Showing posts with label crawford notch. Show all posts
Showing posts with label crawford notch. Show all posts

Sunday, March 8, 2020

LHMW Bypass Slab - Multi Pitch Ice Climbing





Nuno and I climbed the LHMW Bypass Slab at Crawford Notch. Swapped leads including the two snow pitches up to the base of The Cleft. Had originally planned to climb the LHMW (Left Hand Monkey Wrench) and The Cleft but there were a couple of parties already on both of the climbs. Sunny and breezy.....multi-pitch raps and a hike down on the trail back to tracks....great day for climbing!





Monday, March 18, 2019

Lost In The Forest, Frankenstein Cliff - Ice Climbing




Lost in the woods, frankenstein ice, crawford notch
Leading the right side of Drip In The Woods

We took a look at Willey's Slide from the road and although there was blue ice, there was a lot of snow on the left and bottom of the slide. Plus it was super windy. So Nuno and I opted to check out Frankenstein Ice. Good choice - we stuck to the sheltered Lost In the Woods area. We hiked up to the base of the ice cliffs and there were a pair just finishing up. I led the right side of Lost In The Woods (WI2) and set up a top rope anchor, and Nuno and I climbed a couple of laps. Since the left side was full of snow, we just climbed laps on the center and right sides. Then I led the right side of Drip In The Woods (WI4) and set up a top rope anchor so we could finish up on the steep curtain. Warm, lots of sun and a good day for ice climbing! Thanks, Nuno for your help and support for my "Turning 60 and Climbing About It" project - at this point, a little more than halfway to my 60-pitch climbing goal! 


Nuno on Drip In The Woods


From the top of Lost In The Forest

Lost In The Forest



Sunday, January 6, 2019

Trestle Slab (WI3) - Ice Climbing



ice climbing, trestle slab, frankenstein cliff, crawford notch


Trestle Slab (WI3)
Frankenstein Cliffs
Crawford Notch, NH

Hello 2019! 
My first ice climbing outing of the season/year - and it did not disappoint! Mellow day of ice climbing at Frankenstein Cliffs in Crawford Notch, NH. Nuno and I took a late start and climbed the Trestle Slab (WI3). I lead up to the tree at the top of the middle of the slab where there are a couple of cordelettes with rap rings, then brought Nuno up. It was very warm especially with one too many layers on. We had the slab all to ourselves and it was a super chill day of climbing! And thanks Nuno for your help and support for my "Turning 60 and Climbing About It" project!









Monday, March 27, 2017

Arethusa Falls (WI3-4) - Ice Climbing

ice climbing, winter, arethusa falls
Pano photo of Arethusa Falls

Arethusa Falls (WI3-4)
Crawford Notch, NH

Beautiful bluebird day for some spring ice climbing! John and I checked out Walk In The Forest and it wasn't looking good. Most of it was in full sun and looking really baked (scary). I suggested we check out Arethusa Falls so we back-tracked along the railroad tracks and headed up the Arethusa Falls Trail. The 1.5 mile trail was well-packed and there were some hikers already coming down. They confirmed solid ice and no flowing water like John and Phil had encountered couple weeks prior. Like Waterfall (WI3) the week before, we had the falls all to ourselves. But there were many photographers, hikers and their dogs who came to the falls while we were climbing. John did a fantastic job leading up the left-center. At the start the ice was solid. But at the middle there was a lot of snow and about 3/4 way the ice was pretty bad, but under it was solid. The flowing water in the center definitely caught my attention. At the top and off to the right, is a tree with a large red webbing  around it. John set up anchor and we rapped down from here. 

Great job sending Arethusa Falls John and thanks for another mellow day of ice climbing!


Wednesday, February 22, 2017

Left Hand Monkey Wrench (WI3) - Ice Climbing



Got to the base of the Left-Hand Monkey Wrench and I started up the ice. 
I hadn't even put my first piece in yet when my belayer kept asking me if I knew what I was doing. 
From then on I didn't want to even be there climbing with her. 
Near the top of Left-Hand Monkey Wrench, I stopped and made the decision to back off.
So I downclimbed while removing my pro.
I'm so glad I quit when I did.
Better safe than sorry!

Lesson learned!
Having a lead belayer who starts doubting you (out loud) as you're climbing, is no fun to climb with - it also says a lot about their own lack of confidence. Before I go out on a climb, especially a multi-pitch climb, I always make sure I'd be comfortable on that grade and with that climber. If not, I don't go. And if I'm leading, I always ask my belayer if they are comfortable lead belaying me on a climb. If not, I don't go.

Sunday, January 22, 2017

Flume Cascade - Solo Ice Climbing

crawford notch, nh


Flume Cascade  (WI2)
Crawford Notch, NH

When you can't get any ice lead practice in, the next best thing is to solo climb (for me anyways). 

So solo climb I did, up the Flume Cascade, just up past the bulge on the right. Did expect to climb farther than 200 (?) feet. But lots of postholing, and finally a decision not to walk across on some f**king-scary ice (aka ice with very loud sound of rushing water under it) turned me back. Solitude and beautiful views. Will have to come back another day!






