Fun day of Private Ice Climbing at Cathedral, and a quick set-back…

March 3, 2015 David Lottmann Ice Climbing

Saturday, February 21st, I was stoked to get out with a regular guest, Spencer, for some great climbing over at Cathedral. Spencer took a 3 Day Mountaineering Course with me two years ago, returned last winter for some fun at Frankenstein (Standard & Dracula), and was back this year to really start honing his steeper ice skills and anchor building as he has amassed the gear every hooked ice climber will start amassing!

We started off on Goofer’s Direct, 160 feet, Grade 3. This climb is one of the most aesthetic moderate pure ice climbs in New Hampshire!

The second in the party in front of us starts cleaning the pitch

I’ve climbed this route dozens of times and it has two distinctive “moods”. Early season it is often quite thin for the first 40-50 feet. Here’s a pic from an early season ascent in 2004 when I was still looking for ice thick enough for my 16cm screws…

But come mid/late season this climb becomes pure fun. Especially after Ice Fest when it has seen so much traffic it is quite hooked & pegged. There is a bit of a steeper bulge to surmount at the crux but it is easy to protect and really stepped out this time of year. Usually I would bring two 60m ropes to rap from the bolted anchor at the top of the climb. Today I opted to try something different with just one 60m. I decided to stop after the last steep bit, with only about 25 feet of mellow ice climbing above. From here a nice stance allows one to see their second for pretty much the entire climb. If you go to the bolts you really can’t watch your partner or get cool shots;

Spencer tearing it up... — Spencer tearing it up…

There really is only 25 feet of mellow climbing to the bolts from here and we wanted to get on to more climbing. I was able to quickly lower Spencer back to the deck and already had built a V-Thread to rap of myself. From here my 60m just touched down, and we were on our way to our next climb.

Note: If you have a 70m you can rap from the bolts and just barely make it without the need of a second rope or stopping short of the anchor, as I watched the party ahead of us discover.

We headed over to Thresher, Grade 3/3+. Up that in 2 quick pitches I left a top-rope in place so I could coach Spencer from below while he took some laps on the steeper left side. We finished up Thresher and made our way up to the top of The Unicorn, Grade 4+. This stout route would be a test of Spencer’s grasp of steep ice climbing, and he performed very well.

Alain was training a Special Forces team down below the North End

To wrap up our day we headed over to the North End Pillars for a quick lap on the furthest left pillar while a boisterous and motivated group of special needs & amputees got to climb ice organized by an out of state guide service. It was pretty awesome to see what these motivator’s could do!

A bit crowded, but awesome to see how much fun everyone was having!

And that concluded our very productive day!

Unfortunately after that I needed to take some time off. A growing pain in my back had finally reached a point where I wasn’t able to lie down at night, and my first trip to a doctor in over 2 years resulted in a herniated disk diagnosis. Good news, one week off and Prednisone and I’m pretty much 100% again. I was bummed to miss a few days of guiding work but very glad it wasn’t more serious! Tomorrow is looking pretty nice and I have a serious case of cabin fever so I may stretch the legs with a ski into Gulf of Slides with my buddy Steve, then an avalanche course is scheduled to start Friday.

Thanks for reading and see you in the mountains!

NEAlpineStart

AIARE 2 Avalanche Course, Reaching Treeline, and Re-defining Success

February 21, 2015February 21, 2015 David Lottmann Ice Climbing, Mountaineering

As promised I want to briefly recap the American Institute of Avalanche Research and Education Level 2 Course that concluded this past Monday. I really don’t have a lot to say about the course, other than the 6 participants stayed fully engaged during 4 long days of mentally demanding classroom time and physically demanding field sessions. Mother Nature was in attendance as we saw some of the coldest temperatures of the season. During the 2nd day of the course Ryan Knapp, a meteorologist stationed at the top of Mount Washington, pointed out we were the 2nd coldest place on the Earth:

Factor in our windchill, and we smoked Antarctica in terms of COLD. While the statistic is cool, the next day’s harsh weather above tree-line poised issues for our avalanche class since we were seeking a field location above tree-line. After a morning trip planning session we played it conservative and headed out for a ski tour of 4,055 foot Mt. Hale.

Stopping for fuel with a snow covered Mt. Oscar in the background

Our entrance into the drainage, a nice tight 35 degree chute. Notice all the cool info embedded in the photo? Check out Theodolite in the iPhone App Store

Our ski descent was a mix of short fun runs with some deep wallowing in powder to the next drop. Once we cut back out to the trail the descent was quick.

