I only had a few hours this morning after dropping the kiddo off at daycare so I stayed pretty close to home and met up with long time buddy Tom C. for a quick trip out to Found Ledge, pg 42 of North Conway Rock Climbs, here on NEClimbs, and here on Mountain Project.
These pretty little cliffs sit on the west side of the scenic Kancamagus Highway which, by the way, is starting to overflow a bit with the leaf-peeping crowd. Tour buses and rubber-necker’s abound, so I suggest parking well off the shoulder.
The approach is an enjoyable 15-20 minutes of gentle uphill, the majority of which is alongside a babbling brook.
A good example of how slope exposure effects the type of vegetation
We started at The Little Slab and within an hour and a half Tom dispatched the four right most routes;
Unknown; 5.5? 75′
Cast of Chicken Heads; 5.5 75′
Brilliant; 5.8 80′
A little Slabba Do Ya; 5.8+, 80′
Tom cruising up BrilliantTom works up “A little Slabba Do Ya”
The two routes to the left, Elvis in the House and Found a Line were pretty wet (despite no rain in 6 days) so we skipped those and hiked along the intimidating Lumberjack Wall before scrambling up a easy corner/gully to take in the view from the top.
Crag Y top left
It’s a neat little spot up here with some nice views to the south and some cool boulders perched in a few spots. To the east we could see some of the open slabs above the Main Cliff and decided to go poke around over there before leaving. This line caught my eye;
Unknown route far right on the Main Cliff
We scrambled up the slope to the right of the wall and looking back at the upper slab section saw what looked like a bolt just above the steeper section and perhaps an anchor 10 feet higher, unfortunately not very visible in this photo;
Looks good! There is a 40 foot more vertical section below the rock you can see here
I think this line is referenced in Handren’s new guide on Pg. 44. “There is a line with a couple of bolts here, but it is unclear if it was ever finished.” I’m going to ask around. It looks pretty cool.
This place, along with nearby Lost Ledge, offers some really nice friction climbing this time of year. The approach is really pretty chill, though you have to pay attention to stay on track. At one point this trail was over blazed. A little bit of foot traffic would help keep it obvious without resorting to over blazing it again. You should go check it out!
This past Wednesday Oliver returned for some more preparation before his Yosemite trip next month. We started the day with a full length route up Whitehorse via Standard Route (1080ft, 9 pitches, 5.7).
Lots of options!
65 degrees, sunny, light breeze… perfect climbing weather… and we had the whole cliff to ourselves all morning! We quickly climbed up to the Crystal Pocket.
Oliver with Cathedral Ledge in the background
After a quick snack on Lunch Ledge I decided to climb the original “Brown Spot” 5.5 variation since I always take the Slabs Direct 5.7 variation. I quickly discovered why I never take this variation. The bolt protecting the move is one of the nastiest old 1/4 inches I’ve ever seen. The climbing itself doesn’t feel any more secure than the 5.7 variation. I stopped a little higher on the next ramp to belay to keep the rope drag down, and while I thought replacing the bolt might be a good community service I think it’s probably better to just stick to the direct finish. It’s MUCH nicer in every possible way.
Oliver cruising the upper slabsMount Washington clear & crisp in the background
It was only 12:30 so we ate some lunch and made our way down the hiking trail. Oliver was interested in going over some of the various anchor strategies we used on this climb so we drove over to The North End of Cathedral Ledge. There we spent a half hour or so going over some new and old techniques of constructing anchors. To wrap up our day we took a quick spin on Child’s Play, the fun 5.6 crack climb, then headed back to the shop.
Oliver’s got a couple more days planned with me this Fall before his Yosemite trip and is getting a few training days in at the tres-new Salt Pump Climbing Co. gym that recently opened in Scarborough, ME. If you are Downeast you should definitely check this amazing climbing gym out!
It has been a couple of decades since Oliver has tied into a climbing rope, but to paraphrase a well known military adage; “Once a climber, always a climber”.
