Mt. Wash. Skiing Serial

[Harkin Banks]

Hey All,

Yeah, I've been away from the place, but only for a while. I'm not at a job now where I'm in front of a computer all day with plenty of time to waste like a lot of you (yeah, that's supposed to sound like sour grapes!) :envy: I'm working in marketing year-round at Ascutney Mountain Resort, VT, now, and I'm on the road most of the time. But, with February nearly upon us, thoughts are turning Pinkhamward. Hmmm, maybe that'll be my new direction in life...Pinkhamward!
Anyway, I've come across my Tux archives recently, which were mistakenly put into storage and improperly labeled, hence my excitement at their reappearance. Namely, the Tux map that I promised RR a copy of, AND a little story that I think you all will find pretty interesting. It's an article from a 1968 issue of Appalachia, written by Nelson Gildersleeve, who was a veteran member of the Mt. Washington Volunteer Ski Patrol. The article was an attempt (and a rather comprehensive one at the time and may have been superceded by a more recent one) to list everything about each place of skiing on Mt. Washington. Since it's 19 pages long, I shall serialize it, and will hope to post a new installment every day until it's finished. It's arguably the most comprehensive assessment that I've ever seen. I hope you like it!

Mt. Washington Skiing in 1967 - The Year of All Winter and No Spring
by Nelson Gildersleeve

During the summer of 1966, the editor asked for an article on Mt. Washington skiing. It took but little time to think of the questions everyone asks every spring about snow depth, temperature, steepness, remote areas, etc., and to realize that answers weren't readily available; research was required. Thus was generated the idea of a week in the spring of 1967 during which the author and several companions would determine whether all the major runs on Mt. Washington could be skied in one week, and measurements would be taken of the various runs. We could then compile an authoritative document, particularly of the remote areas and the rarely skied gullies.
The original group, which began planning in 1966, was to include myself, Gard and Shel Perry and Mark Kingsbury, all fine competitive skiers who trained for several years with Brooks Dodge. The week was to be the third in April, their vacation week from Wayland High School, Wayland, Massachusetts, where they were seniors. They had skied many or all of the gullies at various times with Brooks, and had the additional mountain love from being hutboys with the A.M.C. They tolerated the author, second in seniority among the active members of the Mt. Washington Volunteer Ski Patrol, for one simple reason: though always behind them going downhill, being cautious and less accomplished on skis, I normally managed to be first up the mountain on every trip we had taken together during 1966. Joining in the latter stages of planning, and a full, fine, able participant, was Dave Hodgdon, Assistant Patrol Leader of Blue Hill (Canton, Mass.) Ski Patrol and a member of the National Ski Patrol System's Ski Mountaineering Committee. Part time participant was ex-hutman Peter Trafton, stealing a few days from Harvard Medical School.
Our objective was to prepare a fundamental document on Mt. Washington skiing, and not just Tuckerman Ravine. We wanted to do the following:

1. List and describe all remote areas, as well as the conventional Tuckerman's Ravine, and tell how to reach them.
2. Give the basic information of length, vertical rise, minimum and average width, and average and steepest pitch.
3. Compare areas or gullies by ski difficulty and recommend the best time in spring to ski each area.

Saturday, April 15. The mountain was frozen solid. We didn't even have frozen granular; it was more a smooth ice surface, allowing the mountain to shine and the skiers to have completely impossible terrain and a NO SKI day. Maximum temperature was 33 degrees F. There was time to set up camp, be sociable with everybody there, have lots of coffee, etc. Hillman's lacked avalanche snow at the bottom, so that the total width for skiing and climbing was three feet wide at one point near the bottom (normally thirty feet at that point) - mighty undesireable.
Brush cutting gave at least a separate foot-path for the time when we hoped to ski. Even at the bottom, where the slope is only 15 degrees, it was impossible to kick steps or support oneself. Only crampons would allow a person to stand on a slope of that pitch when it was all ice. With my natural enthusiasm for improved skiing, Dave and I also tagged trees down a gully from Hillman's to the Lower Snowfield, and planned a new path up into the Lower Snowfield for a spring with a minimum of snow. Cutting would be done in the fall of 1967.

