The saying, “the mountain will be there another day,” applies to this trip. Extremely high winds forecast for the alpine regions forced a change of plan. Instead of a long, exposed day on the Presidential Range, Redline Guide Debra McCown — with the approval of our guest — opted for a more sheltered traverse, in part: The Wildcats, Carter Dome, and Mt Hight. We’ll let Debra […]
People choose to hike, climb, and study with us for myriad reasons: For the joy of the sport, for the love of the mountains, to be safe and ready, for the feeling of accomplishment from the effort and, of course, sometimes just because it’s there. And sometimes it’s a test to 1) see if they like it before 2) going hog wild and taking on big […]
We love seeing a group whose members are able to accept their differences, look past them, and embrace and support each other. Like a team! That’s what we witnessed on this recent hike led by Redline Guide Debra McCown. One member of the team on this corporate outing wasn’t at the same physical level as the other two he accompanied. So the two who could get […]
In our Hike Intro Course we often refer to a scenario involving descending the sketchiness of the notorious Flume Slide Trail. It goes like this: 1) We have a plan to go up Flume Slide Trail to Franconia Ridge Trail, then head over the Liberty and descend Liberty Spring Trail soon after summiting; 2) We tell our students that for some contrived reason that we are […]
Having modern devices can really save us from peril while offering a richness and depth to our experiences. But it’s important that we monitor available power, lest said devices can become a brick. Modern devices also have a learning curve that needs to be flattened before one is able to take full advantage of what they can offer. That’s where we enter the picture by making […]
Our oft-returning Gridder was at it again, this time taking on (and winning) Madison and Adams putting him that much closer to the end of the tunnel. The team had great weather but the winds were strong, but it didn’t stop them from making it to the top. Leading this trip, as usual, was Redline Guide Chase Hall. Here are a few photos of the day! […]
A somewhat experienced family of three from Barcelona (Spain) came to us with a two-fold plan. The first part was to hike up Mt Pierce. A warm up and intro to New Hampshire’s mountains. The second part was, for two members, to tackle an entry-level mountaineering route on Mt Washington. On lead for these two trips was Redline Guide Debra McCown. The following photos and words […]
She’s working on her winter 48 and Mt Washington was on her list so she reached out to us for assistance. She was interested in not just summiting the mountain but in also being further introduced to comprehensive winter skills and dipping her toe into the wild sport of mountaineering, both part of our Two Day Winter Mt Washington Program. The latter not just for the […]
A returning guest, the fellow working on his Grid (all the 4ks, every month), took another mountain off the table by completing South Twin for January. Leading the charge, as usual, in “excellent conditions for snowshoes all day,” reported, was Redline Guide Chase Hall. What follows are a few keepsake photos of the day taken by Chase! Gridded out South Twin today It was -5 at […]
Join Us for a Nighttime Full Moon Snowshoe Hike The second full moon of 2026 — also known as the Snow Moon — will appear on Sunday, February 1st, 2026 and we’ve decided to lead a moonlight snowshoe hike for this event. This moon is named the “Snow Moon” because in February it is usually colder across the Northern Hemisphere with snowfall in many countries. This […]
A few members of the team got together to brush up on some mountaineering skills with special emphasis on teaching practices such as — pulling out all the stops — incorporating dad jokes into the material. Its for both clarity and levity. It was a cold day out there but sunny… and fun, and the warmth of friendships among likeminded people doing cool work together helped. […]
A couple came to us ready to start the year right. They began by taking our combined Winter and Mountaineering Skills courses on the final day of 2025. They then followed this up with a Mt Washington summit attempt on the first day of 2026. This was all part of our Two Day Winter Mt Washington Program. They didn’t summit, but between the high winds and […]
