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April 29, 2020
Hi Folks,
Just give me one thing
That I can hold on to
To believe in this livin'
Is just a hard way to go
My my, that John Prine sure knew how to turn a lyric, that's for sure. There are songs that just find their way into my inner consciousness and roll around in there, sometimes for days at a time. Altho this story is of course from a female perspective;
I am an old woman, named after my mother..."
But it doesn't really matter. Prine talks about the human condition. About what we feel, about how we feel. That's why that line I posted up at the top keeps speaking to me. Beyond a shadow of a doubt, these are close to, if not the most difficult times I've lived through in my live. And like many, I need something, some touchstone, some tangible thing to hold on to. At different times it's been people and relationships. And that's been good. But the thing that's been the most continuous thread throughout 54 of my 72 years on this rock, has been music. Maybe even for more than 54 years, that's when I started playing bass in college in 1966, because I never took lessons or played an instrument I was singing ever I can remember.
Since I started playing the bass, I have been blessed to be able to play music with other people in many many situations. Willie says "The life I love is makin' music with my friends..." And I totally agree. Throughout these difficult times, I have still managed to make music with my friends. It's different, and we are not side by side and interacting in the way we've done so often. But the collaboration is still there, and we have something to say. Here's something that I have been working on with a whole crew of friends over the past several weeks. Please receive this offering in the spirit of love with which it was created.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ri0FR3JlCUE
For many of you, climbing provides a similar thing that my music does for me. I'm lucky that I have both in may life. And they don't really compete much with each other for attention. I just can't climb and gig on the same day, and that's not a big problem for me. But of course for many folks, especially those who work a day-job, climbing and outdoor recreating IS their music! You climb with your friends, you create and improvise your way up a route. IMO climbing is as much a mental stimulation as it is physical.
With the current closures of many of the places we all like to recreate, this is making things hard for all of us. I would assume that you have seen the announcement from the Forest Service that most, if not all, of the trailheads in the Whites have been closed!
http://www.neclimbs.com/wmr_pix/20200501/closures.jpg
This dovetails with the previous closure of the northeast side of Mt Washington, including the Ravines. As they have put it, the trails are open BUT all parking and access points are closed, so if you can walk there, you can hike there. Things had been getting out of control at the trailheads, with people looking at the stay-at-home orders as if they were vacation days! Last weekend the lots at the top of Crawford Notch were overflowing and Diana's Bath was insane.
Thanks to Matt Bowman for pointing out that the AMC has decided not to open its huts for the 2020 season. This is not posted on their home page, but here's a link.
https://www.outdoors.org/articles/newsroom/amc-preparations-for-covid-19
Our Governor is talking about a partial reopening of the economy and will supposedly be making an announcement sometime today. A significant percentage of NH residents wants things to remain closed for a longer period of time, in keeping with the national numbers. I guess we shall see...
If you are interested in what's going on with the virus in New Hampshire, you can see the current statistics here:
https://www.nh.gov/covid19/?fbclid=IwAR0zmCj_C16TxanblIa9HArAEH9Zv975MMLlY6fCpGM9WHEdV73vDtSx8wY
Well that's it folks. Please stay close to home and be safe friends.
This too will pass.
I've gone out here & there over the past couple of weeks and it's really helped to keep me sane. But it's getting harder and harder to find places to ride where there aren't lots of people. I rode some of the east side trails on Wednesday. It was a pretty day and there were a lot of people out riding, walking and just hanging out. I made a point of riding some more obscure trails & logging roads, so it wasn't that big a problem. However there was a disturbing group of teenagers hanging out together in the parking lot at Hemlock Lane. I saw that No Parking signs have been posted on Thompson Road by the Pudding Pond Trailhead. Hopefully this will restrict congestion on the Peaked and Middle trails, as well as the Sticks & Stones and other bike trails.
https://www.conwaydailysun.com/news/local/conway-selectmen-ban-parking-on-thompson-road/
Low pressure passes Friday followed by high pressure on Saturday and another weak low expected on Sunday. Low pressure will track northeast Friday dragging a cold front through the region as a weak secondary low tracks north along the front for the afternoon. Ahead of the front, a southerly flow will pump moisture northward providing widespread rain. Rain could be heavy at times in the morning and as a bit of instability trails the cold front, an isolated thunderstorm is possible during the afternoon. Winds will be high during the morning hours but as the front passes and the weak coastal low passes, conditions are expected to briefly decrease during the afternoon. Steady precipitation tapers heading into Friday evening, however, a trailing upper level trough will bring a continued chance of additional rain showers overnight. As everything slides northeast overnight, high pressure will build from the west. The transition will once again boost winds overnight and into Saturday. Drier conditions are expected to return with the ridge allowing summit fog to give way to fair weather skies overhead on Saturday. Saturday night, the ridge will crest and start to slide offshore. This will allow winds to gradually decrease and start to shift to a milder flow. Clouds will be returning on Saturday night ahead of a weak low approaching from the west for Sunday. While showers should hold off until daybreak, there is a slight chance a rain shower or two might arrive by sunrise, mainly for the north of the state.
PLEASE STAY SAFE AND STAY NEAR YOUR HOME FRIENDS
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
| As I hammered in the last bolt and staggered over the rim, it was not at all clear to me who was the conqueror and who was the conquered. I do recall that El Cap seemed to be in much better condition than I was. |
| Warren Harding |
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