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November 8, 2019
Hi Folks,
WE'RE now at that shoulder season where there is no ice to climb, there is no snow to ski and yet it's cold and damp and not a great time for doing many of outdoor things we all love to do - like rock climbing and cycling. It's going to get here of course, but in the interim we have to get through the next 4-6 weeks.
So what does that mean? Well for one thing it means being prepared to do any of a number of possible things, whenever the opportunity presents itself. If we get a warmish-sunny day and there isn't any snow on the cliff, grab a quick pitch. Sure you might have to avoid some dampness, but surely you can find some dry rock somewhere. Or if it's not too wet in the woods, get on the mountain bike and ride one of the trails that are up a little bit. Rides like Rattlesnake or Tent Boulder drain quickly and are not generally muddy. Or, since the traffic is pretty light right now pre-ski season, haul out the road bike and ride up Bear Notch or on one of the nice rides on the Fryeburg Flats. There's plenty to do, IF you are able to be flexible.
Of course if you are limited to being able to get out before or after work, that's going to be a problem. With sunrise at 6:30 and sunset now at 4:26, you don't have a lot if any time to get out during the week. And if you do get out in the late afternoon, it's time to be sure to bring your headlamp with you. For me, if I go out for a ride or hike after 2:30 or so I always bring my little pack with an extra jacket, spare gloves and headlamp. Several years ago, at about 3:30 pm around this time of year, I had a flat up by Tent Boulder. That's a trail that runs just below Middle Moat, and is pretty well out there. I was planning on a quick ride, and tho it was was chilly I didn't bring anything other than some water, a spare tube and my little hand pump. By the time I fixed the flat and rode out, it was close to pitch dark when I pulled in the driveway and I was pretty darn cold! Fortunately I had my cell phone and alerted my then-wife Alyssa what was going on. That one definitely taught me a lesson.
A word about the cold... It rained most of the day on Wednesday and tho it's been in the upper 40's every day, it's been at or below freezing at night. When I was taking down the gutters this morning, the pinestraw and leaves in there were frozen! In addition, on my quick MTB ride at the Marshall Trails around noon I could tell that there was some ice here & there under the leaves. Just something to think about...
A 192-page tribute to the greatest climbers of climbing’s golden age that just won the Mountaineering History category in the Banff Mountain Book Competition. It truly looks amazing.
THE CLIMBERS" - A BOOK BY JIM HERRINGTON
YUP - It's the first of November, so it's time to start putting out the weekly White Mountain Report. I've been writing the Report for 21 years, since 1998. Red Sox radio broadcaster Joe Castiglione says, "Can you believe it?" I guess I do...
I truly hope you find this weekly White Mountain Report and NEClimbs.com web site are enough to warrant making a small donation to support what I do. As always, absolutely any amount is welcome, so please take a minute to and go ON LINE and make your donation via PayPal. And you don't actually NEED a PayPal account, you can use almost any credit card. Just click the link below:
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Thank you once again for all of your support...
Oh Yeah...That's Right. It's time to think about ICE FEST 2020 folks! I know the the web site & Blog haven't been updated yet, but you should put the date on your calendars and start making your plans. # 28 is going to be a fun one that's for sure.
I do have one teaser for you... The main presenter for this year will be the most amazing Mark Richey! Mark is a great human being and a phenomenal climber. His most recent achievement was on August 5th, 2019 pulling off the First Ascent of Link Sar, a 7040 meters peak in the Karakoram. A spectacular summit with an amazing team that included Steve Swenson, Graham Zimmerman and Chris Wright. The route took six days of difficult climbing of over 30 technical pitches, over approximately 8,000 vertical feet from ABC and about 11,300 feet from basecamp.
https://www.mwv-icefest.com/
It was great over the past couple of daze, but it will likely be problematic with the mixed weather that's coming in over the next couple of days. At least until we get packed snow for the fat tire bike. Of course if it warms up again and things melt, we could be OK. Otherwise we'll have to wait for things to pack out & put on the studded tires.
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:
http://www.neclimbs.com/mobile
Check it out and if you have issues on your specific phone, please feel free to let me know.
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:
http://www.facebook.com/NEClimbs/
Remember - climb hard, ride the steep stuff, stay safe and above all BE NICE,
Al Hospers
The White Mountain Report
North Conway, New Hampshire
| Hey, look, don't worry too much about me |
| Rob Hall |
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