But before we reached Zealand Rd I intersected a steeper open north aspect around 3000 feet that I had eyeballed from across the drainage on our ascent. It looked loaded and open enough to avalanche. I approached it while the class watched from the other side. A very positive hand-shear test on the edge indicated a very thin wind slab was ready to pop. A few cameras came out and I ski cut the slope initiating a very small D1 avalanche. It was about as small and inconsequential as a slab avalanche can be but was cool to see none-the-less.

The rest of the descent was uneventful and we made our way back to the trail-head and debriefed our day.

While driving back through Crawford Notch I received an automated call from Mountain Rescue Service. A missing hiker was being searched for on nearby Mt. Adams. After reading countless news stories and articles posted the following day I wrote this blog piece about the incident.

The reaction of the post was quite unexpected. It seemed the media was filled with negative reports and stone-casting (mostly from commentators rather than reporters) who seemed to know everything about how “crazy” and “ir-responsible” this victim might be. The truth is not one commentator was with this person to witness her decision making process or level of preparedness (or even lack there of). Monday morning quarterbacking was running rampant online.

“Coulda shoulda woulda” was something I remember a cousin saying to me during my childhood when I complained, in hindsight, about something I did, but shouldn’t have, or hadn’t done and wished I had.

Hindsight is always 20/20. We won’t know definitely what happened, but we should help future aspiring climbers find success.

I don’t wish to harp more on this incident, at least not directly, but instead share what a great day I had today in the mountains, and talk a bit about the definition of success when it comes to climbing.

Today I had two great guys from Rhode Island come up for an attempt on Mt. Washington. For one of them, it was their first time on the mountain. For the other it was his second attempt having been turned back due to weather last year as part of a guided trip. He was eager for a second shot.

Very early in the morning the ground work for a positive trip was laid.

How we talk about objectives like climbing mountains is crucial to our ability to make better decisions while enjoying them. I am going to sum up some ideas I think all climbers need to keep in the forefront of their brains when heading out for an awesome day in the mountains;

1) It really is about the journey. NOT the destination. How many summits you have made is not as important as the friends and places you have traveled because of your love of the mountains. Do not fall for “summit fever”.

2) “Summiting is optional, getting down is mandatory.” – Ed Viesturs- Ed is a high-altitude mountaineer and corporate speaker. He is the only American to have climbed all fourteen of the world’s eight-thousander mountain peaks, and the fifth person to do so without using supplemental oxygen.

3) Be careful how you speak to parties coming down the mountain. All to often I see this exchange, in which, for example, a party has made a judicious decision to descend due to weather, fitness, timing, or whatever seemed prudent at the time. They meet an ascending party;

“Did you make the summit?” asks the ascending party

“No.” is the only reasonable answer to the question.

“Oh.” is the most common retort, and the conversation is over. The descending party is a bit brought down by the exchange, and the ascending party now starts doubting their own abilities. While asking if a party summit’d seems innocent enough, I would suggest this interaction instead;

“How far did you make it?” asks the ascending party. (Not a loaded question!)

“A few hundred yards beyond Lion’s Head, it was brutal up there!”

“Good job! Enjoy the rest of your descent!”

A much more positive exchange for both parties.

The descending party was actually successful. They were having fun, and made a good decision.

Stepping down off my soap box I want to say that this type of personal opinion in an otherwise trip report focused blog is new for me. I typically post brief trip reports or gear reviews, but the overall reaction to my last post was so positive I thought I might, from time to time, mix in some more thoughts rather than just a “we did this” and “I like this jacket” type blog. If that is something readers continue to respond to I will try to keep it up. If not I will continue to maintain this for clients to come and get their photos from our adventures together.

I leave you with some photos of some happy guys from Rhode Island today who reached tree-line in some nasty weather and are now driving home and contemplating taking a day off tomorrow.

See you in the mountains,

NEAlpineStart

A young climber perishes on Mt. Adams

February 18, 2015February 18, 2015 David Lottmann Mountaineering fatality on Mt. Adams, Kate Matrosova

Sunday night while I struggled with figuring out a productive field course location for the third day of an AIARE 2 Avalanche Course Kate Matrosova, a 32 year old climber from Russia who lived in New York City as an investment banker on Wall Street, was struggling to stay alive. Her husband had dropped her off at the Appalachia Trail-head at 5:30am for her solo-attempt at a Northern Presidential Traverse; Mount Adams, Madison, Jefferson, Washington. A seemingly fitting objective for the Presidents Day Weekend.