I discovered in the first few minutes of meeting Oliver that his list of adventures was long. From a NOLS course in the Cascades back in the 70’s (yes before I was born), to exploits in Yosemite while dirt-bagging at Camp 4 for weeks on end, to sky-diving, to scary leads in his first pair of EB’s, the conversations through-out the day would be as entertaining as the climbing.
While a professional career had put climbing on the back-burner for quite some time that burner stayed lit, and now, for his 65th birthday, his wife is sending him back to Yosemite this Fall for a week of reminiscent adventure. Oliver figured it would be beneficial to get a bit of training in before his trip to Yosemite, so he came to EMS Schools for a bit of refreshing.
After sorting our gear we made our way over to Whitehorse Ledge. The first few pitches of Cormier-Magness provided the perfect “Oh ya I remember how to do this” type terrain as we quickly dispatched 3 pitches.
The famous Whitehorse Ledge SlabsSecond pitch of Cormier-Magness, the classic “Wheat Thin Arete”Echo Lake and Cranmore Ski Mountain in the background
After the 3rd pitch we practiced descending with 3 double rope rappels back to the shaded ground. A quick drive over to Cathedral had us eating lunch after looking at Whitehorse from a different vantage.
Whitehorse Ledge
After lunch we rapped the Barber Wall and headed over to Upper Refuse.
That back-burner flame is fully lit now!Cruising the first pitchAnd the 3rd pitch
We topped out right around 3pm, and started making plans for a couple more sessions before the Yosemite trip.
Thanks for the panorama Joe!
Every day I work in the mountains is rewarding, but I’d be lying if some didn’t stand out as a bit more rewarding than others. Watching Oliver reconnect to something that has always been a part of his life since his college days was very special, and I’m really looking forward to our next day together, which happens to be next week!
Thanks for reading, and as always if you like to you can follow NEAlpineStart at the top right of the blog. I have a lot of gear reviews coming up this Fall, along with some great foliage climbing!
A real quick post tonight to upload some photos from today and last week. The summer guiding season isn’t quite over yet and today I had quite a bit of fun climbing on Whitehorse and Cathedral today, but I’m turning in early as I have a partner lined up for an early morning attempt at a 2 hour car to car ascent of the Northeast Ridge of the Pinnacle. Stay tuned for a trip report this weekend!
Yesterday’s weather forecast called for 94 degrees in the valley’s. I wanted to climb, but I didn’t want to cook, so I called up my old friend Rob to see if he would be in for a morning climb up this classic alpine ridge. He agreed, and asked if his girlfriend Stephanie could join us. While we wouldn’t be setting any speed records as a party of three I liked the idea of a more mellow social climb, so the plan was made and off we went.
We reached the base at 9:30 and I was surprised no one else was on route even though it was a Monday. I took the first 3 pitches leading on doubles and while we swapped racks for Rob to lead the 4th pitch we saw the first of two other parties arrive behind us.
Two parties arriving below us
The first party of two was making good time but stayed to the right on the more direct 5.9 variation. Rob cruised the 5.8 variation (does anyone ever climb the Allis Chimney anymore?) and I took us up and right to link up with the “Fairy Tale Traverse” pitch. This is one of the coolest pitches in the White Mountains.
Classic exposure!Stephanie inches her way along the traverse
Around this time I discovered this was Stephanie’s first multi-pitch climb, having only climbed once or twice at Square Ledge. Great job on the route Stephanie, hope you and Rob are still together 😉
Shenagians
We coiled the ropes and started the hike up to the top of the ravine.
iPhone PanaramaWildcat Ski Mountain in the backgroundA “moment” that had to be captured
I hope to climb this a few more times this season. It had been a few years since I had been up there and I had almost forgotten what a great route this is. It is definitely a great option when valley temps are forecast-ed to be scorching!
Crazy busy week with 5 straight days of guiding! It all started Monday when another AMC Teen Wilderness Camp Group joined us for 3 days of rock climbing instruction. We enjoyed beautiful weather that first day up at Square Ledge.
