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Seeking Information - Alpine Tactics/ Training and Methods within the White Mountains
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I am looking for articles, old websites, blogs etc etc of people training for large and complex alpine routes/adventures using the White Mountains as their training grounds. For example, The Girlde Traverse of Cannon has very few articles/videos about it. Besides an older Freddie Wilkenson video and reading the ticks on Mountain Project, I can find very little info about others who have tried it. I have read and spoke to a few who have competed the Tech Traverse and gathered enough information about that route. If any old heads are out there and can provide any useful reading material/ inspiration that would be helpful. Or if those who have gone off and successfully (or unsuccessfully) completed large alpine routes and used the White Mountains as their training grounds I would love to hear your theories and methods. Thanks, Spencer |
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Linking routes can be a way to add more challenge. Long routes can be simulated with multiple shorter routes. I and a partner once linked vertigo, Moby grape, and the whitney gillman in a day. That was a blast. The same could be done with ice routes in huntington ravine. If you need lots of uphill slogging, you could do an objective twice in a day. I once trained for a trip to the Andes by hiking up a local hill multiple times with water in my bag, dumping the water at the top as to not wreck your knees. No matter where you are, identify your objective, determine what demands are required of you, and use the terrain available to you to emulate it. Are you looking for long, hard free routes? Skiing multiple days up Denali? Himalayan climbing? All will require different preparation. Good luck! |
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This probably fits more in the inspirational category, but I remembered an article I read years ago about John Bouchard winter climbing on Cannon, and recall he talked about New England being a good place to train for other ranges. I looked online quick and it was in The Atlantic, November 1999 issue, the title is "On Cannon Cliff". |
Ben Vwrote: I have done a few link ups on cannon (winter and summer) and I frequent Huntington weekly in the winter to ski mountaineer. I am looking for the next step. IE tactis to take to the greater alpine ranges. I live in North Conway so access is not the issue. I am looking forward some sort of blueprints set by the previous generation on how to use Mt Washington/ Cannon as training for the next level of alpine climbing/ ski mountaineering. |
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This may be more of what you're after, I once asked Steve Larson about how to make the transition from routes in the northeast to something bigger. I was invited to a tip to Chalten and wasn't sure if I was ready. I didn't know how to bridge that gap. He told me: "Remember when you first went to Cathedreal Ledge? You didn't know where anything was, it was clunky, but now you can go right where you need and have a good time. Going to anywhere is like that. Just go, expect to not accomplish everything you want, but that experience will let you accomplish your goals when you return". It encouraged me to go and he was right. I was moderately successful and earned a lot of knowledge. I think fundamentally your question hinges on what greater range you want to visit and what goals you have in said range, but if you can identify a goal, it will be much easier to use the many resources you seem to be well aware of to prepare yourself. Best of luck! Following to see what others have done before as well. |
Spencer Ralstonwrote: Yo Spencer, Here is a write up about The Triple Notch Link Up I did a couple years ago. This will get you fit and ready for moving quickly over terrain in the greater ranges! Triple Notch Link Up The premier run/climb linkup in the northeast that connects the three most iconic notches of the White Mountains (Pinkham Notch, Crawford Notch, and Franconia Notch). This 40+ mile route travels over some of the most rugged single track terrain (15,000ft of elevation gain), across the Presidential and Pemigewasset Ranges while also tackling 21 pitches of technical climbing up to 5.7. The route starts in Pinkham Notch and quickly climbs up into Huntington Ravine. Pinnacle Buttress (5.7, 7 pitches) is up first and is one of the most classic alpine climbs in the Whites in its own right. At the top of the route begin traversing your way across the side of Mt. Washington, until you hit the Crawford Path. You are rewarded with some of the most runnable terrain of the day as you make your way into Crawford Notch. In Crawford Notch, follow the train tracks until you reach the base of Mt.Willard and begin face climbing your way up Hugo’s Horror Revisited (5.7, 4 pitches). Traverse to your right until you find Ground Control (5.7, 2 pitches) and climb until you reach the summit. Make your way down some very runnable terrain and begin gaining elevation as you make your way up and then down the A-Z trail to Zealand Falls Hut. Just as you are beginning to get tired, make another big climb up to the Twinway and across the backside of the Pemi Loop. As you make the climb up to Mt.Lafayette you see the final objective of the day, the mighty Cannon Cliff. Drop down into Franconia Notch and up the climbers trail to Lakeview (5.7, 8 pitches). After 30+ plus miles in, the Cannon slabs give your calves one final burn. Hobble your way down to the Cannon lot and soak it all in…you just completed the Triple Notch Link Up. History: Over the years there have been a handful of parties attempting something similar to the Triple Notch Link Up. The White Mountains Climber’s Superverse was first completed by Chris Saulnier and Nathaniel Chu. Their single-push link up combines the classic hikes of a Presidential traverse and a Franconia traverse with the classic climbs of the Northeast Ridge of the Pinnacle and the Whitney Gilman Ridge on Cannon. This clocked in with 12 pitches of rock, 35 miles of hiking, and over 15,000 ft of elevation gain. It took the duo 28 hours. They carried everything front start to finish, going unsupported the entire distance. A couple years later, climbers Brent Doscher and Brent Underkoffler completed what they call The Super Reverse. This supported effort went east to west, climbing both the Whitney Gilman route and the Northeast Ridge of the Pinnacle. Instead of ending in Pinkham Notch, they followed the rest of the Presidential Traverse to its terminus. Their effort was supported in nature using car support and clocked in at 45 miles, with the duo on the move for 33 hours. I have completed the Triple Notch Link Up as described above 6 years ago but without any type of GPS. My original time clocked in at just over 16 hours. This was done unsupported and solo. I carried only food, water, and climbing shoes and soloed all technical rock pitches. |
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“Alpine” means different things to different people. My unsolicited advice is to envision what pitch is most likely to shut you down, and climb that kind of stuff. Fat ice is unlikely to shut you down, but sketchy mixed pitches can ruin your alpine dreams in a heartbeat! So for me, mixed climbing (especially at Cannon) was time well spent.
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This blog post has excellent info and photos of mixed climbing in the Icarus/Daedalus area of Cannon, which is some of the finest trad mixed climbing imaginable. It includes a topo of mixed routes in this zone. These guys are all really, really good, so when they say "M8", it's every bit of M8 and maybe more. |
