June 26, 2003

Hi folks,

Listening to the weather pundits has become akin to watching an old Monty Python skit. You listen to what they say so seriously, and then you just have to laugh out loud. We've had rain and thunderstorm predictions for the last 5-6 days up here and so far we haven't seen anything more intense than a few spits coming down out of a partly cloudy sky. Yes, I know it's rained cats & dogs south of the Lakes Region, but we haven't even seen the slightest dribble in the Valley.

Over the past 3 days summer has ratcheted up another level or two. We've had temps in the upper 80's and low 90's and at 7 PM last night it was 88 in the shade. Right now, at 11:30 AM, it's already 93 and climbing, and the prediction is for upper 90's! Unfortunately this is one prediction that I'll probably buy into. I can only hope that the medium-term forecast for cooling over the weekend is correct. If not I know I'll be spending a lot of my time at the river instead of climbing. <sigh>

I was grousing about the heat to Mark Synnott yesterday. He pointed out to me that after lunch time the afternoon sun is pretty off much of Cathedral. There are lots of places to climb where the belays are shady if you look for them. The place to stay off are the Whitehorse slabs.

Last Friday I got out climbing with George Hurley. I know I've said this before, but that man is amazing. At 68+ he's my idol. George had been wanting to do Robinson Crusoe over on Humphry's Ledge. The first pitch is 5.9+, but the second is rated at 5.10bR. I've looked at it on rappel and scrutinized the Ed Webster's great picture of Jim Dunn in the guidebook book. Any way you cut it, it looks hard, and I wasn't disappointed. If you give it a try I would be sure to take a #4 Camelot to protect the move out from under the roof, and a green Alien, or the equivalent" to stuff in the flake on the left at the crux. George did a great job and I finished up on my pitch, Diss-N-Daz. It doesn't get done all that often, but there was chalk up there so someone must have done it. It was my hardest climb this season and a great finish to the day. Here's a couple of pictures of George on P2:

Pulling over the roof
The stance after the roof
Looking for the small cam for the flake at the crux
Whew, it's all over now

I was riding by Humphry's around 11 Am on Saturday and saw someone up on Diss-N-Daz. We stopped and I got out the binoculars and watched for a while. It turns out it was George guiding the same climbs. I'll tell you, he made short work of all the cruxes on DND. What a guy. <grin>

Black Diamond - Taking A Stand:
I was on the BD site the other day to check out the new version of the site. Apparently there was an OP Ed piece that their CEO, Peter Metcalf, wrote about an apparent "backroom deal between Utah Gov. Mike Leavitt and the Secretary of Interior Gail Norton to remove Wilderness Area protection from some six million acres of potential Utah Wilderness." I think that this is a pretty important issue and one that is worth your reading. In my opinion this is a part of a concerted effort by the current administration to open up recreational wilderness lands for development. This kind of thing really worries me. Here's a link to the place on the BD site where you can get more info and links to additional information -
http://www.bdel.com/about/stand.html
I heartily applaud Peter taking a stand on this issue and I support him in his efforts.

New on NEClimbs:
Check out the latest Climber's Poll (starting Friday). We're interested in how often you climb in Mount Washington Valley. Put in your vote. The missing pins in the Echo Roof area has been a hot topic in the Forum. If you have any info about it or thoughts on the issue, get on-line and involved.

S**t on the Cliff:
Dogboy and I went out yesterday morning and did Fun House, with the direct start this time. Now I'll tell you, a solid layback will certainly get your blood pumping at 6:30! But, what really got both of us agitated was the toilet paper we found on the ledge at the start and then the shit covered paper on the ledge at the top of the Pooh block. What DRAG! Of course I realize that sometimes you just have to go. Hey, it happens to me. But at least take stuff a baggie in your pocket to put the used TP in. It's "the right thing to do." Along those lines, I know that the Porta-Potty that's usually by the road at Cathedral wasn't there as of a day or two ago, but if you just gotta go please be sure not to leave the TP out there. Climbers, hikers, kids and dogs tromp over almost every inch of that area and it's just a nasty thing to come upon.

Black Flies & Mosquitoes:
Over the past week the black flies have abated somewhat. Thank God... Of course it may be somewhat due to my finding a good bug repellant (Herbal Armor by All Terrain Company) but I also think that it's just a bit better so I've lowered the BugCON rating to a 4 this week. That said, the mosquitoes are still pretty bad, especially in the early morning and evening. Here's a quote you might find interesting -

"The adult mosquito population is not flying, but resting and staying out of
the weather like any other adult with common sense. One of our concerns is
that when the weather changes and we get some hot, dry days, they are really
going to be out looking for blood."

- ROBERT KENT, a mosquito control expert in New Jersey.

OK enough of that. Get out there, climb safe and have fun.

Al Hospers
The White Mountain Report
North Conway, New Hampshire

"There are only three sports: bullfighting, motor racing,
and mountaineering; all the rest are merely games."
-- Ernest Hemingway

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