my gear to accommodate the upcoming ski season. So in recognition of the change of season my day on the mountain yesterday was focused on skiing. With a perfect day on the mountain I went up there with Jerry and his son Shane. Shane had been in Tuckerman's skiing/riding before but his dad had never been up.

Our day started early so we could set up gear etc. We met in town at 7am and I got a pair of alpine touring skis adjusted for Jerry, he would be using his lift service boots for the day, Shane would be using a splitboard. We also got crampons and avalanche gear sorted out. The process went quickly and we were soon headed up to Pinkham.

We started skinning up and Jerry took to the technique quickly. After a pleasant shuffle up to Hermit Lake we took a break enjoying the sun on the deck. It truly felt like spring and that feels like skiing to me. From Hermit Lake we chose to walk up the Tuck's Trail rather than try to skin up the Little Headwall. Once we arrived near the floor of the ravine Jerry and I stated to skin again, Shane kept walking. Because the splitboard is so wide and does not have edges on all four sides (Shane had made his own splitboard) we figured he would have to boot up from the floor. I wanted Jerry to keep his skis on as much as possible.

Arriving on the floor of the ravine

Our goal was to get to the mouth of Right Gully. Jerry and I skinned our way there while Shane booted. We arrived at the mouth of the gully at about the same time. There was a great natural snow ledge there and Jerry was happy to make that his high point. The three of us talked and decided that Shane and I would ascend the rest of the way to the Alpine Garden and ski/ride from there. Jerry would hang out on the ledge taking in the warmth of the sun and a great view.

Shane continued booting following the tracks the USFS Snowranger had laid earlier that day during his tour of the ravine to gather data for the forecast. I continued to skin. Soon we hit some horrible snow and I also started to boot up. Matter of fact the snow in most of the ravine was not great. Since the last storm there has been a breakable crust with loose sugar type snow below . We had been on a wind slab surface that was more like packed powder up to that point but the blown in snow no longer covered the breakable crust and it was terrible postholing. We moved to the far right where the snow was more shallow and got to the Alpine Garden a little while later.

Shane and I discussed our plan some more. The wind blown snow was going to be the only surface we could ski or ride so we had the choice of skiing a small tongue of it down Right Gully to where it got larger or the Sluice which was was filled in and finally the Lip also had the wind blown snow surface. The decision was to head for the Lip. We hiked over on the Alpine Garden Trail and geared up for our descent.

The start of the run was a little icy but we soon hit the softer snow. I went first to check out the snow and found it to be pretty good. I stopped just below the ice cliffs so Shane could start down and continue to the bottom. Once Shane got down I skied a bit further then made a traverse to Jerry. Jerry and I then headed down to the floor to meet up with Shane.

From the floor we walked to Hermit Lake. The breakable crust was the only surface from the floor to Hermit Lake and we didn't want to have anything to do with that. From Hermit Lake we skied/rode down the Sherburne Ski Trail. The Sherburne is in good shape with good coverage. It was a bit icy but fun to ski down. All in all the snow conditions could have been better but he weather was spectacular!

Jerry and Shane enjoying the sunny and warm deck

Shane booting up Right Gully with his dad in the background

 

Shane getting ready for the run on the Lip

Shane, the first rider on the lip this spring!

Making spring turns

 

Tuesday March 20, 2007

Warm and calm conditions when we break tree line

Yesterday (the last full day of winter) I got to climb Mount Washington with Heros and Tom. Heros had made an attempt with me and his friend Terry on Feb 19, you can read about that in the Feb 20th post. Yesterday was a much nicer day than the last attempt. We ascended the Lion's Head Trail which was in good shape. We were the first that day to climb that trail and the wind from the previous evening had blown it in so we had to break some trail. When we broke tree line it was a nice temperature with calm winds. It stayed that way till just after the top of Lion's Head. At that point the sky that had been clear was starting to get cloudy and the wind picked up somewhat. We climbed the last mile to the summit where the winds were still light but the combination of that and the temperatures made it feel more like winter than it had earlier.

We decided to to descend down through Tuckerman Ravine via the Lobster Claw Gully. The Lip, Sluice and Right Gully had some new blown in snow but Lobster Claw had the crust surface created during the Friday night storm. This diminished the avalanche hazard but the crust was a difficult breakable variety. The easiest way to descend it was for one of us to break it up by downclimbing while the others glissaded the broken trench. In the end it was still easier than walking down the Lion's Head Trail. From the floor of the ravine we headed down to Hermit Lake, from there the Tuck's Trail is in great shape and we easily made our way down to Pinkham.