Kate was no neophyte to mountaineering. Her Facebook page showed someone who had passion, skill, and quality gear for recreating in the mountains:

Photo from Facebook; previous trip

Photo from Facebook; previous expedition

She was also quite bright. A graduate of the University of California, Berkeley, and the Haas School of Business, she must have had a solid head on her shoulders. So why did she attempt this exposed alpine traverse with this weather forecast?

From Mount Washington Observatory:

In the clouds with snow and blowing snow. White out conditions. High temps dropping to -20F. Winds NE shifting NW 45-60mph rapidly increasing mid-morning to 80-100mph with gusts up to 125mph. Wind chills 65-75 below zero.

Wind speed is not as much of an issue as wind direction when attempting to go above treeline in harsh weather. I have summited Washington with clients in conditions similar to these. The difference here is careful use of terrain to “block” yourself from these debilitating winds. In this case she most likely ascended “Valley Way” and once she broke tree-line had a 80+ mph wind at her back.

The “yellow” in this simplified map represents above-treeline. Only a few hundred yards in that direction could be hard to reverse in those conditions. Star Lake, the vicinity of which she was located, is just on the lee, or sheltered side of this alpine ridge. An escape out of the Great Gulf Wilderness, even with snowshoes, could be impossible with our current deep snow-pack. Around 3:30pm she activated a Personal Locator Beacon indicating distress, and that would be the last communication she would have with anyone.

I received the automated Mountain Rescue Service call at 4:58pm while driving home from our Crawford Notch field location. While I could not respond due to the commitments of the current avalanche course I knew fellow Mountain Rescue Service members and friends would be heading up the mountain that night. While I know they are all tough as nails I wished who ever went up would stay below tree-line, as the Sunday night forecast above treeline was one of doom.

At some point that night the rescue efforts were suspended until 8am the following morning. Fellow rescue service members took some footage of conditions the following day:

At some point Kate was located, lifeless, having succumbed to exposure. With heavy hearts, and probably cold hands, rescuers began the long process of bringing her down the mountain.

I intended to mention this tragedy within a post about the AIARE 2 Avalanche Course but this has consumed my thoughts over the last two days so this tragedy will consume this post. I’ll post up about the AIARE 2 Avalanche Course in a few days. In the mean time we need to reflect on how we live our lives. Balance of risk vrs. reward is subjective. I must tell myself Kate did not know what the weather forecast was for the day of her ambitious traverse attempt. With her experience and knowledge she should have known gaining this ridge in these conditions would be horrific.

Or maybe not. Our “little” mountain range has a long history of claiming both the seemingly ill-prepared as well as those who were quite prepared.

Did she overlook the forecast? It’s quite likely she didn’t see that day’s forecast given her departure time. Of particular note is the low Nor’ Easter that was the major weather maker during this period travelled 100 miles further southeast than anticipated.

This caused a shift in the predicted wind direction for Sunday from South shifting East on Saturday Night to East shifting North Sunday morning. If Kate was aware of the forecast from Saturday it may have been reasonable to move forward based on the expected winds coming from the East, as most of her route would have been more sheltered, but more importantly retreat back down the north side of the range would have been manageable. It is quite likely she did not have access to the updated forecast Sunday morning.

But why did she push on past the point of no return with the winds at her back? Making observations in real time should take precedence over predictions. Having a conservative plan to fall back on can help stem human factor issues that can cause us to push on when Mother Nature is doing her best to turn us around. Did summit fever play a role? Commitment? Did the Personal Locator Beacon provide a false sense of security? None of these questions are likely to be answered. But they are worth asking.

My heart & thoughts are with Kate’s husband and family this week. While you can’t really get to know someone through Facebook & LinkedIn I feel this person was full of life, and made an untimely mistake that took all. I pray we all move forward in life pursuing our passions with a reasonable degree of zest, inhibition, and due-caution, as hard as balancing all those things can be…

AIARE 1 Avalanche Course 2/6/15 – 2/8/15

February 12, 2015February 12, 2015 David Lottmann Avalanche Courses, Backcountry Skiing, Mountaineering

Last weekend we had a great course run out of the AMC Highland Center. Fantastic snow conditions and very interactive participants led to 3 knowledge-filled days as we learned about decision making in the back-country. I apologize for keeping this post so brief but what little free time I have right now I am dedicating to prepare for this weekend’s AIARE 2 Course. I’m pretty excited about the first AIARE 2 course of the season but I won’t lie and say organizing 40 hours of classroom & field sessions for a 4 day course isn’t the slightest bit stressful. At least Mother Nature is providing the best possible outdoor classroom!

