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We haven't had any rain lately. At least none to speak of. I'm watering the garden early in the morning every other day, and it's paying off. I have some nice lettuce, spinach and chard; I'm starting to get tomatoes and I probably should do it every day. Of course I say that and now it's raining, and I mean Cats & Dogs...go figure!
I've been wanting to get out to Found Ledge for a while. I don't think I was there last year, so it was on the list. We drove out Passaconaway Rd and of course I had forgotten exactly where you park on the Kanc to hike in. [SIGH] (PS it's 1.3 miles from the covered bridge, right across from the No Fireworks sign.) Once we figured that out, it was a quick 15 minute hike up to the cliff. Since we always play on The Little Slab, all we carry is a single 9.2 60m rope, a cordalette and 10 draws. Pretty sweet!
It really didn't look as if anyone has been up there this season, judging both by the amount of debris on the trail and the condition of the cliff. Frankly I don't think that I've seen the slab that dirty since I first went up there, probably close to 10 years ago. But at least it was totally dry!
I led Cast Of Chickenhead (5.7) to start. Since you're basically climbing on knobs in the middle of moss, it was generally OK tho the start is a bit bouldery. [wry grin] Joe and Brad took runs and then Joe led Brilliant (5.8). It turns out he had a small crappy wire brush so I was able to clean the start off a bit for him. Brad did it on TR and I pulled the rope and led it. That's a fun climb.
I'd wanted to do Elvis Is In The House (5.9), it was really why I went out there. It looked pretty darn dirty, but I thought I could clean it on the way up. I brushed off the start and I can clip the first bolt with only one move, so that was good. I was able to brush the moves to get to and a little past the second bolt, where I hung to do a little more cleaning. The moves to bolt 3 are the crux for me, but it went OK and I was able to move on above it. The rest is pretty enjoyable and for some reason not nearly as dirty. I've never been there in the winter and maybe the lower part is all covered in snow, who knows? That said, lots of the upper bolts surprisingly were covered in leaves & pine straw. [ha] I lowered off and brushed the 5.6 on the far left and Brad took a run on it.
I'm hoping to get back there before long to clean up the trail and the slab a bit. This is a great place to spend some time. Yes, you do have to be able to climb something to set up a rope, you can't walk around to set one up, but IMO they are all well protected and enjoyable. FWIW the bugs were pretty bad on the hike up the hill, but surprisingly very minimal as we climbed. Brad was prepared with a net jacket and hat but it wasn't needed. No guarantees that it will be that way any other time tho!
For the full current conditions report, CLICK
HERE
VALLEY CYCLING:
Other than the bugs, the riding is quite wonderful right now. I've been going up Hurricane Mountain Road at least once a week to ride the upper trails, as well as hitting on the regular ones here in the Valley. Pretty much everything is great right now. There were some nagging blow-downs but as far as I know all of those are taken care of right now. I rode on the Bear Paw network the other day and that was really fun. You access it via a pullout at a logging road and gate off Rt 302 as you're going to Fryeburg, just before you get to Haley Town Road. If you go past the Maine Visitor Center you've gone too far. There is a sign on the gate that says Bear Paw and a kiosk inside with a trail network map. It's not all that long, but it's some very nice single track riding. I've done it as a loop, riding the outer perimeter and it's good. I recommend it... This morning I did a nice loop incorporating Sticks & Stones, Pillar To Pond, Grout, Chutes & Ladders, the original trail to get you to Twilight Zone, Quarry, Rattlesnake, Sidehill and EKG. It's neat what you can do in 90 minutes!
INSTANT BUG REPORT - Bug CON 5:
I keep hearing that we've had a second hatching of blackflies, and honestly I would not be surprised if that was true. I can't really remember when they have been this bad this late in the summer. While they aren't bad in town, if you're out in the woods they can really eat you up. Between them and the mosquitoes, you really do need the serious bug dope or maybe one of those net jackets and hats. Or maybe both. SHEESH!
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.