Left Gully and the Chute

The East Snowfield

The breakable crust and the new windblown snow above the Lip

Heros and Tom on the summit

 

Sunday March 18, 2007

Gearing up on the floor of Tuckerman Ravine

On Friday I did an ascent of Mount Washington with Bryan, Peter, and Steve. A Nor'easter was predicted to hit Mount Washington that evening but the day brought the classic "calm before the storm" conditions. The rain and warmth of Thursday turned the snow on Mount Washington to a solid mass that was perfect for cramponing. As a matter of fact, I kept thinking what the snow would have been like if it had gotten a bit warmer or sunny that day. All I could see in my imagination was a perfectly smooth corn surface that would be perfect to ski. Instead the surface never softened under the thickening cloud cover of the approaching storm. But, the conditions were perfect for climbing.

Because of the good cramponing conditions, I chose to go through Tuckerman Ravine and climb Right Gully to the East Snowfields. This was the first time Bryan, Peter and Steve had ever used crampons and they had picked a great day to start. After a quick hike to Hermit Lake, we took a break on the deck. We soon left the deck and headed up to the floor of Tuckerman Ravine. We geared up and started our climb towards Right Gully. Since the climbing with crampons was new to them, I used a rope to check a trip or slip. With near perfect conditions, we soon arrived at the Alpine Garden an started up the East Snowfields. The snowfields are a little less steep and they all had good practice with the crampons, so we dispensed with the rope. A little while later we arrived at the summit.

After hanging out on the summit for a while, we headed down the Tuckerman Ravine Trail from the summit. We still had our crampons on but the first part of the descent was melted all out from the previous days warmth and was mostly rock. Once we hit the Lion's Head Trail we were back on snow till the Alpine Garden where we got back on rock. At that point, we removed our crampons and headed down to treeline. Once at treeline we put the crampons back on. The Winter Lion's Head Trail was a mess from ascents during the previous warm days. As perfect as the climbing was, the descent down Lion's Head was tedious with frozen postholes and steps making the footing awkward with crampons but too slippery not to wear them. As we hit the treeline snow started to fall so I know the conditions would soon change once the predicted Nor'easter hit.

Leading the mixed variation over the Standard Cave Photo by Don Mitchell

On Saturday I went ice climbing with another group that included Steve, his brother Paul, and their friend Don. They had all climbed with me before so I knew we would be doing some difficult climbing. I was a little worried about conditions given the predicted size of the storm that was hitting the night before but we got much less than the 20+ inches some were predicting. Ice climbing is made very difficult when there is a lot of snow. The primary reason is you cannot see the ice so foot and ice tool placements are made blind. Also your hands are surrounded with snow when you climb so they get extremely cold. This storm however was small with only 10" falling and it was wet. This caused a 3-4 inch thick froth over many routes that was not too wet but tools did not feel secure in it.

We were the third group to hike down the railroad tracks to the climbs. The first party headed to Dracula and the second party and us went to Standard. My goal was to climb the mixed variation over the Cave then head over to Penguin. We would then head over to Dracula where friends of Steve, Paul, and Don were climbing with Mark Synnott.

I climbed from the ground to over the Cave in one pitch on two ropes. Don and Paul followed the pitch together with Paul trailing a rope to Steve. Once Paul and Don got to me, they anchored and we then belayed Steve up to us. The next pitch I went to the top of Penguin using the same rope system. We then did the descent hike to the base of Dracula. Mark's group had setup two top-ropes up to the halfway point on the Right-Side of Dracula. I decided to head up the open normal (left variation) of Dracula. The storm had created the thick froth on this variation making screw placements difficult and tools hard to trust. The upper third of the route looked particularly hard. As I approached that section, I noticed that a mixed line to the left would go smoother and I climbed that. It is typical for March's warmth and cold spells to create interesting variations and this was one of those. Once I got to the top I had to belay Steve, Paul, and Don one at a time due to the narrow nature of Dracula. They all climbed it well. From the top we hiked down again and headed out.