Followed the footprints up the right side of the cascade. Wasn't familiar with which side of the cascade the water flowed, so I studied a lot of photos of the falls that were taken in the summer/fall months. This gave me an idea as to which side to stay on, especially with the warm temps.
















Got up to this bulge on the right. Climbed the low angle ramp to the left of it and found a level floor of ice with running water beneath it. That's when I decided to turn back.




Looking back. The grade was easy to climb. My main concern on this climb was to not fall through the ice and postholing. 


















Route 302 and the Trestle Gully on Mt. Willard

Mt. Willard


Some fast moving water!

Wednesday, March 9, 2016

Private Lead Ice Climbing Lesson - Day 2


first ice lead, lesson, thresher, cathedral ledge
On the sharp end! Thresher (WI3)
Cathedral Ledge, NH



Today I had my second private lesson with Alexa Siegel of Cathedral Mountain Guides. We headed out to Cathedral Ledge for the day. It was warm and we didn't know if it would be good for me to start leading, but there were cold temps for several nights providing some good enough ice. So when we got there, we found that the conditions of the ice were ideal for learning to lead. I had good sticks and feet all day! I ended up leading two easy short routes at Cathedral; the North End slab (WI2) & Thresher (WI3).



At the North End Pillars I did a warm up climb on top rope, then a mock lead climb on top rope. On my warm-up climb I got to try out Alexa's Nomic Ice Tools and they were definitely aggressive and weighed differently from my Quarks. She also had pick weights on her tools. Following my warm-ups, I got a lesson in building an anchor with one ice screw and a v-thread.




Alexa

After a quick snack and a lesson about "Harness Organization", we were off to the nearby North End Slab (WI2) to do my first lead. We turned the climb into a 2-pitch climb so I could lead, bring Alexa up and swap leads to finish. 


Leading up the North End Slab







My anchor. Oops, that rope is supposed to be in the right side of my belay device! I did have a bit of trouble with the v-thread.  At first, the two holes didn't quiet match up - the right side was just a wee bit higher than the left. After several unsuccessful attempts to thread it, I realized I should just take that extra 30 seconds and re-do the hole. Sure enough it worked. Alexa said I shouldn't rush. Also, once I clove-hitch into my anchor, I should let my second know that I'm "off belay".... forgot to do this on both my leads and kept Alexa waiting on my belay.







Happy lead!

Coming up on the second pitch


Hauling & Lowering
After our lunch, Alexa set up an anchor on a nearby tree and we went over more skills sets. We went over Lowering and Hauling again, but this time I really had to lower and then haul her up. Alexa set up an anchor onto one of the trees and we both tied in. We were on an incline and I had to lower her and then haul her up. And Alexa didn’t let up either….she put all of her weight onto the rope and made me haul her – it was a lot of work, even for just a couple of feet!

Rappeling
I have never liked extending my rappels and always attached my “third hand” to my leg loop. But Alexa said that setup allowed for possible tipping if stopped suddenly. And it was also possible for the leg loop to come undone. I learned how to extend my rappel with a Nylon (not Dynema) tether, and to connect my “third hand” onto my belay loop - especially handy/quick for multi-pitch raps. 

I got onto Thresher (WI3) for my second lead. By that time of the day there was so much water running. Alexa advised me to place a second piece of pro as high up and directly above my first piece of pro. If the ice is questionable, back up the first piece of pro in case it fails. I continued on and placed my 3rd piece of pro just below the bulge. Once over the bulge and on the ledge, I brushed away the snow looking to place another piece of pro, but all the ice underneath was baked. So I ended up running it out and set up an anchor on the tree in the back. Then I brought Alexa up, and we both rapped down. Such a mellow day of learning and climbing!


*    *    *    *    *    *    *    *    *    *    *    *

New Gear
On my last lesson I got the op to try out some OR gloves. Using the discount Alexa gave me, I purchased a pair of OR Women's Stormsensor Gloves which I received in time to use them in today's lesson. They are fabulous! They fit well, I don't have to remove them when using my iPhone, they are the perfect "lead gloves"! I also bought a Sterling Hollow Block 6.8mm to use in place of my Prussik cord. Faster for setting up Autoblocks for rapping, hauling and lowering! Yup! 




V-Thread Tool
I also bought a new v-thread tool. Practicing threading the cordllette made me realize that the Candela v-thread tool wasn't for me. It couldn't catch the cordlette like the one that Alexa had. Her's had a pointy hook on it and catching just one thread on the cordlette was enough to pull it through to set up the v-thread. So I ended up getting the Cassin Scoprio V-Thread Tool. 



I don't know what I don't know
Which is why I took private lessons from a AMGA Guide for learning how to lead ice. I learned a lot in my two days of lessons with Alexa - she was patient, positive and clearly loves to teach! There was no "winging it".... I was confident that not only would I learn the skills necessary in order to lead, but learn the most current skills used in the industry. Alexa's services as a guide are invaluable and the one-on-one professional instruction was perfect for me. Not once did I feel overwhelmed, afraid or unsafe. I was indeed nervous when it came time to actually lead, but it was partly because I really wanted to do well at leading and hoping I wouldn't forget anything.

