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I've been overwhelmed, so I'm going to take a couple of days off to recharge. Thus this is an early Report with a few somewhat random thoughts & observations. Please indulge me just a bit...[wry grin]
It's been HOT! We've had our first official heat wave of the season with 4 consecutive days with temps above 90. I've been drinking a LOT more water than usual and not peeing any more than usual, so I know it's damn hot. Along those lines, I went out for a bike ride a few days ago and as I went down West Side Rd I realized I'd forgotten to top off my water bottle. [sigh] Fortunately I remembered that there is a spring-pipe just north of the Saco Craig. I have no idea who put it there, but it's been there at least the 25 years I've lived here. The water from there is good so I stopped there & filled up. Just something to be aware of...
My fave place for my sweet carb fix in the Valley for over 20 years has been Leavitt's Bakery, on 16 on the south side of North Conway. The couple who owned it forever recently retired, and I was worried that the new owners were going to change everything. I can now happily report that several of the original employees are still there, prices seem to be close to the same and the molasses cookie is every bit as good as it was. [recommended]
There is a real infestation of caterpillars here in the Valley right now. Everywhere you look there are bits of leaves on the ground and the caterpillars are hanging from threads. When it's really quiet you can even hear them chomping away. [yeesh]
Even tho it's been very hot, my garden has thrived. I've got tarragon, oregano, spinach, lettuce, green beans, peas, onions, basil and tomatoes all on the way. It's going to be a great summer as long as I can keep the chipmunks out of the tomatoes. [sigh]
Work includes constructing approx. 20 linear-feet of stone stairs and a 117-foot wide retaining wall to stop erosion of the earthen bench where climbers stage, as well as building belay staging areas, rock steps, tread hardening, re-routes around eroded areas of vegetation, re-vegetation, and other trail infrastructure improvements.
The area will be closed Monday through Friday from 7AM to 5PM for the next 10 weeks. For reference, this closure extends from the route Waiting for Comeau to Future Shock.
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
SOME LOCAL/NATIONAL PANDEMIC THOUGHTS:
I was in Portland on Tuesday morning and saw less masks on folks than in the past. The staff at Trader Joe's are pretty much all unmasked now. You do what you think is appropriate, but even tho I'm fully vaxed I'm still wearing mine when I'm in a crowd. I haven't had a cold or flu in 18 months so I think that's worth any minor inconvenience.
Tho the governor here in NH has been raving about how great we've been doing with vaccinations, that might not be entirely the case...
I find JHU's Daily COVID-19 Data in Motion report to be very informative. It shares critical data on COVID-19 from the last 24 hours in a short 1 minute animated video format.
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:
Remember - climb hard, ride the steep stuff, stay safe and above all BE NICE,
Al Hospers
The White Mountain Report
North Conway, New Hampshire
During the qualifying round I heard the contestant ahead of me introduced: 'Hardest redpoint: 5.14b, hardest on-sight: 5.13c' (Geoff Weigand). The contestant after me: 'Hardest redpoint: K2' (Greg Child).
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.