Black Diamond Convergent Shell Jacket Review (and contest winner announcement)

February 4, 2015September 20, 2016 David Lottmann Clothing Reviews, Gear Reviews

After 3 ascents of Mount Washington, a half dozen days of ice climbing, and 24,000 feet of skiing powder at Wildcat Ski Mountain today, I’m ready to share my thoughts on the Black Diamond Convergent Shell Jacket I received earlier this Fall.

I’ll be honest when I received this jacket my initial assumption was it was a typical high-end hard-shell. Since I prefer the breathability of my EMS Fader Softshell Jacket for most of my mountain excursions I didn’t think I would be wearing this hardshell often for in my experience hard-shells simply don’t breathe enough for high output. The exception in my book is extreme wind-chills (like Mount Washington Ascents), and skiing in cold temps (like today).

What I didn’t realize, was this really isn’t a hard-shell, it’s a hybrid. The lack of stretch panels had fooled me. This jacket does not claim to be waterproof. It uses “Windstopper Active Shell“, which is windproof, water-resistant, and highly breathable. Like the Epic fabric that I was introduced to through Wild Things Equipment many years ago this is a superb mix of highly water-resistance and breathe-ability.

Run after run today I confirmed this jacket is 100% windproof as we dealt with -20 to -30 wind chills. The hood easily fit over my ski helmet and adjusted to move with me as we shot through the glades that have really filled in with the 2 feet of snow this past week.

24,000 feet of skiing is a good day :) — 24,000 feet of skiing is a good day 🙂

Let’s hit a few more highlights of this highly technical piece;

1) Weight: 13.5 ounces with the performance of a hard-shell.

2) Pack-ability: Easily crushes down to the size of a large grapefruit

3) Convenience: 2 chest pockets that are easily accessible when jacket is tucked into a harness plus 2 hand pockets. The left chest pocket has this cool internal soft pocket to stow a smartphone with a small port to feed your headphone cable through. Brushed microsuede liner collar lining.

More technical information and a product video from the manufacturer available here.

Bottom Line: A very technical high-end hybrid jacket that looks & performs like a hard-shell but is more breath-able than any hard-shell I have ever used. If you shy away from hard-shells for fear of over-heating, or if you need more wind protection than your well loved soft-shell, this jacket should be on your radar!

You can also purchase one directly from Amazon here and doing so will help support this blog!

Disclaimer: While this jacket was provided to me via my employment with EMS Schools the opinions above are certainly my own. This post contains affiliate links.

January Ice Screw Contest Winner: Congrats to Mechanicalchris who has won 2 brand new Omega Pacific ice screws in my first ever contest. Thank you to the 80+ people who liked North East Alpine Start on Facebook last month and the 18 folks who subscribed! It’s really nice to know that time spent trip reporting and reviewing products is worth it. New contest coming soon… stay tuned…

See you in the mountains,

NEAlpineStart

Cinema Gully to Cauliflower, and REVIEW of EMS Packable Pack

February 2, 2015February 2, 2015 David Lottmann Gear Reviews, Ice Climbing, Mountaineering

Today was the perfect wrap up to a great three days in the mountains. Friday I had the opportunity to be the “turn-around guide” for a group heading to the Mount Washington Observatory for an overnight. Having an extra guide on these groups makes sense if someone isn’t feeling well during the ascent. At Lion’s Head everyone was feeling strong so I parted ways and made my way back down the mountain.

Yesterday I had a 3 person AMC group for a 101 Mountaineering Course. We worked on basics at the North End of Cathedral in pretty cold temps, and even worked in a hike to the top of Cathedral after a short lunch break.

AMC chillin' out on the North End Slab — AMC chillin’ out on the North End Slab

Today I met Seamus for a private day of ice climbing. Seamus had a fair amount of rock and ice climbing experience so we set our sights high and made our way to Mt. Willard. Before I get into the climb I want to mention a product I would like to review today. Earlier this season during internal guide training EMS Schools Manager Keith Moon suggested the use of the EMS Packable Pack inside a more substantial alpine pack like the EMS Prez Pack that I reviewed here.

The idea of carrying an ultra-light packable pack like this is excellent for a day of cragging where a large pack is comfortable to haul all your climbing gear to the destination but a bit too bulky once emptied of the rack, harness, and helmet. In these situations where you are returning to the ground an ultra-light pack would be ideal for keeping your “puffy” jacket, water bottle, first aid kit, and a couple snacks with you while you climb a couple pitches. Today I pushed the use of this pack a bit further by racking up at the car and leaving my alpine pack behind. More on this later…

We hiked in to the base of Cinema Gully (650 feet Grade 2) by about 10am. Lots of sluff piles reached the tracks before we reached the route and I spotted well known guide Marc Chauvin getting started with two clients on the first pitch.

