3.06.2007

20070318: On The Menu


Okay, what'll it be? Cast your votes now!

  1. B#%&@mforth Ridge to the Hump and back.
  2. Hellbrook (what, again? don't we keep doing that fucker?)
  3. Long Trail winter traverse, non-stop, from the App Gap to the Jonesville parking area.
  4. Hillman's (probably too soon, but the weather may be warming... save for late March)
  5. X-C in to Thoreau Falls via Zealand Road... and then back again.
  6. X-C skiing on groomed trails anywhere (down by Tripyramids)... maybe even ski in, do the Tri loop, ski out (this will be do-able by novice x-c skiers).
  7. Liberty Spring trail up, Franconia Ridge to Lafayette, return via Bridal Path and a 1mile trek along rec trail back to Liberty Spring trail head (at Visitor Center?).
  8. ...
UPDATE 3/11: We're on for the 18th (changed title of post). Now it's just a matter of picking a destination. There's no new avalanche advisory posted for today as of this writing so whether or not the rain destabilized the snowpack is still up for discussion (did somebody say "Hillman's").

UPDATE 3/18: Well, everyone got busy so MuthaZ went back to his solo routine. Luckily I checked the forecast because as of this writing (5pm) winds on The Bad Boy rose up to about 105mph w/ temps a few degrees below zero. On the ridge, the temps were probably at least 5° but in addition to rising winds, there was a LOT of blowing snow - not just frozen fog. My official trip report is posted as a comment to this.

19 comments:

  1. I'll have a #3 with cheese, coffee rolls, and spam.

    But the commuters get last call.

    Other suggestions ->
    1. a semi Pemi?
    2. quasi Presi

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  2. obligations this weekend...the 17th is my birthday and my parents are coming up to visit me...I can do the 18th if not it will have to be the 24th.....which might be in time for Hillmans....

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  3. check this out:

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PQEVcCv_xkQ

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  4. i'm pretty sure I'm out of commission for the time being. my little germ factory of a son passed something on to me and it ain't gas! I'll keep you posted.

    I still want to do a VT trip. Also on my to-do list is a Bonds Traverse..can you say railbed.

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  5. Okay beeeatches... I am back in the saddle and am coming back with a vengence. I bought an ipod and feel invincible - like my life is a music video that never ends.

    If it wasn't going to be 100F (windchill) on the Big Pimple then I would skip work Friday to attack it! Instead I may be humbly skipping around in Boston's Blue Hills like a salavating pervert.

    17th = St Patty's = Green = Green Mtns = Bamforth or Mansfield = sweet pain addressed with Guinness and soda bread = a cupcake for T-mail's b-day

    25th = 13 miles of paved hell in Atlanta = suck

    Every other weekend, count me in.

    Today IS the day...

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  6. if the Bamforth or Mansfield is moved to the 18th count me in...

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  7. 17 or 18 makes no diff to me....I see Mountains on the horizon and they are looking Green.

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  8. just got back on one of 3 business trips i make each year (on average). tonight the NWS has a hazardous weather warning for tonight for danville. sheesh, I go away for two days and this town falls apart.

    it sounds like sunday the 18th is a big green mountain day. i have a few options to offer:

    1 - hellbrook
    2 - up-and-down bamforth
    3 - app gap to jonesville

    and what about this weekend? md, you were up for something, weren't you? how about something in the greens?

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  9. MZ welcome back...would the Green Mountain challenges require an overnight on the 17th...thoughts???

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  10. 's up to you, hiking man. the trailhead is just off the highway so you'd head up 93 to 89north and exit in Richmond, VT. There's only another 5 min of driving from the exit... maybe 10min - it's pretty close. It would probably take 3.5hrs from downtown Boston. You could also try the Maddog hotel. He lives about 20 minutes from the trailhead whereas if you come to Danville (you're always welcome) it's about a 1:20 ride in the morning. We're in MadDog Country!

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  11. ... that is, assuming we do the B#@$&*forth...

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  12. Talked to my parents today I am 100% for the 18th of March they are coming up the 17th. If the 18th is a no go count me in for the following weekends that remain in March.

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  13. Right up the gut of Hillman's would be great I still haven't paid back the Bad Boy!!!! I can also leave on the 17th for one of the fine Vermont Hotels if it is necessary....

    Give Tweetchy my best....

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  14. arrghhh...late breaking news...i'm iffy on anything :-( i may end in one more painful crash course from BU.

    i won't know until mid-week. so best not to plan around me. pick the day and routes that work best for you guys. if i can jump in, i will.

    i'll let you guys know once i know.

    -MD

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  15. http://www.boston.com/news/local/massachusetts/articles/2007/03/13/spinning_some_excitement_around_the_hub/

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  16. The Falling Water trail was a huge challenge today. The sleet/snow we had this weekend dropped a layer that was the consistency of white, dry, beach sand. Ascending was the most tiring hike I've had all winter. Luckily, I wore my Tubbs or I would've ended up like three guys ahead of me who turned back after barebooting it as far as the trail jct for Shining Rock - almost 3/4 the way to the ridge. They were post-holing miserably including about half-a-dozen ball crushers. By the time I got to Lincoln, the winds were so high and the snow so ... uh ... squally?... that I decided to turn back. There were rivers of snow streaming up Lafayette making little tornados or snow devils ("little" = 30-60ft high, 15-30ft across). By the time I hit Lincoln I was WIPED OUT. I was warm enough, but I stood on the summit just staring and the Mountain Spirit kept telling me "don't die on Lafayette". Good advice. It was only a mile back to treeline and Falling Water was so filled in w/ snow anyway that it was a fun crampon back (4 hours to Lincoln going up, 1.5 hrs return trip). On the way down, I passed 4 hikers who had apparently turned back on Haystack. I also had a crazy, new experience with circulation: on the way up, at treeline (where we stopped w/ Spungie to change) I changed into dry clothes and in the process, stripped to the waist completely bare on top, no gloves, w/ my back to the wind and snow. It's pretty sheltered there, but I'm not sure what happened next. If I had to guess, I'd say my body went into some kind of thermal shock and cut off circulation to my fingers. Both hands felt like they simply turned off. I've never had such numbing cold take over. I got covered up really fast, but had to open the chemical warmers with my teeth because my hands wouldn't work. getting gloves on, zipped up, etc. was a challenge because it was hard to grip anything. I completely lost feeling in my fingers. Inside my mittens, it felt like somebody stuck a few carrots in there because I couldn't feel my fingers touching. It was pretty intimidating. Even windmilling my arms didn't help. But by the time I got up on the ridge it was all better and actually changed from snowshoes to crampons wearing only my light O/R windstopper gloves and I didn't get cold again.

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  17. nice job mutha z...a good day when one makes it back to the trailhead with everything intact. trees are doing their swing thing here today too.

    your cold thing...so that's exactly how my digits get - sort of like they've been dipped in boiling water.

    -MD

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  18. muthaz glad you are safe...that happened to me with my hands believe it or not on Mt. Greylock we were putting on crampons and I lost all feelings in my hands....

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  19. Low we Go for Hillman's this weekend?

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