HAPPY NEW YEAR YUP, it's New Years Eve day folks. Only a few more hours left and we'll be full tilt into 2026! At times over this year I truly wasn't sure it was going to happen. And yet here we are, a truly bluebird day and the ice coming in. How freaking good is that? Pretty darn good IMNSHO. [wry grin]
The MWV Ice Fest is considered one of the premier climbing events in the country. For over 33 years it has provided a great opportunity for those attending to network, socialize, try new gear and participate in multiple day courses, one-day technical clinics and privately guided climbs. Don't miss it!
Feb 5 - Feb 8, 2026 in North Conway, NH.
Our Current Review
AVALANCHE DREAMS: A Memoir of Skiing, Climbing and Life
Louis Dawson describes his life in six sections with each one representing a different era of his life. The forty-three short chapters flow smoothly and keep the reader wanting to explore one more episode at each reading.
If in normal conditions it is skill, which counts, in such extreme situations, it is the spirit, which saves.
—Walter Bonatti
Mid December climbers on Standard Route at Frankenstein
Crawford Notch
Selected Ice Conditions effective January 7, 2026
There is a lot of reasonable ice out there to climb. BUT you need to pay attention to top outs and to delaminations. And that's going to get even trickier through the weekend as the temps warm. YES we will get more water flowing, and that's a good thing. However it's not really going to get below, or much below, freezing overnight. And that's going to make things a bit iffy! And over the weekend be aware of what's above you. I gotta figure that some things are going to fall down in the next few days, especially if it's sunny.
Huntington Ravine
Odels good, Pinnacle & Central thin
Repentance
still building but not yet
Standard Route
GOOD
Dracula
IN & fat
For the full current conditions report, CLICK
HERE
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V-thread ice anchors are an easy, secure and inexpensive rappel anchor for ice climbing. In this article I will describe how to make the anchor, how to use it, what kind of gear is needed, and how to make your own tool. Everything about v-threading is easy and they have become popular at ice crags all over the world.
Climbing is a very dangerous sport. You can get hurt or even kill yourself. When you go climbing, you do so of your own free will. Everything on this site is to be taken with a grain of salt. Don't blame us if you get up some totally heinous route, in over your head and fall and hurt yourself.