The fall lines can be managed fairly well on this route and knowing Marc would cruise we decided to follow suit. The start was quite thin requiring a couple moves or two on rock before reaching decent ice 20 feet up, with the first screw going in around 50 feet from the start. As typical it was just shy of 200 feet to the steeper ice where we had a nice natural thread anchor backed up with a full length screw. The next pitch is kept short, just about 50 feet, to make the 3rd pitch “reachable”.

Looking down 2nd pitch — Looking down the 2nd pitch

Another 200 foot pitch from here brought us to the base of the last pitch. Marc’s team took the direct finish and I grabbed a shot of the father/son duo while I headed left up the traditional finish:

Cinema's Direct Finish — Cinema’s Direct Finish

After gaining the treed ledge we refueled and we started the uphill waist deep snow swim to the base of Cauliflower Gully. This was a full 40 minute all body work-out and I was quite happy Seamus offered to partake in some of this trail breaking.

Cauliflower Gully, 200 feet, Grade 2-3

This is a long-time favorite of mine. The setting is spectacular and the top out lands you about 200 feet from the well traveled and packed Mt. Willard trail which is an excellent descent after a full day of climbing. The climb was in typical condition, great ice down low, then a bit thinner but mellow, then the hollow-ish awkward-ish grade 3 crux, then fun swinging right up to the top.

We topped out right about 3pm and cruised down the packed Willard trail in 25 minutes. 850 feet of pitched climbing plus a few hundred feet of uphill tree swimming had built up quite an appetite for Super Bowl Appetizers and we drove back to North Conway with thoughts of good food & beer. Seamus has a few more days planned with us so I’m sure I’ll be seeing him in the mountains again soon!

To wrap up today’s post I want to finish my call out on this EMS Packable Pack. It’s almost Halftime so I will keep my thoughts short and to the point:

1) It weighs 9 ounces.

2) It can be stuffed into any large alpine pack with out notice

3) It has 1,500 cubic inches, so I carried: One puffy belay jacket, one very warm pair of Kincos Gloves, one first aid kit, one Petzl Myo Headlamp, one knife, one 32oz Nalgene bottle of water, 4 handwarmes (unused), a bunch of snacky food.

4) It only costs $40!

This gear doesn’t have a noticeable weight so lack of padding/suspension is not an issue.

OK, time to focus on the game. Pats are up 14/7. Alex will be drawing the ice screw winner during Half-Time show and I’ll announce the winner tomorrow on Facebook and NEClimbs & NEIce!

See you in the mountains!

-NEAlpineStart

The Flume & Silver Cascade

January 27, 2015January 27, 2015 David Lottmann Ice Climbing ice climbing

These two long moderates are a couple of NH’s best easy ice routes in my opinion. Yesterday they were in perfect climbing condition with almost no snow and plenty of sticky wet plastic ice to savor. My friend Steve joined me with plans of soloing both routes before heading to a steeper roped climb later in the afternoon. It was about 12 degrees in the Notch, so we opted for the fast & light approach. Helmets, harness, an ice screw or two (to contend with a crampon malfunction) and a sling & locker.

We left our packs & rope in the car and started up The Flume (Grade 1-2) at about 9:25am.

Steve is all smiles as we start the steeper ice low in The Flume

Pitch after pitch disappeared behind us and within 20 minutes we reached the cool cave that usually marks the end of the route for most parties. At the lower end of the cave a cool looking pillar had touched down and Steve gave it some thought.

The top out looked questionable, and I mentioned to Steve that without a rope or pack we should probably play the conservative card. He agreed and we made our way back into the cave to finish the route.

An interesting icicle has been the subject of other climbers FB posts lately :) — An interesting icicle has been the subject of other climbers FB posts lately 🙂

This cave is a really neat place and I shot a quick iPhone video to try to show how cool it is in there.

After following Steve up we followed the boot pack down through the woods to climber’s right of the route back down to Route 302. We drank some water at the car and re-fueled with some energy gels and snacks then headed down the road to the start of Silver Cascade (Grade 1-3).

While the guidebooks states this is the more popular flow I would contend it is the opposite. I have definitely climbed The Flume many more times, but they really are both worthwhile adventures.

We started climbing at about 10:15am and conditions were quite similar to The Flume. Wet plastic ice interspersed with sections of lower angle dry ice. The short sections of 2+ ice were very secure feeling bliss, and it was the lower angled sections between that required a bit more focus (and sharp crampons) to feel secure on. The lack of snow on the route meant there was really no place it would be ok to make a mistake.

