It's spring in New England, but the snow is still holding on up north. We decided this would be a good weekend to head up to Mt. Washington given the forecast of balmy 40 degree weather and stable snowpack. While both Huff and Cotton have made the trek up to Tuck's previously, this was my first time in the ravine despite more than two decades of skiing in New England. Needless to say I was excited to finally make it to what can only be described as a mecca of East Coast skiing. I say this because every year thousands of folks make the trip up to Tuckerman Ravine, most lugging their equipment on their backs, to enjoy what the area has to offer.
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| Beautiful day |
This weekend was no exception. We got an early morning start, meeting well before sunrise to make the three hours drive up to the base of the TR trail. By the time we arrived, the parking lots were already over flowing onto Rt 16. Masses of people were readying their gear to hike, climb, and ski the ravine. I had read previously that Tuck's is somewhat of an anomaly when it comes to the backcountry experience - it's not exactly solitude, but then again this is part of the allure.
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| Crowded ascent |
Arriving at a packed Hojo's, we scoped the avy assessment for the day. Generally, the theme was stay left - Hillman's Highway, the Left Gully and the Left Chute were all preferable risk-wise. After some discussion, we decided to head into the bowl and check out the Gully. Back on our skins, we sat in a traffic jam of a dozen kids hiking in with their father trying to get up the slope into the basin. Luckily they were polite enough to let us sneak through. Did I mention it was packed?
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| Safety was out in full force at the Hojo's |
When we finally reached the floor of the ravine, we were greeted by a seasoned rescue volunteer. He did a quick hand test on the snowpack below us, then joked to himself how it was meaningless given our location. The highlight of our conversation came when he literally applauded our idea of hiking Left Gully with his mittens. Despite his old-man humor, was nice to get confirmation of our route. We hurried to beat a large group of people who were likely headed a similar direction and headed uphill.
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| Left Gully |
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| Pretending my legs aren't on fire |
The bootpack up was a bit of a slog. The snow was actually fresh, which was a great sign for the way down, but made the climb up a workout. We were also working in a line of folks all headed in the same direction which was both slowing us down and speeding us up, depending on their pace. As we were making the ascent, I kept noticing spots of brown liquid on the ground below me. Huff and I eventually realized that his beer had burst open in his pack and he was leaking stout all down his backside. Fortunately, this was the only mishap of the day, unfortunately, it meant I was going to have to share my beer come lunchtime. At the top, the weather shifted from pleasant 35 degree warmth to wind and cold, so we made quick work of getting our skis together and heading back down.
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| At the top |
One group, about 30 minutes ahead of us, ended up getting the first tracks, but there was plenty to go around. The snow for most of the run down was pleasant powder, allowing us to carve some nice turns along the way. As if to remind us that this is New England, though, every once in a while we'd hit some slick hardpack and have to quickly find our edges again. I tried to snap a couple action shots of the group with my less than adequate point and shoot.
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| Huff carving up the fresh |
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| Cotton |
We took a break for lunch, enjoying some salami and stout (is there a better ski meal?). We ate to the backdrop of crowds on the ravine floor cheering on the folks sledding down the headwall. Obviously everyone was having a good time. After lunch, the wind picked up a bit, and we decided to get moving and hit the southern Chute variation before heading back down to the car. We hiked about two-thirds the way up to a reasonable spot to switch our gear around, then enjoyed one more run in the powder before taking the Sherburne run-out.
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| Sun setting on a great day. |
We were blessed with spring corn the rest of the way down, with a few bumps to remind us of the day's climb. By the time we reached the car, we were in 50 degree t-shirt weather again. All in all, a fantastic trip. Good snow, good weather, and a fun crowd. Likely our best day out this season, but hopefully not the last.
| Distance: | 7.89 miles |
| Elapsed Time: | 5:59:03 |
| Avg Speed: | 1.3 mph |
| Max Speed: | 22.5 mph |
| Avg Pace: | 45' 30" per mile |
| Min Altitude: | 1,995 ft |
| Max Altitude: | 5,214 ft |