In the end, the storm seemed to breath some new life into the ice at Frankenstein which should help prolong the season somewhat. The cold today should help stiffen up the froth and help build the climbs. Regardless, spring is coming and the days are numbered. The thing this storm did is allow the ice to last till the normal end of the season which usually happens late March.

Up near the mouth of Right Gully

Climbing up the East Snowfield

Bryan, Peter and Steve on the summit

Paul climbing the froth on the first pitch of Standard

Steve pulling over the Cave Photo by Don Mitchell

Paul on the Penguin Photo by Don Mitchell

Leading Dracula Photo by Don Mitchell

 

Thursday March 15, 2007

Coby on his first lead

The last two days I have been climbing with Coby. I had climbed with him earlier in the season on February 5th. You can read that report in the Feb archives in the Feb 6th report. On Tuesday we were in a spring temperature regime, so the ice was pretty soft and we could hang around without freezing. Coby is pretty new to climbing but it seemed like a perfect day to introduce him to leading. We spent a few hours on some small bulges on the tracks at Frankenstein going over placing screws, building anchors, and belaying seconds. We then headed over to Standard Route where Coby would do his first lead.

Standard was wide open so I had Coby take the center line to the cave. This was a new experience for Coby but he did well taking his time and dealing with the challenges of the first lead very well. Once he got to the Cave he belayed me up. We went over a few things in the Cave both technical and psychological to improve on a solid performance so far. Coby then began leading the second pitch climbing that in good style and building an anchor at the top. He belayed me up and then I went over to the tree on the far right where we rappelled down to the base.

After a break, I had Coby lead the right side of Standard through the Cave Window Route to the belay tree on that route. Coby again belayed me up and after we rappelled down, we called it a day. Coby did well leading three pitches adding up to about 300 feet of climbing.

On Wednesday it was predicted to be pretty warm so I didn't want to go back to Crawford Notch. Coby and I had skied before and he had his alpine touring skis and boots with him so we decided to do a ski/climb in Huntington Ravine. We left North Conway at 8AM and headed for Pinkham Notch. We started skinning with the idea that if the weather held out we would climb Pinnacle Gully with our skis on our backs then possibly summit and then ski down through Tuckerman Ravine and back to Pinkham. When we got near Pinnacle, it started to shower and the sky was darkening. With a possibility of a steady rain, the avalanche hazard in Tuckerman would elevate pretty fast so we made the decision to leave the skis near the ice bulge of Central. There is no doubt that climbing Pinnacle was easier without having our skis on our back.

Skinning up the Huntington Fire Road

We started up Pinnacle and it stopped raining and started to clear. In the end the only shower we got was the one we felt just as we had arrived at the base. Regardless, it did threaten and sometimes it is better to be conservative. Pinnacle was wet but otherwise it was in great shape. As a matter of fact, it had as much ice as I have ever seen in it. We did three long pitches, mostly all ice before reaching the top. We then walked over to the top of Central and started to make our way down that gully. The snow was so soft we were able to easily plunge step down with a few short sections of downclimbing on some ice to the main ice bulge where we rappelled.

At the base we picked up our skis and skied down the Fan to the Huntington Fire Road. We skied that out to the Tuck's Trail and then took the cutoff to the Sherburne ski trail. The skiing was good all the way till the Sherburne. The Fan was fun although a little soft in places. The Fire Road was like a packed ski trail due to the USFS snowcat and snowmobiles. The Sherburne however was very soft and it required a soft edge and careful skiing. All in all, it beat walking! The combination of skiing and climbing is great fun and with spring like temperature, it was a great day for that type of itinerary.

 

 

Coby leading the second pitch of Standard

Coby leading the Window Route

Skinning the Fan

Skinning the final section to the base of Pinnacle

The first pitch of Pinnacle Gully

Looking down the last pitch of Pinnacle

Skiing down the fan with Pinnacle in the background

 

Monday March 12, 2007

Charlotte and Alan in Central

Today I went to Huntington Ravine with Charlotte and Alan. The goal was to get some crampon practice for an upcoming trip they are taking. The weather was nice but it was a little breezy and it still felt more like winter than like a spring day. We headed up the fan towards Central. We headed up that climb. The snow was in good shape but there was some postholing here and there. The ice bulge was in good shape.