This route doesn’t have such a definitive cave to really “finish” so we decided to just keep exploring the stream bed higher up. The guidebook refers to “more interesting ice higher up” and what we eventually found was quite cool. Around each bend we wondered if we had seen the best the route would offer, then one more turn and we spotted a cool looking yellow flow tucked up on the right side of the drainage.

Decent size snow slope below this small gully

We climbed up the left side of this small debris slope and I headed up the ice first. It was about 35 feet of easy grade 3 ice.

I'm 10 feet from topping out, but first, let me take a selfie — I’m about 10 feet from topping out, but first, let me take a selfie

At the top, much like our day last week on First Ascent Gully, I figured a packed hiking trail nearby might make the fastest descent. My ViewRanger App on my iPhone seemed to think the trail was less than a 1/4 mile away, and a couple hundred feet higher. We set a course to intersect it and after crossing the main drainage for Silver Cascade we hit the trail in about 20 minutes. Crampons off, and down we cruised.

Later after looking at the GPS tracks I realized how close the traditional “top” of The Flume is to this well traveled moderate grade hiking trail (Webster Jackson Trail). Considering it only takes about 20 minutes of brisk hiking to descend this trail from here I may push on to this trail on future ascents to make a nice loop.

It was a great 3.75 miles of exercise with about 2,300 feet of climbing in just about 3 hours.

Back at the car just after noon we called it a day and made plans to bag some steeper routes on a free day next week. I’m stoked to have grabbed both of these lines before the current storm. While still enjoyable once they fill in with snow they are a bit less aesthetic and the technical bits of ice can be few & far between, not to mention the bushwhack at the top being much more difficult. The way our winter has been going it wouldn’t take but another day of rain to flush the snow out and bring them back to prime ice condition!

Reminder: Contest for 2 free ice screws ends in 4 days! To enter like North East Alpine Start on Facebook and Subscribe/Follow this blog for a 2nd entry!

First Ascent Gully & Pegasus Rock Finish

January 23, 2015 David Lottmann Ice Climbing, Mountaineering

I enjoyed a great day out today with my good friend Steve and sent a “new to me” climb I have thought about for years. Our original goal was Cocaine, one of the ephemeral South Face of Frankenstein Grade 4+’s that had seen quite a bit of traffic over the last couple weeks. Unfortunately when we got there it looked a bit like a giant slush puppy and we decided to fall back to plan B, First Ascent Gully.

I have been looking at First Ascent Gully since I started climbing at Frankenstein 12 years ago. If you study the south face as you approach the parking lot from the south on Rt 302 you’ll easily recognize routes (from right to left) like The Fang, Wrath of Valkyrie, and Cocaine… If you look just a bit further to the left, around a large buttress, up in a drainage high above the rail road tracks, you’ll spot the top of First Ascent Gully. It is the farthest left ice climb in the guidebook at Frankenstein.

The approach currently is pretty straight forward. Leave the upper parking lot and walk north along the tracks for about 2 minutes. Take the first obvious trail up the slope you come to. A moderate pace will get you to the base of the south face in about 20-25 minutes. Traverse left following the path of least resistance through a nice open hardwood forest. Start working up hill as you enter a major drainage. You should be able to see the route through the trees within about 10 minutes of traversing from the Cocaine area.

We doubted we would run into anyone in this rarely visited area but wouldn’t you know we ran into our good friend Bob A. and his partner David just before reaching the route.

The climb has great belay spots on the right and a bit of a recessed cave on that side. The business starts right away with about a 30 foot grade 4 section before it eases up considerably.

Mike G. on the lead and his partner Bob A. belaying — David G. on the lead and his partner Bob A. belaying

Bob A. follows the first pitch... — Bob A. follows the first pitch…

Once Bob joined David at the top of the first pitch they waited while we got on route. The sticks were solid but the ice was a bit soft to the point where my feet did not feel quite as solid as I would have liked. Regardless I got through the business without any shenanigans and enjoyed the mellower terrain above reaching the birch tree anchor 100 feet up on the left and joining Bob & David. They decided they would rap and explore the area a bit more so down they went, then I belayed Steve on up.

My partner Steve follows the 1st pitch... — My partner Steve follows the 1st pitch…

From this anchor we could have just barely rapped with our 60m rope, but I had an assumption that the Frankenstein Cliff Trail, a usually well packed hiking trail, would not be far from the top out. A quick check on my iPhone Topo App seemed to confirm that a horrendous bushwhack did not await us, so Steve took off up the 140 foot “2nd pitch” which was pretty much Class 3 “steep tree swimming”. I followed with just one axe hooking from tree to tree, and when I arrived at his selected anchor I spotted a mileage trail sign only 50 feet away.

