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BUGS BUGS BUGS and more BUGS! Thats right folks...the mosquitoes are swarming now. Enough that you don't want to be standing around weeding the garden, putting your bike together at the trailhead or belaying without DEET! Why I'm not seeing any black flies to speak of is a question, but I'm not complaining. If we had both, I'd be hunkered down in the house until they died off instead of out enjoying this beautiful weather.
This week I have been riding more than climbing, but I did get out for a while this morning with Brad. Both of us have work to do so we decided to take some runs on The Classroom at the top of Cathedral. It's one of the few toprope craig in the area, and is about as easy to access as one could possibly ask for. It's a bit hard for beginners but it's a great place to work on your steep face climbing technique, or top rope anchor setup. You will need to bring a rack for the anchor and a second rope or static line to extend over the edge of the cliff.
Needless to say Brad has the setup completely dialed in. He brings the exact cams needed for the anchor crack and an older gym rope to use for the extension. We used one of my older 60 meter ropes to climb on. You will definitely want to bring a piece of carpet or something to protect your anchor rope going over the edge.
The climbs are easier on climbers right and get progressively harder the further left you go. We did pretty much everything and I managed to get all but one, the hard 5.10. Brad did a great job as always and his footwork is always quite nice.
Cathedral Ledge (north end only, right of Remission) in Bartlett, NH (Note: this posting begins on 5/25)
Eagle Cliff (south end of mountain) in Franconia, NH
Frankenstein Cliff (front cliff only) in Harts Location, NH
Holts Ledge in Lyme, NH
Painted Walls in Albany, NH
Rumney Rocks (Summit Cliff and nearby) in Rumney, NH
Woodchuck Ledge (right half of cliff) in Albany, NH (Note: this posting begins on 5/25)
Peregrines are present at a number of additional cliffs where no closures have been posted because recreational use is minimal. Climbers are advised to alter plans, and report the incident, if you encounter aggressive falcons during a climb at any NH site.
All areas will be reopened by August 1.
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
VALLEY CYCLING:
I've been helping a friend with some rehab on his hip, so we have been riding easier stuff this week. It's been mostly forest roads, or very easy single0track. Still, that's fine with me. It almost doesn't matter what I do 'cause I just like getting out with friends. So far this week we've done Sawyer River Road up to the Pond trailhead (almost exactly 8 miles round trip) and a loop we concocted that starts at Marshall. The latter goes up Lucille's, across red's on the easy uphill that swings right and connects with Red's, out Red's to the forest road, up and left to the kiosk & parking area at the start of the High School Trail, back down and left on the road all the way to the intersection before you get to Joe's Alibi, turn right and all the way back to Cedar Creek. Get onto West Side Road and hang a right back to Marshall (9.7 miles). If you're on Strava you can always follow me to get these routes.
INSTANT BUG REPORT - BUGCon 3:
As I said earlier, lots of BUGS out there right now. The interesting thing is that they are mostly swarms of mosquitoes so far. It's bad enough for me to raise the BUGCon level to a 3, and it may go higher in the next day or so. Bring that bug dope with you wherever you go. This time of year mine lives in the bottom of my pack and even in my bike camelback.
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.