Vivian rappels the 150 foot West FaceThe girls rocked at belaying through-out the three daysVivian starts up the Chimney Route
Unfortunately a deluge of rain was inbound for Tuesday, but the group was motivated to try to get a little outdoor climbing in before we would have to swim back to the van. We got a couple ropes set up on the Thin Air face as the first few drops started, and then the kids took multiple laps on the face despite the moderate to heavy rain. I was glad I had brought that quint-essential piece of guide equipment:
Thanks CT!Even climbed the first pitch to clean the anchors with it
We returned to EMS North Conway to dry out and spent the afternoon creating some bouldering competitions on our modest but creative wall.
Bouldering Comp
For our last day we split into multiple rope teams and climber 4-5 pitches on Whitehorse Ledge before rapping and top-roping over at the Ethereal Buttress area. No pics of that day unfortunately but everyone who tried Seventh Seal made it to the top!
Thursday was a unique guiding day for me in as such that it was a Mount Washington Ascent. While I do a fair share of these during our winter season they are not as common in the summer, when hoards of hikers climb this popular mountain displaying the full spectrum of preparation and trail knowledge. Despite having a fair amount of experience, Alan and his 18 year old son Matty had learned climbing with a local guide has some advantages, and I was happy to return to the mountain that I spend so much time on in the colder months.
Hitting the trail from Pinkham Notch Visitor Center at 8:30amCrystal Cascade
The bottom portion of the Tuckerman Ravine trail was quite crowded for a Thursday, but the weather was fair and it is summer vacation still! As we passed the Huntington Ravine trail the crowds thinned out a bit. A mother resting at the Huntington Ravine trail sign before descending mentioned her teenage sons had continued up the Tuckerman Ravive trail after consulting their map and determining that the sign indicating this was the Huntington Ravine Trail was not correct, or meant something else. A harmless mistake at this point, it reminded me that map reading skills, and navigation in general, are a much needed skill for this vastly growing outdoor user group. (Yup that is a plug for my Wilderness Navigation Course).
We soon reached Hermit Lake.
First views of the bowl
We took a quick breather on the caretaker’s hut porch then continued to climb up to the floor of the ravine. Just below the “open book” waterfall we stopped again before tackling the steeper bits of the headwall. While Alan & Matty snacked I started sniffing around for any remnants of snow. Yes, it was August 13th. But I had heard a couple weeks ago there was still a decent sized patch of snow. A month ago I could see it from Square Ledge. Today it looked like it had finally all melted. Then I saw something out of place between the rocks. Reaching down it was about a foot in length, covered in dirt & needles so it blended in with the rocks. I rinsed it off in the water cascading down the headwall and a few hikers gawked in disbelief. The last of the snow in Tuckerman Ravine:
No glacier this year
We started up the headwall.
Just above the first waterfall
When we reached the rim of the bowl we took another break and looked back towards Lion’s Head.
See the hiker out on the diving board?
A slow steady push up the summit cone had us on top at 12:45.
A well earned summit photo
It was an excellent day with a great father/son team. I’m thinking they might be back for a Mount Washington Observatory Overnight with us this winter!
That brings us to today! Claude, his wife Melissa, and daughter Katie, are adventure incarnate. With a long list of tales from whitewater rafting out west, canyoneering, climbing here and in the Tetons, horseback riding, and much more I knew we were in for a fun day. We headed over to Whitehorse Ledge and climbed the Standard Direct route right to the top. It’s been awhile since I’ve guided 3 people up Whitehorse, and I was reminded that 600 feet of rope is a lot of rope. The fresh breezes made the day quite pleasant and we reached the top at 1:30pm. An excellent day with a really fun family!
Morning lightLooking down from Crystal PocketHanging out at Crystal PocketSummit shot
That’s it! What a great week. Tomorrow off and then teaching another Wilderness Navigation Course on Sunday. Thanks for reading!
On the first day of the AMC Program we started at the Classroom and practiced some movement skills.
EMS Schools Guide Craig Porter explains how using a flake to lay back on can help one’s feet stay glued to the wall…
After the bouldering session everyone experienced a few rappels down the cliff.