We coiled our rope and checked the trail, which was packed and not slick, so off came the crampons and down we hustled out to a few very nice outlooks and then into the Amphitheater. While we were not “running” per say we were moving at a good clip, and I was stoked to see we could make it from our top-out to the bottom of the Amphitheater in just 20 minutes!

Steve had not lead the Pegasus ice finish before, so we went over to look at that. It was fat, but was also extremely wet, soft, and “showery”. We opted for the Rock Finish via the beginning of a much drier Hobbit Couliour.

Starting the Rock Finish on Pegasus — Steve starting the Rock Finish on Pegasus

Some of the coolest rock climbing in ice gear I have ever done... — Some of the coolest rock climbing in ice gear I have ever done…

After topping out we headed back down the descent trail and saw a couple guys climbing the upper pitch of Hard Rain. The first pitch was not in so they had moved into it from Chia.

We got back to the car at 3pm, 5.5 hours from when we left. Felt like a pretty solid day so we were off to the Moat for those ridiculous Longhorn Nachos and a pint of Imperial Stout.

Days like this, moving through the mountains in fair weather with good friends around… well… we all need more of days like this!

Hope you got out today or have plans to get out this weekend!

See you in the mountains,

NEAlpineStart

P.S. 9 more days left to enter the contest to win two brand new ice screws. One entry for liking North East Alpine Start on Facebook, and one entry for following/subscribing to the blog (link at the top right of website)

Multi-Pitch Ice, Another Avalanche Course, and Private Ice Climbing

January 22, 2015January 22, 2015 David Lottmann Avalanche Courses, Backcountry Skiing, Ice Climbing, Mountaineering ice climbing

It’s been another busy 5 days of winter fun in Mount Washington Valley and I’m just now getting a moment to recollect some of the fun this past holiday weekend has brought. It started last Thursday when I had the opportunity to take a few of the motivated Catskills Hiker Group, Team Danger Girl, up a very fat & plastic Willey’s Slide as part of their 3 Day Accelerated Mountaineering Course.

EMS Climbing School Guide Cheyenne styles up the center of Willey's Slide with two guest below... — EMS Climbing School Guide Cheyenne styles up the center of Willey’s Slide with two guests below…

Looking back down the route our two rope teams await their turn... — Looking back down the route our two rope teams await their turn…

Dorcinda picks the steeper, somewhat wetter, line through the bulges... — Dorcinda picks the steeper, somewhat wetter, line through the bulges with Mt. Willard in the background…

Back at the bottom of the 700 foot slide this tight group poses for a pic... — Back at the bottom of the 700 foot slide this tight group poses for a pic…

I wasn’t with this group on their Mt. Washington Summit attempt the next day but it sounds like they had quite the experience up there with hurricane force winds and wind chills below -40!

Friday I enjoyed a day off and took advantage of the nice valley weather for a quick climb of Goofer’s Delight with EMS Climbing School Guide Mike Lackman. The route was in excellent shape, but this photo does not do it justice. It’s 180 feet of some of the best Grade 3+ ice around IMO, a great moderate classic!

Saturday started our 3rd AIARE 1 Avalanche Course of the season. As with all our avalanche courses this season we were booked with 12 students and despite a bit of rain during our 2nd Day Observational Outing we had fantastic snow conditions for learning about avalanche danger.

Mike demonstrates his Mammut Pulse Air Bag

Our group descends our test slope on Day 2 to learn about Snowpack Observations

The group practices some Hand Shear tests on our approach to the Little Headwall

With a Considerable Rated avalanche bulletin with plenty of new reactive wind slab potential along with some existing Persistent Slabs, and a fresh natural avalanche in the Lower Snowfields, the class had much to look at. I won’t upload my field notes from the day but here is the techno-babble gist for my previous students to see if this doesn’t get an eyebrow raise;

Small natural slab in Lower Snowfields, shooting crack on Little Headwall, CTE Q1 x 2 at 40cm & 90cm, ECTP24, and RB2 WB!

Layman’s terms, there was some really cool reactive snow to look at which re-enforced the groups decision to not travel into Tuckerman Ravine that day!

After the course ended on Monday I had one more day of work ahead. Julie had booked me for a private ice climbing lesson as a surprise birthday present for Ben. Off to the North End for their first ice climbing experience!

