Spring backcountry skiing is upon us. Even though snow depths are reducing in the brilliant April sunshine, there’s a ways to go. People know this, and seeing that the whole Presidential Range is in the green (denoting a low danger of avalanches at the time of this writing… see image inset (dated 4/11)), and observations of cracking or avalanching are also reducing, folks are getting after […]
For some hikers it’s Owl’s Head or Isolation. For others it’s Hale or Zealand. Seems like in almost every case there are mountains on the 4000-footers list that people simply aren’t fond of — not their favorites. In the case of Redline Guide Mike Maciel it’s the Carters: Middle, South, and the big one, Carter Dome. They’re all “The Effing Carters” to him. So, long story […]
More and more people come to us every year looking for backcountry skiing instruction and backcountry ski tours — often with teachable moments taking center stage. Many we find just want to get up there and check it out with no agenda in mind. They seek a knowing companion. With respect to avalanche, hangfire, and sliding fall hazards, we’re that companion. As backcountry skiing looks to […]
Contrary to the advice of Redline Guide Dominic Torro, one guest bailed on his planned backcountry ski tour due to iffy weather and questionable ground conditions. We get it. But another person — at the right time and place — was eager to fill the sudden void left behind. The replacement skier was less concerned about the weather and ground conditions and just wanted to get […]
The word “extremely” defines the day on many levels. It was extremely wild, yet extremely mild, all at the same time. Redline Guide Will Murphy summed it up in a message sent near the end of the day of their planned Mt Washington ascent. The short message simply read: “60+, 2deg, -33F” which we took to mean the winds were cranking at over sixty miles per […]
What began as a typical two-day Winter Mt Washington climb ended up being unintentionally extended a bit. Day one went well enough, the training being well-delivered by Redline Guide Mike Maciel. On day two, however, things were amiss. Our guest felt ill. Like ill-ill, not butterflies-in-the-tummy-ill. Ill to the point of knowing they would be unable to make their attempt (and would later be able to […]
It’s the time of year where winter-oriented activities like backcountry skiing overlap with warmer-weather pursuits like learning river crossing skills. And other things like glacier skills become popular, as well, as people prepare to climb western volcanos this coming season. It’s a fun time just chock full of variety. In fact we were only absent a hike and an ice climb. Oh, well. We did get […]
There’s a prominent three-mile strip of land that runs from the base to the summit of Mt Washington (6288′), like a bad scar. This 99-foot wide strip of land is owned by the Cog Railway and there you will find the tracks on which their trains run. The tracks are a handy reference feature useful for navigation on some days. Not only do the tracks form […]
This evening we will slip into the official spring season. As winter closes hiking is going to start getting harder with its inherent spring dangers and all the challenges that entails. The backcountry ski season is still going strong and will be for a while, though playing in the lower glades has pretty much reached its end. That said, the Nordic is still holding on. We […]
Another duo came to us looking for adventure, coming from the AMC’s Worcester Chapter. Specifically a Mt Washington flavored adventure. It’s but one of the many adventures that we dish out regularly, and it’s often requested. If you’re wondering why people would ask for that mountain, well, it’s the tallest mountain in the Northeast, offering rugged trails, lots of elevation gain, and some of the last […]
We mean a madness of the the best kind possible… This ended up being another one of those crazy weekends that there simply aren’t enough hours in the day to cover each individual activity properly so we end up consolidating the lot in a post like this. That’s the case today, with exception to one activity, an ice climbing intro course, here’s the other stuff that […]
A returning guest — one who’s taken our mountaineering skills and intro to ice climbing courses, and more (including some alpine ice) — wanted to get back out there and just do some ice climbing on top rope. To climb some laps so as to work on the mechanics, in lieu of overcoming trepidation. To tweaking body positions, etc., working on refinement of the base skills […]