Sophia goes over the edge
We spent the rest of the first day top-roping at The North End. On the second day we headed over to the Echo Roof area at Whitehorse Ledge. Everyone got to climb Ladies & Gentleman, Holy Land, and Relic Hunter by lunch.
Miranda lowers off of Holy LandPatrick finds his way up Relic HunterDennis starts up Ladies & Gentleman
Shortly after moving over to Beezlebub Corner & Seventh Seal and rain shower blew through and shortened our day a bit. On our 3rd day we started with multi-pitch climbs on the slabs, reaching the overlaps 600 feet up before rappelling back to Terra firma for some lunch.
Teamwork at the sandwich factory
We headed back to the climbs we were rained off of the day prior.
Patrick starts up Seventh SealTiara gets creative on Seventh Seal
We wrapped our third day up and said goodbye as the group left for many more days of backpacking & kayaking adventures. Working with these kids is quite rewarding and I’m looking forward to the next group coming later this week.
Yesterday Kathy & Carl joined me for the first of a two day Private Rock Climbing course. Both had a fair amount of gym experience and were starting to make the transition to outdoor climbing. We started our day at the Classroom and covered anchoring strategies before enjoying a run up Upper Refuse. We spent the afternoon down at the North End looking at top-rope management issues and working on some crack climbing techniques. They are out again with another guide today and I hope I get a chance to climb with them again.
Carl at the top of Upper RefuseCathy at the top of Upper Refuse
I guess I’ll keep with the moderate speed climbing theme and share some beta on today’s 2.5 hour car to car ascent of this classic alpine rock climb. We’ll get the big disclaimers out of the way first;
1) This route is committing! From Mountain Project’s description: “The Pinnacle is above treeline on one of America’s deadliest peaks. The weather is unpredictable and often comes in from the west (over the Mt. Washington summit, thus invisible). Snow occurs in every month of the year on Mt. Washington, and high winds, driving rain, and thunderstorms are common. Be sensible. Check the forecast, get an early start, and be prepared to bail if things go bad.”
2) We used what I call the “modern” approach… the Auto-Road. While this “approach” cuts the hiking time down to less than 20% of the “traditional” approach/descent time from Pinkham Notch it has two disadvantages. First, you can’t really retreat down should bad weather roll in. As such this approach should only be used during very clear weather windows. Second, cost. $36 for a car, driver, and passenger. That works out to $18/ea. So my $.02 on using the road:
If you have never done the route from Pinkham I’d suggest doing it that way a time or two. It’s cheaper, and much more aesthetic the first time you see the grandness of Huntington Ravine from the bottom of the “Fan”. Figure 2.5 hours for approach plus or minus 45 minutes depending on fitness, and another 2.5 hours for the descent after un-roping (if not tagging the summit). 7am is probably a good start time.
If the weather forecast is grand and you want to cut out an average of 5+ hours of hiking from your day, this method is quite sweet. Mike and I left the car at 9:40am and hiked down to the Huntington Ravine trail. From the parking lot it took us 6 minutes to reach the large cairn at the top of the ravine, where we could see one party just starting the route.
Heading down the headwall
Scrambling down the the headwall trail to the base of the route took us another 30 minutes. It’s a definitely 4th class trail so it could take longer based on your experience with down climbing with exposure. We roped up and I started up the first couple pitches in approach shoes. After 300 feet I caught up to a party ahead of us at the base of Pitch 3 and built an anchor. When Mike arrived we chilled for a few minutes to re-rack while Dustin’s party finished the 5.8 pitch 4 variation (having combined P3 & P4). We followed suit with Mike leading behind them and stepping out left to easier ground after the crux moves.
Mike starts Pitch 3 while Dustin cleans Pitch 4 higher up…
Combining these two pitches makes sense to me, but rope drag can definitely be an issue. Consider back cleaning that piece after the “groveled on my stomach move”. You’ll know it when you do it. After it is an “ok” pin that can be backed up if you like, then un-clip that last cam and life will be easier!