Looking down a beautiful blue North End Slab

Ben going over the edge while rappelling the North End Pillars

Julie surmounts the first bulge... — Julie surmounts the first bulge…

Introducing Ben & Julie to ice climbing was a great wrap up to a very busy 5 days. Today was laundry, dump, and swim lessons with my 3 year old son. Tomorrow will find me swinging tools at Frankenstein. I hope you are all staying busy and enjoying the winter climbing & skiing season so far… while we could definitely use some more snow the ice climbing is excellent right now!

See you on the mountain,

P.S. That contest for 2 free ice screws ends in 10 Days. Get 1 entry for liking North East Alpine Start on Facebook, and another for subscribing/following this blog! The link to do so is at the top right of this page!

Outdoor Research Alibi II Gloves Review

January 17, 2015November 11, 2018 David Lottmann Gear Reviews, Glove Reviews

High Performance Sticky Technical Perfection!

A couple months ago I mentioned I would be reviewing these after I reviewed Kincos gloves as an affordable alternative to high end climbing gloves. While Kincos are great for general mountaineering and back-country skiing sometimes the cost of fancy specified gloves are worth it. The Outdoor Research Alibi II Gloves are a perfect case in point.

Getting ready to descend Goofer's Delight today on Cathedral Ledge — Getting ready to descend Goofer’s Delight today on Cathedral Ledge- Photo by EMS Schools Guide Mike Lackman

My go to glove for leading harder ice climbs the last few years has been the Black Diamond Torque Gloves. While I have never formally reviewed the Torque’s, they are still a well loved model in my current selection of ice climbing gloves. At $20 more than the BD Torques I was interested in seeing how these might out perform the Torques. They win out over the Torques in three important ways;

1) Warmth. While still an un-insulated “thin” glove with excellent dexterity the Alibi II is a bit warmer than the BD Torques. I still opt to wear my EMS Glove Liners with either glove, as this dirt cheap glove liner adds a bit of warmth and comfort to either of these gloves and makes them both feel a bit more comfortable against skin, especially when using the Alibi’s as the inside of the Alibi can get a bit clammy during a day of climbing.

2) Grippy-ness. The Alibi II uses quite a bit of “Pittards® Oiltac Leather Palm for Enhanced Grip and Optimum Control in Wet or Dry Conditions”. This material is simply the stickiest material I have ever found in a climbing glove. It almost feels un-natural how “tacky” this proprietary leather is. My climbing partner today showed disbelief that this leather was not actually a synthetic rubber compound. You really need to feel it in hand to realize the reality of how sticky the material is.

3) Durability. This same unique leather boasts a lot of durability over the non-slip synthetic materials used in similar gloves. After trashing multiple pairs of BD Torques while rappelling & belaying over the years I think I’ve found a thin pair of technical gloves that I do not always have to swap out with my more durable Kincos for every single rappel. To be honest a couple full rappels on the BD Torques could show visual signs of wear in the palm. Today a hasty full length rappel from a Cathedral Ledge ice climb showed no noticeable wear on the palm. While I can burn through a pair of BD Torques in a full season from what I have seen so far I may be able to get 2-3 full seasons out of the Alibi II’s.

Two other small convenience features add value to these ultra-light technical gloves. First, the “carabiner loops” on the middle finger that let you clip them quickly to a Petzl Cari-tool or carabiner while you fiddle with something requiring glove liner, or bare hand, dexterity. Second the re-enforced pull loops at the cuff that help you pull the snug fitting glove in place. No need to bite the cuff while trying to slip these on!

In summary, these should be on your radar if you are leading Grade 3+ and above ice. Having excellent dexterity while placing & clipping ice screws is a huge boon when leading. I’ll still fall back on my insulated BD Ice Gloves for leading in really cold conditions, but for the fast majority of ice climbing days you’ll find me happily swinging away in my new Outdoor Research Alibi II Gloves which you can purchase here.

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Disclaimer: I purchased these gloves with my own money. This post contains affiliate links that help support this site.

Northeast Alpine Start

Gear reviews, trip reports, and how-to articles for Northeast adventures

Fun day of Private Ice Climbing at Cathedral, and a quick set-back…

AIARE 2 Avalanche Course, Reaching Treeline, and Re-defining Success

A young climber perishes on Mt. Adams

AIARE 1 Avalanche Course 2/6/15 – 2/8/15

Black Diamond Convergent Shell Jacket Review (and contest winner announcement)

Cinema Gully to Cauliflower, and REVIEW of EMS Packable Pack

The Flume & Silver Cascade

First Ascent Gully & Pegasus Rock Finish

Multi-Pitch Ice, Another Avalanche Course, and Private Ice Climbing

Outdoor Research Alibi II Gloves Review

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