the tiny cedar
the tiny cedar and a 12cm Grivel was the only gear I could
get. Not that you can fall on ice anyway, but knowing that
the tree you slung is going to break and hit you in the head
on the way down always makes thin climbing more fun! In all
honesty it was more committing than I had expected. Laura had
a bit of a rough time seconding the thin stuff with another 7 lbs
of rope on her back, but she pulled all the moves! here she is
placing a tool in a thicker spot.
almost there
Close to the belay with most of the fun over with
for this route!
File required
I'm glad I brought one. I think we have to work
on being a bit more delicate on thinner ice.
Sometimes I can't help it.
Summitshot
Right above my helmet is the end of the drip leading to
a WI hard finish to this route. It was too thin and
steep for me to dare it.
The top pitch of WLF follows a perfect little gully.
a belay in the trees at the bottom should be off to one side, though.
CG backdrop
yet another party on Chouinard's. Laura for scale.
Power Play area
Power Play in fairly fat conditions. I was tempted to
try the right variation (WI4+) but we didn't have time and
I didn't have the guts.
Pick follies
Somehow Laura managed to not only trip over her
clumsy feet, but also managed to get one of the picks
from the tools on her harness to go through her trousers
and put a small hole in her right bum cheek. She had a
great bruise.
all is well on the pond
We managed to pick her up and get the pack off her
back so I could eat some lunch. We had one more route
in us. We were looking at a long gully far right of
the Power Play area that was apparently long and easy.
Our ambition to try it faultered in the boulderfield
below the route, and we continued walking into the
Canyon.
winter wonderplace
The big snowy boulders are amazing to walk through.
If there was no climbing here it would still be a
great place to be!
Quinn The Eskimo! (NEI2)
This route was in the same condition as the first time
I climbed it, 2 years earlier. This time Laura took the lead
and climbed a short pitch to a tree belay on the left. It was
Laura's first ice lead and she did well!
Above her belay I made an anchor on the trees. Snow had fallen
and ice had formed over top, just as before, making for a wierd,
thin crust over powder with more solid ice underneath. It made
the climbing feel a little harder than WI2, but it was fine!
Quinn Topout
The last route after a good long day of climbing!
31-DEC-2007
Ski Break!!!!
A few days before this we had driven through
Wilmington Notch on yet another search for a place
to stay and came upon Whiteface Mountain. Laura
had to get some ski time in. The hills in Onterrible
tend to be short so a few thousand feet of skiing
and lots of runs were desirable! It was a lot of fun!!