Like my first Private Lead Ice climbing lesson, I also got an outline of everything that was covered so that I can practice the new skills.

Thank you Alexa for an awesome two days of lessons, it was fun and gratifying to learn new skills for ice climbing. These private lessons were a milestone for me. I have been ice climbing for 5 years and seconding (both ice & rock) for 3 years. I wanted to be a "strong second" before learning to lead ice. And a final thanks to my husband for his love and support - these private lead ice climbing lessons were his Christmas (2015) gift to me!

Alexa Siegel works year round as a climbing guide for Cathedral Mountain Guides, Mooney Mountain Guides, The White Mountain Climbing Camp and The Kismet Rock Foundation. She is an AMGA Certified Single Pitch Instructor and Wilderness First Responder. Along with Janet Wilkinson, Alexa started a Ladies Only Climbing Series with Cathedral Mountain Guides teaching women of all abilities ice climbing and mountaineering skills. She is a grassroots athlete for Outdoor Research and a member of Mountain Rescue Service.


Monday, February 29, 2016

Frankenstein Cliffs - Ice Climbing

Frankenstein cliffs, crawford notch, ice climbing

Frankenstein Cliffs
Lost In The Forest
Crawford Notch, NH

Hero ice is better than no ice! 

Geoff is a leader with the AMC Berkshire and organized an ice climb for today. We met up in the upper parking lot of the Arethusa Falls trailhead along with Steve, John, Dane, Toby and Graham. The day before NEClimb posted ice conditions which were very promising, so I was counting on getting in some laps! We hiked across the trestle and stopped to read the ice at the slab area - so thin in most parts and baked as well. So we continued down the tracks until we got to the bottom of Lost In The Forest. There were only two parties of 2 already climbing so we made our way up. To the left of Lost was a lower angle slab so one rope was set up and used for warming up, the other 3 ropes were set up on Lost. The rest of the day was pretty mellow with the 7 of us climbing. There was lots of fat ice, but it was soft and easy for the tools and kicks. It made it easy for me to practice my climbing technique that I learned during my lesson from Alexa the week before. Don’t know how much more of a winter we’ll have left. But sure am glad to get in as much climbing as I can! It was a great day for climbing hero ice! Enjoy a few photos taken of our day at FC! And thanks for the belays Steve!!! :)

Low angle slab to the left of Lost



Geoff with Graham on his belay

Graham and Toby

Dane and John

Toby taking a break on the rock behind me

Steep stuff to the right is really fun
John with Toby on his belay

Steve on the steep (short but sweet) stuff!


At the end of the day we rapped down to the tracks
Toby with Steve on his belay

On our way out, we came across Alexa Siegel & Laurie! 
Laurie was taking the 2-day, Ladies-Only Steep Ice Climbing workshop
through Cathedral Mountain Guides.  She was rocking the steep stuff!
cathedral mountain guides, alexa siegel




Saturday, February 20, 2016

Private Lead Ice Climbing Lesson - Day 1

Crawford notch, ice climbing, trestle

A "technical" day on ice today! My lesson with Alexa Siegel of Cathedral Mountain Guides today was fantastic!! We spent the day at the "Slabs" area of Frankenstein Cliffs, an the area just past the trestle working on skills for leading ice. Alexa understood from the get-go what my goals were and what I wanted out of my private lesson with her. I wanted to learn new ice climbing skills such as leading ice and we covered everything on my list! I got to try out some Outdoor Research gloves...I really liked the OR Stormtracker gloves for leading! And I got an outline of what we covered in my lesson so I can practice these new skills every day. Thank you so much Alexa for an amazing lesson! Didn't get very many photos, just a few....


Learned how to read ice!
candling, baked, delaminated


Practiced placing pro with both my left and right hands


Also built anchors, learned to belaying a second as well as haul/lower a second. Went over Rope management at the belay station, Swing leads and Building V-threads.

I also did some mock leading, and my climbing technique
 was honed as both a follower and as a lead climber. 







At our lunch break, we got a little visitor. He isn't at all shy! He was trying to get into Alexa's backpack. He has probably been hand-fed.








At the end of the day I got some cool stuffs - couple
CMG posters, a cute pink beanie cap and a camp knife.
Put both posters in a frame and hung it up in my gear room/office.
ice climbing lessons

We couldn't cover everything in one day, so I've signed up for a second day with Alexa. Read here about my Day 2 of Private Lead Ice Climbing Lessons.

Alexa Siegel works year round as a climbing guide for Cathedral Mountain GuidesMooney Mountain Guides, The White Mountain Climbing Camp and The Kismet Rock Foundation. She is an AMGA Certified Single Pitch Instructor and Wilderness First Responder. Along with Janet Wilkinson, Alexa started a Ladies Only Climbing Series with Cathedral Mountain Guides teaching women of all abilities ice climbing and mountaineering skills. She is a grassroots athlete for Outdoor Research and a member of Mountain Rescue Service.

YouTube Channel - Hawaii Girl Adventures

Check out my YouTube channel at:  Hawaii Girl Adventures I will eventually be phasing out blog posts and be posting videos of my climbing, h...