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Well maybe Bing Crosby had it right way back in 1944...
You've got to accentuate the positive
Eliminate the negative
Latch on to the affirmative
Don't mess with Mister In-Between
As difficult as it is, it's certainly not worth letting this weather get you down. You just have to find places to climb and things to do to keep you in the game. As far as climbing goes there are a few places, even up here, where you can climb on rainy days. Sundown cliffs out off the Kanc are getting a lot of attention these days. Even guides have been seen, clients in tow. While somewhat sandbagged (probably a little harder than the rated 10b) the left diagonaling crack of pitch 1 of The Cerebrus and it's left angling companion, Talcum Powder, are good options. They are never really wet. And of course for those of the gymnastic persuasion any of the hard climbs in The Cathedral Cave are another option. Don't forget that for times when we have one of those short summer rain squalls followed by some sun the Ethereal Buttress is known for drying out faster than any other place on Cathedral or Whitehorse.
Of course these cooler than usual days and nights have brought up some twisted thoughts for a mid-August, mainly leaving some of us actually considering the upcoming ice season. If you can believe it, talk on the NEClimbs forum has occasionally touched on just how early we'll be able to get out there on some New England ice. In one posting Jon Sykes pointed out that the Black Dike has been done as early as the 17th of October! Now that's an interesting thought, isn't it? While easily rejected, I had to drive up north through Crawford Notch on Wednesday morning and my wife and I were flabergasted to see a few trees up above Bretton Woods bearing red leaves! I'm sure it was just some weird anomaly, but it was startling nonetheless.
Ice Conditions Report:
Selected Ice Conditions effective February 19, 2026
Just as you would expect following Ice Fest AND a week of truly balmy temps, going to be upper 30's today, the ice can be a mixed bag. I saw someone post about how things are terrible. But digging into it, I realized they were talking about places like the North End that are very well used. It probably gets the most use of all. There are only a few places that have really easy access to moderate climbing and where you can set up a bunch of top-ropes. So that's not unexpected. And of course the climbs that are getting a lot of full sun are getting somewhat punked-out. On my way back from Wolfeboro mid-afternoon a few days ago I took a look at Rainbow Slabs which look as if they are getting pretty funky. And I watched a hunk of the bottom of Way In The Wilderness fall down! IMO it's really the time to start paying attention to what you're walking underneath, any time of the day. Enjoy this weather, but keep paying attention...
Huntington Ravine
numerous options
Repentance
iffy
Standard Route
GREAT conditions
Dracula
IN & very fat
For the full current conditions report, CLICK
HERE
Folks, I'm totally confident that we'll get some great climbing weather in well before the ice starts to form, we just have to keep our eyes on the positive and be prepared to grab the nice days when they come our way.
BUG REPORT:
The rain has brought lots of standing water in the woods and thus the mosquitoes. Bring the bug dope folks!
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.
