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In a way I've become somewhat inured to hearing about climbing accidents. Over the past 6 years I've been the local reporter for the Accidents In North American Mountaineering book and thus hear about most all of the climbing-related accidents that take place around here. I don't like it, but I expect it. It's far more disturbing when I hear about things that happen to people around my home cliff that aren't accidents. The death of a young man on Cathedral last Friday was one of those.
As you may have heard, sometime last Thursday night or Friday morning a 21 year old man from nearby Fryeburg jumped off the top of Cathedral Ledge and of course was killed. A team from the Mountain Rescue Service did a great job recovering the body from a slab area that is located in the open area quite a ways below the base of the Saigon's. It was thought that he jumped from the top of the Prow.
Of course this is not the first time someone has chosen to commit suicide by jumping off Cathedral Ledge. Another similar episode took place a few years ago and there were actually climbers right there when the person jumped. Hard for me to imagine how that affected their psyche's! Just before I moved here a principal from a high school on Portsmouth did the same in '96. 2 local climbers found him the next morning. Other fatal non-climbing accidents have taken place over the years. I suppose that this kind of thing will always take place and is likely unpreventable. It is just very sad when it takes place in what is effectively my back yard.
Weather, Weather and More Weather:
You certainly should always expect that the weather up here in May (and actually any time for that matter) can be, shall we say, problematic. Our Crank The Kanc bike timetrial is held on the 3rd Saturday of the month and it's snowed on the race, so it's not all that unusual. Therefore it shouldn't have surprised me that we got a round of snow in the higher elevations this week. I had to go over to Campton on Monday, so I drove across the Kanc that morning. It was a bit rainy and raw, but really not so unusual. The weather in Campton was blustery and cloudy, but there were plenty of patches of blue sky, enough so a hour long mountain bike ride following my meeting was just fine. So on the way back across the Kanc I was a bit surprised that it was quite cold and there was a fresh coating of snow across all the higher ridgelines. Descending into the Valley however there was nothing but blue skies, but driving down West Side Road I could see an obviously fresh dump of the white stuff on the summit of Mount Washington! I checked the Observatory report when I got home. Apparently foot had come down recently, and they had gotten another 3+ inches that day. Not totally unusual, but with all the talk of Global Warming it still was pretty surprising.
Ice Conditions Report:
Selected Ice Conditions effective March 21, 2024
I can't actually say that there is nothing out there that can't be climbed. That would be foolish. But for the average, or a little above average climber, that's probably correct. That said, I did hear that there is climbable ice on Parasol in Dixville Notch. Not sure how that will be after we get a foot of heavy wet snow on Saturday. Regardless, here's a few pix I took today just to document things.
Huntington Ravine
AVALANCHE
Repentance
OUT
Standard Route
OUT
Dracula
OUT
For the full current conditions report, CLICK
HERE
Jim Gagne Everest Update:
He made it he made it he made it! Jimmy reached the summit of Everest on Wednesday, 24th. The most recent information I have is that he is now safely at Camp 2 and resting. He should be at Base Camp tomorrow. The final hurdle now is getting safely through the Icefall one last time. With any luck he will back home in New Hampshire sometime during the first week in June.
According to the regional news Jim is the first New Hampshire NATIVE to summit Everest and the third New Hampshire RESIDENT. What a magnificent accomplishment. I'm sure that everyone will join with me in congratulating Jim and looking forward to his safe return home.
Here is the official announcement:
Official Summit Notice:
Everest Base Camp Tuesday, 24 May 2006
Ministry Of Culture, Tourism & Civil Aviation
Tourism Industry Division
Mountaineering Section
Brikuti Mandap
Kathmandu, Nepal
Please to be informed that the following team members of 2006 IMG EVEREST EXPEDITION has successfully reached the summit of Mt. Everest on 24 May 2006:
1. Mr. Daniel George Griffith (Canada)
2. Mr. James L Gagne (USA)
Mobile Version Of NEClimbs:
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:
Check it out and if you have issues on your specific phone, please feel free to let me know.
NEClimbs & White Mountain Report On Facebook:
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:
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.