Huntington looks good with all the climbs in good shape. We also got to see Tuckerman Ravine during our descent down Lobster Claw Gully. Tucks looks good for skiing. There were skiers and riders on the lip and the conditions looked like a packed powder surface.

 

 

Pinnacle Gully

Looking up at the Central ice bulge

Charlotte and Alan descending Lobster Claw Gully

The Lip

 

Sunday March 11, 2007

This weekend I was climbing with Michael who I had also climbed with on Friday. Saturday we went to Lake Willoughby. We left North Conway at 7:30AM, we arrived at the base of Twenty Below Zero Gully 2 hours 15 minutes later at 9:45AM. There was a party at the end of the first pitch of Glass Menagerie and another about to start up Glass Menagerie. I started up the first pitch of Twenty Below and belayed at the threads about 45-50 meters up. As Michael arrived at the belay, the party on the Menagerie started to head over towards the upper part of Twenty Below. The sun came out and the hanging ice umbrellas on the Menagerie were looking pretty threatening. I stayed to the far left as the other party climbed the next groove to the right. We both hit the top tree at about the same time. During that time the other party on the Menagerie had climbed up to the same thread I had belayed on. I had asked them if we could use the threads on the descent and they had said that would be fine. Michael and I rappelled first and got to the thread. It was a bit crowded with Michael and I and the leader of the party who was belaying his second. We pulled our rope and Michael rappelled to the ground. During that time the other party at the top started to rappel. When the first rappeller from that party arrived to where I was, they switched onto Michael and my rope and headed to the ground. The second rappeller from the top did the same thing as I pulled their rope. I then rappelled down. The point of this story is that as the climbing areas get busy if you communicate with your fellow climbers, we can all have a good day and it can be fun and sociable. In the end, two parties climbed Twenty Below by 12:30 and another party finished an hour and a half later. We all had fun and it was good to talk with, meet, and get reacquainted with other climbers.

After Twenty Below we headed over to Crazy Diamond. A party was just topping out and the climb was free. Michael and I did that in two pitches. It is unfortunate that my camera broke on Friday because I was perfectly positioned for some great shots on both routes.

The Lake is in pretty good shape but we were happy that an overcast formed that afternoon. It can be a scary place on a warm sunny day. If the weather is going to be sunny, get there early and end early. Overcast days will be best. I would say that Twenty Below, Glass Menagerie, Crazy Diamond, and the Tablets should be fine for next weekend. I would be careful during the warm spell this week and let's hope the rain they are predicting for Thursday/Friday is light. The rain is the big question mark for the Lake this coming weekend.

Today Michael and I went to Frankenstein. We started up Standard and climbed through the Cave on a mixed variation that is seldom done. There is a fixed pin in the roof and the crack also takes good gear. From the top of that we headed to Penguin. That route is a fun mixed pitch that I wish was a bit longer. Frankenstein is looking good and should also be fine if the rain is not too bad.

Coming out from under the overhang

Looking for ice for the feet

Finally out from under the Cave Overhang

Mixing it up on the Penguin

 

Friday March 9, 2007

Getting over the crux of the Dike

What a beautiful day! It started out cold but sunny, then it got warmer as the day went on. The goal today was to climb the Black Dike with Michael. We met at the parking lot at the south end of Profile Lake. We were the only cars there. We started our approach and it was pretty clear we were the first party there. The first pitch was typically thin. The second pitch was thin but secure with good sticks. The third pitch is good and fat. Although the route is more clear of snow and the first pitch is a little shorter because all of the snow blew to the bottom, the route climbs about the same as it did when I last climbed it on Feb 18th.

Michael and I moved through the route quickly getting to the top at around 11:15. We hiked down instead of rappelling because another party started up as we reached the top. The start of the trail was not broken out so we made our way towards the descent. We did a little bushwhacking but pretty quickly found the trail. If you follow our tracks down, you won't take the most direct route but it will lead to the trail sooner rather than later.

We arrived back at the car around 12:30 and decided to head to Frankenstein to get a few more pitches in. We went to the Amphitheater and did Hobbit Couloir and after hiking down, we did the Rock Finish. My camera broke once I got to Frankenstein so I don't have any pictures from there.

Hobbit is a little worse from wear but is still ok although the protection is getting more questionable. The other routes in the Amphitheater looked good. It looks like this will be a good climbing weekend.