I followed the 5.8 pitch, still in approach shoes, and resolved to “quick-alpine-style” right at the crux (read he pulled or stepped on the pin). I’m not ashamed 😉
Once I reached the belay I took off for the upper bits. We still had two parties heading to the idyllic “Fairy Tale Traverse” ahead of us so I choose the easier 5th & 6th pitches without stopping to anchor until just below the final 30 foot technical section at the top. I belayed Mike up and then took a more solid belay for the final 5.6 corner and reached the top as the first party we saw while descending was de-gearing for a summit bid.
The first party on the route finishing the “Fairy Tale Traverse”Mike finishes the end of the roped climbingDustin starts the “Fairy Tale Traverse”
We headed up and to the car reaching at 12:10 pm, just under 2.5 hours. ViewRanger track log reported 1.49 miles round trip, about 1,200 feet elevation down then up.
I’d like to be a bit more optimized for my next attempt to get this one under 2 hours. For those who are SUPER comfy with the grade and have done it before, this is what I am planning on for next run:
Rack: .3-#2, no doubles, no nuts/tri-cams (thinking speed here). 6 alpine draws.
Rope: 9.2mm 30m rope. Simul to P3, belay 5.8 variation (my measurement is combining P3&P4 is still only 100 feet). Simul to last 5.6 crux. 30m rope will cut quite a bit of weight (and time coiling/flaking).
If the disclaimers at the beginning weren’t enough, these ideas are great for those who have scouted/climbed this route a lot. If it is your first time on it slow it down and have a great day!
While that’s it for speed climbing for a bit, heading into quite a few days of guiding camp groups, mostly from the AMC. Should be quite a nice week weather wise. Hope you all get out and get some good climbing in.
I know people who solo Upper Refuse in less than 10 minutes, so we are not trying to break any free-solo records here. I would like to share in detail what I think is a really fun (and relatively safe) way to cruise this classic moderate route if you, and your partner, are quite comfortable at the grade (for arguments sake let’s say 5.6+). A little back-story is in order…
About 10 years ago I was sitting with my buddy Rob at the well known “Moat” watering hole after climbing somewhere. We had just finished our 2nd mugs of libation and somehow the conversation made its way to Upper Refuse. I think it was because we were talking about how full length pitches on a recent Red Rocks trip were changing our perception. I mentioned that the three pitch Upper Refuse route could be done in one 60 meter pitch. Rob balked. We told the bartender to leave the tab open, we would be right back.
Bar-stool to bar-stool we took 58 minutes.
Here’s the detailed beta on how to not only climb this route quickly, but with only 2 slings to manage rope drag! Obvious detailed spoilers ahead:
1) Drive to the top of Cathedral. Rack up at the car. My slimmed down rack after a couple hundred ascents of this moderate (in order of placement, all Black Diamond C4’s):
.4, .5, 1, 2, .3, .75
2 alpine draws.
No nuts, tri-cams, etc… cams are faster for all involved.
Slow jog down the climbers trail and take the Barber Wall approach trail to the base of the route.
Rope up.
If you take the left-then-right variations of this ramp, you can have almost no rope drag and reach the 2 pin anchor at the top of the 3rd pitch in a 60m rope stretch using only 2 extend alpine draws (and 6 pieces of judiciously placed pro).
Proceed as follows:
Stay in the corner and climb easy 5.3-5.4ish face until about 40 feet up. A perfect splitter crack on the left side of the corner takes a .4 up high, clip straight to the sewn draw.
Stay close to the corner and wander right just a bit before stemming out to a great stance with a tapering crack about level with the traditional 1st pitch anchor 20 feet right. Bomber .5, clipped direct as well.
As the flaring crack ends step right to great foot holds and up to what I think of as the 5.6 crux. Bomber #1, clipped direct as well, before making a few steps up to easier climbing and crossing over the traditional chimney section of the route.
