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Waterfall

WI3, Ice,  Avg: 2.3 from 66 votes
FA: unknown
New Hampshire > NH Ice & Mixed > Frankenstein Ice > 6. Standard Route Area
Warning Access Issue: Avoid walking on the train tracks whenever possible. DetailsDrop down

Description

Work your way up a wide, well-defined gully on moderate, tiered ice. Trending left seems to have more reliably thick ice but is steeper. Staying right is easier, but often thinner.

This climb makes a decent alternative if there's a circus on Standard Route.

Location

Roughly 100 yards left of Standard Route. Easily visible from the train tracks. You can't miss it.

Protection

Screws. Good-sized trees to belay from at the top.

[ NOTE: Descent- 2 ropes to rap is a good idea; we got off with a single 70m but 2 ropes would have been better. R Hall NH Admin. ]

Photos [Hide ALL Photos]

"WaterFall" area as it appears from just above the RR Tracks
[Hide Photo] "WaterFall" area as it appears from just above the RR Tracks
12/29/13
[Hide Photo] 12/29/13
From the top of Waterfall, right.
[Hide Photo] From the top of Waterfall, right.
12/29/13
[Hide Photo] 12/29/13
Looking up waterfall W3 with Fitzy on the lead
[Hide Photo] Looking up waterfall W3 with Fitzy on the lead
Looking up waterfall W3
[Hide Photo] Looking up waterfall W3

Comments [Hide ALL Comments]

Simon Thompson
New Paltz, NY
  WI3+
[Hide Comment] Careful on this one. For us the ice at the crux was more difficult than it appeared from below. Jan 12, 2012
Robert Hall
North Conway, NH
  WI3+
[Hide Comment] Yup ! I agree. Also, the top-out can be thin....good practice for many of the climbs on Frankenstein! Mar 26, 2019
Daniel Mordarski
Shrewsbury, MA
  WI3+
[Hide Comment] I'm glad to see a few other comments regarding the difficulty. I just lead this the other day (full disclosure, still cutting my teeth on lead) and I found this VERY challenging. I ended up staying left mostly; the right looked thin and sketchy. Agreed on the steepness. Early on I encountered a full-on vertical that I was not entirely prepared for. After that it's bulge after bulge...Definitely took me by surpise, it does not look that committing from the ground. I was talking to a guide later in the day while on Standard, and he gave this a 3++ rating ;) I don't think WI4 is accurate but that one vertical section felt far beyond 3 for sure... Feb 9, 2024
Robert Hall
North Conway, NH
  WI3+
[Hide Comment] Dan, while I agree 100% with your comment in general, I believe NEI-3 can contain short, up to 8-10 ft of vertical.

But for what it’s worth one of the great lessons in ice climbing is learning that “ It’s ALWAYS steeper than it looks”. And just like pure friction climbing, just a small change in angle can make a big difference in difficulty.
Welcome to the club! Feb 9, 2024