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>>It's March, so you're always going to wear the wrong jacket<< I heard someone say this on the local evening news a few nights ago. I remember George Hurley telling me the same thing 30+ years ago when I was trying to figure out what to wear as we were leaving to climb Repentance on an early March morning. And then my tenant Ryan said nearly the same thing the other day.
Ain't that the truth? The weather has been so up and down, it's hard to figure what to wear. That's normal in New England, but this year has been particularly "roller coaster" like. I know that this is only meteorological spring, but it sure feels like the real deal. My hope is that it doesn't come on too fast, but I'm not counting ion it. I remember a string of years when George and I climbed both sides of Dracula on tax day. I'm not at all confident that's going to happen this year, and it's been a while since it did! I know Alden P and a crew are in Newfoundland and from what I can see that's in great shape. The name of the game is to go north!
I will say that it's fun to be able to ride the bike down to the North End for a lap on some plastic ice. A lot less possibility of getting stuck with the bike than in the car. And LOTS of folks are still getting stuck!
PETZL NOMIC & ERGONOMIC RECALL:
I have an early pair of ERGONOMIC's that I've been very happy with and fortunately they are fine. That said, I do know folks that have the ones that are problematic. So do be sure to check your tools. You most certainly don't want to have a problem. As Petzl says;
"The failure occurs with no warning signs or possibility of prior detection."
Petzl has announced a recall of certain batches of NOMIC (U021AA00) and ERGONOMIC (U022AA00) ice axes due to a risk of breakage at the handle that could cause the climber to fall. The Petzl warning advises climbers to stop using the affected ice axes immediately and contact its customer service department for a handle replacement. Please refer to the English version official recall information for full details. Includes: technical details, products impacted, how to submit a recall and FAQs.
Selected Ice Conditions effective February 26, 2026
The '26 ice season has been quite good. Sure there are places where it didn't really happen - Snot Rocket, Machine, etc. But the classics are all in and overall still in great shape. AND we didn't get one of those early-winter warm-up events that put a hard reset on the season. We are scheduled for a bit of a warmup through Sunday, and that should be a good thing. Frankly we need to get some flow happening for a refresh before it gets cold again. And it will. After all, it ain't spring yet!
Huntington Ravine
numerous options
Repentance
iffy
Standard Route
GREAT conditions
Dracula
very fat
For the full current conditions report, CLICK
HERE
MT WASHINGTON OBSERVATORY VALLEY WEATHER:
Canadian high pressure will build down over the region, pushing a backdoor cold front across the state. The front stalls over southern New England Thursday afternoon as a weak low tracks eastward overnight into Friday. Thursday will see clouds spreading across the state, gradually thickening and lowering as low pressure approaches from the southwest. A few overrunning snow showers could reach the state by sunset, but the bulk of the precipitation will arrive overnight. Light snow overnight will bring a trace to 2 inches of new snow for most areas, however, southern counties could see upwards of 4 inches of accumulation. Hillsborough, Cheshire, and Rockingham Counties will have a winter weather advisory in effect from 6pm EST Thursday until 1 pm EST Friday. Friday, an additional inch of snow will fall before tapering Friday afternoon. Another low will be approaching from the west overnight with light snow possible by sunrise on Saturday. Temperatures on Thursday will rise early, but as the cold front passes, cooler weather is expected for the afternoon and overnight. Cool weather lingers on Friday but milder conditions will start to return this weekend.
MW AVALANCHE CENTER: LOW
While the new drifts are settling, don’t rule out your chances of triggering a small avalanche on steep east and south-facing slopes above 3000 feet in elevation. Look for smooth, pillowy drifts that are deeper than your boot tops. Travel on firm, textured old snow surfaces to reduce your chances of triggering an avalanche today.
MUSICAL NOTES:
After gigs last Friday and Saturday, I've been off all this week and it's actually been a good thing. It's given me the time to practice some classical quartet music I've been working on, as well as do a fresh mix of a fusion tune that I wrote years ago and want to turn in for the Valley Song Contest. That's due on Friday afternoon. There is always something going on. DON'T STOP...
If you are at all interested in what else is coming up with me musically, you can always see my schedule here: http://www.alhospers.com/?PageName=2
VALLEY CYCLING:
With the weather so up and down, the trails reflect that. I got out on Tuesday once again on the snow machine trails on the East Side from Hemlock by Walmart on my "acoustic" fat bike. I also noticed that Muffler was packed so I rode some of that as well. For some reason I was having a problem charging my eBike. It's got really wide tires and was very fun. I wish I had wheels like that on the eBike! Fortunately the warmup one Thursday got the eBike properly charging again. [whew]
Mobile Version Of NEClimbs:
Up on one of the Mount Washington Valley's finest crags and want to know what that climb you're looking at is? Or maybe you're on your way up from Boston and want to check out the Ice Report for your upcoming weekend plans. Or more likely, you're at work just want to daydream about your next adventure. Well if you have a smart phone handy, you can get to NEClimbs from anywhere you have cell service. While it doesn't offer every single feature of the site and it's not an "app", in mobile form, it does do a whole lot and is very useful. Here is the live link to the mobile version of NEClimbs:
Check it out and if you have issues on your specific phone, please feel free to let me know.
NEClimbs & White Mountain Report On Facebook:
Join us and LIKE us on Facebook. I'll try and post interesting pix every Thursday and the latest Ice Report in the season, tho certainly not the whole Report. Here's where you can check it out:
Remember - climb hard, ride the steep stuff, stay safe and above all BE NICE,
Al Hospers
The White Mountain Report
North Conway, New Hampshire
Climbing for speed records will probably become more popular, a mania which has just begun. Climbers climb not just to see how fast and efficiently they can do it, but far worse, to see how much faster and more efficiently they are than a party which did the same climb a few days before. The climb becomes secondary, no more important than a racetrack. Man is pitted against man.
Climbing is a very dangerous sport. You can get hurt or even kill yourself. When you go climbing, you do so of your own free will. Everything on this site is to be taken with a grain of salt. Don't blame us if you get up some totally heinous route, in over your head and fall and hurt yourself.
