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Not too much to say this week as the family & I are out here in Southern California for the New Hampshire school vacation week. It's been cold back home and temps here have been a bit cool for this time of year as well. And on top of that there has been a lot of rain. Higher elevations have been getting a lot of snow as well. I rode the bike up Mt. Palomar on Wednesday and there was a lot of snow up there. Of course it's above 5,000 feet so it's not all that surprising. We were planning on heading to J Tree for a couple of days, but as this is a family vacation, that didn't happen. Leggoland, Universal Studio, Disney, Sea World and other things took priority! [sigh] Well maybe next time. At least I got in some riding, a few hours here & there.
I did ride up the bike up through the Topanga Canyon area one afternoon and was impressed with the amount of what looked like climbable rock all over the place, especially on Old Topanga Road. I didn't see any indications that it was being climbed and asked some folks who live in the area to see if anyone knew if people climbed there. No one seemed to have heard anything. If not then it may be worth checking out IF there is access. The same was true in the valleys and canyons surrounding Mt. Palomar. I saw a ton of places that looked to have potential for climbing. And there were myriad boulders that looked just like what I have seen of the Buttermilks. I took a quick look on the web but couldn't see any info about climbing in the area so I think there is a ton of possibilities there to put up stuff.
While the weather is nice here, 75 today in fact, I can't wait to be back home. It's been a nice break but I do miss New Hampshire & the Whites, especially this time of year. And there is nothing quite like that late February - early March ice! It's time for some runs up to Huntington with the long days.
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
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.