Topping out on the second pitch

Finishing up the last pitch

 

Thursday March 8, 2007

Snowshoeing the Tuck's Trail

It has been a while since I last posted. I have had some web site difficulties and I apologize for the fact this page was down a couple of days this week. I have been busy working every day in March till today. I wasn't able to get the problem fixed as fast as I would have liked. I will try to fill you in on the conditions and what has been going on since the end of February.

On March 1st I started teaching an Avalanche 1 course. It was a nice day but snow was predicted for the next day. We all thought that another storm like the Valentine's Day storm would materialize. In the end we got good snow but it was not as good as that Valentine's Day dump, or so we thought! March 2nd was my field day with my students and Jay started an Avalanche 2 course that day. My group hiked up the Tuck's Trail to Hermit Lake in the snowstorm. I was using my skis and the students had snowshoes and carried snowboards. It is rare to need snowshoes on the lower Tuck's Trail but they were handy that day. We did our field day then headed down the Sherburne Ski Trail. It was a good powder run that had only a few tracks when we hit it

Sherburne Powder

On March 3rd I started a 3 day mountaineering course with Caroline, Rachel, JC and Josh. The first day we climbed Wiley's Slide. The five of us climbed the route in beautiful weather, a rarity the day after a storm in Crawford Notch. Mount Washington was still having a snow storm that day it seemed, receiving almost another 9 inches of snow that afternoon and evening.

The next day, March 4th, the five of us went over equipment and packed up for a two day attempt on Mount Washington. We hiked up to the Harvard Cabin and setup our camp. Again the mountain received more snow. While I was climbing, Jay and the Level 2 Avalanche Course students were doing their best to find some good snow to study and of course ski in! From what I heard, a few powder runs were taken with one reportedly including face shots on the Little Headwall!

On March 5th the snow was still falling and my group made a bid for the summit. We got fairly high but turned around shy of the summit. This made for the 5th day snow had been falling on Mount Washington and the mountain was looking very wintery. During this whole time, the winds were reasonable making the skiing down in the trees remarkable even though the above treeline areas had an avalanche hazzard.

JC and Rachel

On Tuesday March 6th we paid for the relatively mild storm with a post storm cold and wind event that was unusually brutal for March. That day I went ice climbing with Dave. We went to Cathedral due to the cold and the wind. In town it never got warmer than 0 and on Mount Washington it was -37 degrees with a 100mph wind. That is an air temperature of -37 not a windchill. Dave had never ice climbed before and did really well in the cold. After some quick coaching we climbed the Slab at the North End, Thresher, and a lap on the Steep Columns. We then took a break in town to warm up at the local coffee shop then headed back out to climb Goofers.

Goofers was still in ok shape but was starting to sound hollow just as you got to the thicker/protectable ice. Higher up it got better and was reasonable. I am not sure how much longer it will last. My guess is it won't make it another week if we get the warm temperatures they are predicting.

Yesterday March 7th Dave and I headed to Standard at Frakenstein. It was still cold but more reasonable than the previous day. We were the second group into Frakenstein that day and I was happy to see a group ahead of us doing the trailbreaking given that the railroad tracks had filled in from the wind. We met them at the base of Standard and thanked them for their work. Dave and I climbed the Window Route to the top then hiked down. We then climbed the normal variation to the top and called it a day.

In the end this past week saw a variety of winter weather with snow wind and cold. This has gotten Mount Washington in pretty good shape for the late winter and spring ski season. Next week looks like we will get some warm weather. With that it will start being time to think skiing. Late March and early April are the heart of the backcountry ski season. Winter seems to be leaving us with a few powder days and soon the corn snow crop will start to mature. Not too bad a winter despite the start. Typical really, skiing is best done on a mature and thick late winter early spring snowpack. When most people put their skis away I find myself pulling mine out. As a matter of fact I booked a ticket today to France. Friends of mine who guide in LaGrave say things are good and spring looks to be fantastic so I will be leaving in early April for some skiing in La Grave and then I'll be meeting 5 people for the Chamonix-Zermatt Haute Route later in the month. Climbing season is starting to wind down and ski season is just beginning!!!

Josh and Caroline on Wiley's

A snowy camp at the Harvard Cabin

Near Lion's Head

A cold day on Goofers

Topping out on Goofers

Approaching the Cave on Standard