Scheduled for yesterday was a one-on-one half-day mountaineering skills course. In this course we teach students the ins and out of using mountaineering crampons, from selecting them to sizing them, all the way to their simple but specific choreography using them with the ice axe in the more advanced pied français (as we call it), hybrid/international, and German/front pointing techniques. We also teach various flavors of […]
A couple weeks ago — back in the fall — our guides were skiing in the backcountry, sending frozen waterfalls and frosty couloirs, and generally settling into a winter of fun. Until, that is, winter actually hit. From that point came the rains and warm weather and for a while now it seems like what some consider the best season of all was revoked, taken back, […]
Flying up from North Carolina, our guest planned to return to the White Mountains making her third visit to our area — and hopefully the one that’s “the charm,” as they say. Her plan was to winter hike or snowshoe, then also ski at one of our local resorts. We’re not sure how the skiing went. Based on how many people were at Wildcat this past […]
One of the benefits to hiring a guide for a one-on-one hiking adventure is that the day belongs entirely to the guest. Say, for example, we’re out with one of our long-time oft-returning guests doing a little shakedown hike on the Kinsmans. It’s a beautiful day, great company, balmy, sunny. Really awesome. The duo venture off to Bald Peak — a common stop for those hiking […]
Friends since the age of eleven, these two guests, both from (old) England, were taking a vacation together, enjoying some of what a wintery New Hampshire has to offer. Besides alpine skiing at Wildcat and a planned beer stop at one of our local breweries, a half day snowshoe hike was the order of the day. On lead for this was Redline Guide Mike Cherim. When […]
When someone asks, what’s the best way to train for hiking, we respond with “hiking.” When someone asks, what’s the best way to train for winter hiking, we respond with “winter hiking,” which, if you didn’t know, comes early in the mountains. So while one may argue it’s still fall so it can’t be winter hiking — and technically they would be correct — tell that […]
We’re thankful for both our guests and our guides. It is this amazing combination that is magic, and it would never work otherwise. We do not take this for granted and realize we are quite simply, blessed for both — and so much more. Recently we have come to learn (or be reminded) that this thankfulness works in more than one direction. Sure, our guests say […]
She had a few mountain peaks under her belt, both 4000-footers and some 52 With a View mountains. What she didn’t have was experience hiking in winter conditions. That is where we came in. It was anything goes in terms of what was up for grabs so Redline Guide Chase Hall offered Mt Liberty (4457′) and the rest is history. Check out this summary from Chase. […]
Backpack, Shack, and Bushwhack! —Guest Done right, the boredom of winter backpacking will get you long before the cold will. And with good company, the boredom is less of a problem. The darkness comes so early, you see, and once camp chores are done, hitting the hay is the only way to be really comfortable. Conversation remaining possible within the confines of their three-sided Adirondack-style shelter […]
Down low in the Mt Washington Valley it was sunny, nice, and in the sun, out of the wind, you could feel it warming you. Barely, but it was there. Get a bump in elevation, though, climb some 4000-footer, even a smaller one like Zealand Mtn (4264′) and, well… you read the title of this blog post, it was “freaking cold out,” adding “easy sub-zero windchill.” […]
A guest from Indiana came to us hoping to take on a half day hike. A sunrise hike, actually — to do something really special while visiting. Her first stop was in Vermont, and adding a visit to New Hampshire was high on her list as well. And once she realized how close to Maine she was (as we pointed to it), we’re pretty sure a […]
Just like last weekend, we’ve been hanging out with our buddies, our Hiking Buddies, that is. Together, we are making an effort to educate, giving of our time and wisdom. Together we are offering safety through insight and knowledge, leadership, even companionship. Together, we are trying to let SAR volunteers stay home. Like our first group, this weekend’s students were working on earning their three-season Redline […]
