TR: Extremely Extreme: July Skiing on Mt. Washington
July 7, 2008. Mt. Washington, NH, USA, North America, Planet Earth
After waiting for weeks for the proper weather window, samthaman, allenataylor, my girlfriend, and I finally saw our chance. With highs reaching into the 80s (at least 5-10 degrees colder with windchill though!) and sunny skies, the ambitious expedition seemed at least nominally feasible. We left Advance Base Camp in Pinkham Notch with a solidly sub-alpine start of 9:30 (thus maximizing daylight by only waiting 5 hours after sunrise). We decided to go light and fast, alpine style, taking only the bare essentials (climbing gear, ski gear, Tuckerman Headwall ale and LT Doublebag). Conditions were tough as we simul-solo'd the steep (but well-graded), crevasse-free trail. The crux of this segment of the climb was when we took a water break but then had to lift our packs back onto our packs again - not a trivial experience when facing 3-5 feet of exposure!
Finally we arrived at sheer, intimidating wall where we were forced to rope up for what we believe is a first ascent up a route we dubbed "Pinnacle Buttress." (Any similarity to several pitch, well-established 5.8 in Huntington Ravine is completely coincidental). samthaman and allenataylor started up first, while I struggled to avoid succumbing to the environmental hazards (sunlight, a light warm breeze, stubbed toes). Finally I started up:
http://www.metrocast.net/~saragreg/T...8/IMG_2245.jpg
Parts of the climb were even steeper!
After what seemed like weeks of climbing we topped out. Near the top of the climb we felt a chill in our veins as visibility quickly dropped to less than 100 miles and the cog railway sounded its mournful wail. Nevertheless we stuck with the plan and headed back down Huntington Ravine to pick up ski gear stashed at the base. With the ongoing exposure above 3000 feet, the dreaded "blackfly-bite" became a real issue on any exposed flesh, despite our best efforts to continually check each other.
The trek from Huntington to Tucks was long and very dangerous. Several times we had brushes with death as our ski tips nicked tree branches or our feet slipped on rocks. Yet on we went, and finally found ourselves at the base of one of the biggest snowfields any of us had ever seen. Trembling with the excitement of giddy school girls, we geared up, hiked up, and began to slay. Words can't describe the ecstasy of feeling crystals of ice crystals thrown up by your edges on a slope such as that, giving you top-sheet shots with every turn. For a few (10-15) turns it was truly white-green-and-rock-colored-view room.
http://www.metrocast.net/~saragreg/T...8/IMG_2246.jpg (samthaman, allenataylor, and I hiking the glacier)
http://www.metrocast.net/~saragreg/T...8/IMG_2248.jpg
(Me starting down)
http://www.metrocast.net/~saragreg/T...8/IMG_2252.jpg
(allenataylor hucking the death-gnar)
http://www.metrocast.net/~saragreg/T...8/IMG_2256.jpg
(more death-gnar)
http://www.metrocast.net/~saragreg/T...8/IMG_2258.jpg
(check out the pow)
http://www.metrocast.net/~saragreg/T...8/IMG_2265.jpg
We were feeling dehydrated after skiing so much vert, so we consumed some refreshing beverages during the long hike out. The descent brought with it its own set of hazards, but we hiked fast and made it back to the car with minimal loss of life or limbs from the expedition.
It's been a good season, with ~130 days for samthaman, ~115 for allenataylor and 85 for myself (I lost). allenataylor has some more pictures that he'll hopefully post...