#2 placed under the small roof before making the side pull move up and right to leave the original chimney corner variation (extend with alpine draw). Staying in the original chimney is less exposed but adds to much drag.
Reach the 2nd Belay Ledge, then .3 placed in the left side twin cracks after making one easy step up off the ledge, and clipped direct.
Move up and out right on great foot holds, place the .75 in the nice horizontal 10 feet from the top of the ramp, clipped with the other extended alpine draw, and finish the ramp. Your belayer may need to remove their belay device for you to reach the pins.
Looking down the route the rope runs very straight and there is minimal drag.
This past week I got to run up this with my friends Christa and Jason and as a party of 3 we went car-to-car in 35 minutes.
I would strongly discourage someone from trying this unless the had already climbed the route a few times to get acquainted. A good warm up would be to combine P1&P2 staying left so you have better communication with your second. It is quite possible with a “short 60” your belayer may need to start climbing a few feet before you can reach the pins, so both climbers should be very competent at the grade. This past session I skipped the pins at the top of the ramp and continued all the way up to the fence, knowing my two partners where super solid at the grade.
This is a crazy busy route in the summer, especially on weekends. Traffic from Fun House, Three Birches & Bombardment, can bottle-neck here around noon-2pm almost every nice day of the summer. My advice? Climb it really early, or later in the day. Using the Barber Wall approach trail can make it a quick adventure (getting lost finding the Barber Wall approach trail can make it a long adventure).
For someone that is really comfortable on 5.6, it is a really stellar climb to combine the whole ramp into one pitch. Don’t hose your second though! If they have never climbed Upper Refuse slow down and let them enjoy it! Stop at the Bombardment Pin anchor, the cozy 2nd pitch ledge, the top of the ramp, and add a fun 4th pitch right to the fence to give them that feeling of “finishing” on the top of the cliff.
But… if you’ve climbed it dozens of times, and want to stretch your lungs & legs… well… have at it. I’m pretty sure you could car-to-car it in under 20 minutes (and still be on belay where it matters). That’s my next goal when I feel like doing something stupid.
Thanks for reading… oh, pictures from a great week with good friends from New Paltz!
EMS Schools Guide Jason Hurwitz starts up Wanderlust, 5.8, Humphrey’s LedgeChrista starts her first 5.9 lead, They Died Laughing, Cathedral LedgeGreat rest before…A great bit of climbing…Looking relaxed
Some visiting Adirondack climbers were looking for a diversion since the well known North End routes were a bit occupied so I steered them to the great over-looked gem, originally call “The Roof” but now currently called “Raise the Roof” after a more recent 2nd pitch has been added. I hope they stop by here for the pics I offered:
Raise the RoofReaching the roof…
That’s it! Thanks again for reading. Been a bit humid for my skin but cool Fall air is just around the corner! Oh, wait… it’s not August yet? Well, Camelbak climbing weather continues then!
Last week I got to spend 3 days with a great group of kids partaking in week long Teen Wilderness Adventure Summer Camp and finished my work week yesterday with a private Learn to Lead & Self-Rescue course with repeat client Spencer. First, some pics of these motivated kids:
T-shirt says it all!Abby enjoying the classic “Chimney”Our group on pitch 4 of Beginner’s RouteKevin’s group heading down Cormier-Magness routeTop of pitch 4 of Beginner’s RouteAbby on Kiddy Crack
Yesterday I got to head back out with Spencer. I’d climbed quite a bit of ice with Spencer at Mt. Willard, Frankenstein, and Cathedral, but we hadn’t climbed any rock yet together. Spencer had started to lead climb and wanted to work on his trad skills. We had an info packed morning session at the scenic “classroom” ledge before climbing Upper Refuse, and setting up some mock leads at the North End to round out our day. Despite questionable weather forecasts it was a perfect day!
Spencer finishes up Upper Refuse
Congrats to Travis D. who won the gear giveaway contest from my last post. He’ll be the proud new owner of an excellent harness knife by Colonial Knives!
Stay tuned tomorrow for my review on the Petzl Cordex Belay Gloves!
