Category: Mount Washington

2012-2013 Season, Because, Earned Turns, June, Mount Washington, Tuckerman Ravine

Tuckerman Ravine: Because I Love It

Headwall & Snow Patch

I’ve skied Tuckerman Ravine in June and July many times. Sometimes because it was there. And other times because it was still there. But this year, I didn’t do it just because it was there. I did it because I Love It.

For three out of four runs, I was the only person in Tuckerman Ravine. I had one of New England’s finest natural areas all to myself. I was the only person in the eastern United States that was skiing. The only one. My own paradise for my own turns, experiencing something that no other person was experiencing at that moment.

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2012-2013 Season, April, Earned Turns, Hillman's Highway, Mount Washington

The Highway to the Highway

Mount Washington Summit from the Top of Hillman's

“This is going to hurt.”

Foreboding feelings of pain were strong going into this weekend. I am in the worst shape of my life. An honest self assessment suggested I could get the job done but only at the cost of several days of pain. But even in the worst shape of my life, I’m still more capable than I give myself credit for and I’ll need to remember that as I start rebuilding my body and, perhaps more importantly, the rest of my life.

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2010-2011 Season, Because, Earned Turns, July, Mount Washington, Tuckerman Ravine

Tuckerman Ravine: Because It’s Still There

Steve 4

Steve 2

While hiking back up for my third run, I overheard a descending hiker mention that “you only see snow in July so many times in your life.” That is true for hikers and die hard skiers alike. Having now skied in July four times, I almost started to think of it as a regular occurrence. Something to be expected as normal and just another part of my season. Which it is. But that comment in passing reminded me that no ski day should be taken for granted, especially a July ski day.

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2010-2011 Season, Because, June, Mount Washington, Tuckerman Ravine

Tuckerman Ravine: Because It’s There

Tuckerman Ravine from the First Aid Cache

The lifts have long since stopped turning but the east coast ski season is still far from over. After two years on the late season disabled list, it is with great pleasure that I am able to extend my season through spring and into summer.

I often wonder why I do it. Why punish myself for a few short runs totaling less vertical than that hiked to and from the skiing? Some might answer for the love of skiing or the passion of earning turns. But that rings hollow to me. There is something much more primal at work in this regard.

The truth is that there is no reason nor logic. There is no concrete premeditated thought process driving me to ski to the bitter end. There is something unconscious and primal pushing me towards such things. I do it because it’s there. And because I can.

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2009-2010 Season, Ammonoosuc Ravine, April, Earned Turns, East Snowfields, Mount Washington

Mount Washington with Descents of Ammonoosuc Ravine & the East Snowfields

Mount Washington Summit

Ammonoosuc Ravine

Follow your dreams and don’t ever look back.

Ten years ago during August 2000, after the conclusion of my last two undergraduate classes and prior to beginning my first full time job, I decided to take up hiking. Inspired by reading Waterfalls of the White Mountains by Bolnick, I began planning various Waterfall hikes. I bought an AMC White Mountain Guide. And for my first peak bagging experience, I targeted none other than New England’s highest peak, Mount Washington. Why start small, right?

This ill fated first attempt at hiking involved limping up the summit cone via the Tuckerman Ravine Trail due to a sore and fatigued leg muscle. Despite a severe blow to my ego, at the summit I opted to take a stage coach down the Auto Road to avoid further injuring my leg. My first hiking experience ended in failure. But it was the first step down a road leading to many adventures.

Since that first hiking experience, I have always held a grudge against Mount Washington. While I have hiked and skied the Rock Pile frequently during the past ten years, I have never summited and returned to the base using my own leg power. Skiing off the summit has been an elusive goal since I first started earning turns in 2005. Ten years after my first major hiking experience and five years after beginning to earn turns, I have finally skied off the summit of Big George.

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