It’s spring in the Valley but still very wintery at higher elevations. Despite this fact, however, most folks are in spring mode. As if to punctuate this, Redline Guide Debra McCown checked in at the AMC Trails Desk at the Pinkham Notch Visitor Center and suggested it was time to close the Lion Head Winter Route. This decision is one the USFS “Snow Rangers” make, but […]
The difficulty of any challenge is defined by those who attempt it, meaning it is always a matter of perspective. Regardless of said perspective, though, we can all hopefully agree that New Hampshire’s Mt Washington, at only 6288′ above sea level, is a pretty tough mountain to beat. The relentless incline, the steep sections, and some often wicked ground conditions mean this stubby mountain is no […]
Good day, good conditions, and good times on the old Rock Pile. Our guest reached out wanting to ski in Tuckerman Ravine and had a special interest in Left Gully. We were up to the task so on the calendar it went. Leading on this backcountry ski adventure was Redline Guide Glenn Van Neil, and he did great. Our guest mentioned this afterward: “I had a […]
About an hour before the team was to get up for their alpine start on summit day a large serac about the size of a small house, precariously perched along the up-hill edge of a massive expansion zone crevasse, fell into the depths with a thunderous crash. This crash was both heard and felt by everyone and those who had managed to actually fall asleep were […]
Some hikes are tougher on some days and easier on others. It’s the nature of the beast. And when Gridding — hiking all those 4000-footers each month of the year — one gets to see them all complete with varying stages and varying outcomes. The objectives on this particular hike — Zealand, West Bond, and Bond — did not come easy this time. But the team […]
It was one of those perfect days. Blue skies, comfortable temps, okay ground conditions, and Redline Guide Chase Hall was livin’ in the moment, helping an oft-returning guest work on his 4000-footer Grid attempt. Just plugging away! April 17th: Mt Field and Mt Willey. The Conditions were excellent for early spring. Threw on the snowshoes at the Mt Tom Spur. The snowshoes giving us the extra […]
The plan was to head up the Ammo with our oft-returning Gridder guest, wander over to George, then double back to finish a Southern Presidential Traverse. And the trail conditions were awesome until Redline Guide Chase Hall and guest got to the Lakes of the Clouds hut. Everything after that was icy — like crampons-icy. This slowed the team down a lot and they pivoted, deciding […]
There are four distinct seasons: winter, spring, summer, and fall. But in the mountains, especially, the lines between these seasons can become blurred and indistinct. Case in point, one day it’s warm and sunny and very spring-like, surfaces getting softer as they melt in the sun, and the next day it’s full-on winter, all that melt water frozen creating a treacherous surface to climb on, with […]
The day was challenging on a few levels. Mostly thanks to the weather and ground conditions. That said, our guest was out there giving it her all so we applaud the effort. The objective was Mt Cabot (one of those 4ks) and unfortunately they weren’t able to summit, but as they say, the mountain will be there another day. On lead for this attempt was Redline […]
One of the most demanding classes we offer in terms of depth and complexity is our Wilderness Navigation course — ours is not a dumbed-down offering by any means. The “click” from our students’ understanding does occur, but it is definitely hard won. But when that happens, however, it’s immensely satisfying, both for us and our students. We do finish up the class giving homework, which […]
One meaning of the word view, as a noun, is to say it is a sight or prospect, typically of attractive natural scenery, that can be taken in by the eye from a particular place. For example: “The view from that mountain’s summit was sublime.” Inasmuch, one would immediately think this statement refers to seeing something awesome in the distance, far-reaching. But that’s far from correct. […]
With a huge amount of appreciation, we’d like to thank Black Mountain Ski Area in Jackson for allowing us to use their mountain to conduct glacier skills and mountaineering skills courses, the first of the season having taken place yesterday. This isn’t uncommon and has been the norm for us for several years — for which we’ve always been grateful — but this one was different. […]