Sunday, April 16. Everything was still frozen! We decided to take ice axes, put on crampons, and start taking the measurements that are in Chart II. (I'll post the Charts at the end of the serial-HB) Dave Hodgdon had kindly supplied the Abney Level and was thus our Measurements Engineer. Three inches of snow actually fell Sunday, making fair skiing on the lower quarter of Hillman's Highway - packed and unpacked powder to a drifted depth of two feet over ice, with icy spots showing and enlarging as people skied. Such a small area is not the greatest of fun, or conducive to graceful skiing. We preferred to do our measurement job rather than try such confined skiing, and thus took measurements on the Headwall, Lip, Sluice, Right Gully, and Lion's Head Gullies 1 and 2. The surface was so firm over the Lip that even with crampons every step had to be cut, and the threesome of Gard, Mark and Dave at that point should unquestionably have been roped. Nothing could have stopped one of the climbers except the end of the snow - meaning bushes, trees, or rocks. This was the only piece of poor judgment on our part all week.

**** OK, there ya go, the first installment of this serial. I will hope to have a new episode each evening after work (today's my day off). At the rate I started, it should take probably a week to finish it.
I hope to see lots of you at the Ravine this spring/summer!

Harkin Banks

[pulverschwein]

Saturday, April 15. The mountain was frozen solid. We didn't even have frozen granular; it was more a smooth ice surface, allowing the mountain to shine and the skiers to have completely impossible terrain and a NO SKI day.
Thanks, Harkin. Can't wait for the next episode! It's reassuring to know that even in the "good old days", the pioneers were committed to endure the same variable and often lousy conditions that seem so prevalent today. They should make us appreciate any time we get out on the hill with our amazing technologically advanced equipment and stop whining when we get a spell of crappy weather like we've had this month. Imagine dealing with those conditions with 60's era equipment! To these guys Cubco bindings were revolutionary.

[RR]

Most impressive. Nice find!

[Rider.Steve]

Harkin,

Welcome back! Did you get the disc from the Summer Jam? (I can't blackmail you if you aren't around you know).

Looking forward to the next installments!

Steve

[Harkin Banks]

Harkin,

Welcome back! Did you get the disc from the Summer Jam? (I can't blackmail you if you aren't around you know).
Steve

Oh yeah, I got it! Thanks! What a weekend! I'll always remember the very cold water! :p
Gladja like the new history piece.
Speaking of a new history piece, you should pick up the new issue of Snow East magazine. I wrote the article on the annual Vermont Antique Ski Race, at my home mountain, Ascutney Mountain Resort, VT. This year we've got a lot of returning ex-Olympians and we've just gotten word that not only will Rick Chaffee ('68 and '72 Olympics) be returning, but his sister will also be making it, Suzy (Chapstick) Chaffee, who, you may not know, was quite an accomplished racer before she was THE face of hotdogging back in the '70s.
It's on Sunday, March 19th this year, and it's gonna be a blast! If you want to find out more (this is NOT a plug!) go to www.ascutney.com.
HB

[PWDR8S]

Glad you're back on site dude! I love it when you harken back to the days of old! http://www.timefortuckerman.com/forums/images/smilies/tongue.gif

[Harkin Banks]

Episode Two

Monday, April 17. A warm, calm day, reaching 35 degrees. The new snow of Sunday had blown onto sections of the Headwall. Early in the day, if one walked across the bottom as we did, he'd have found alternately packed powder and ice, with seven or eight transitions as he crossed. The clouds were dense in the valley and up to about 4,000 feet, a little above Tuck Shelter's 3,800-foot level. We had the feeling that the clouds would hang in the ravine much of the day, but that the Summit would be in the clear. We took off knowing we had to be right, and we were. By 10:30, as we climbed the Right Gully (ice axes and crampons again), we were in sun, and the Sea and Ski had to be taken out of the packs. At the top of the Right Gully we turned directly left (west) and went straight across the lower portions of the Cone (the section of Mt. Washington from 5,500 to the Summit). We walked until we reached the Westside Trail, taking it to where the Ammonoosuc Ravine snowfield should have been. If we had taken skis, we'd have had a maximum of three tight turns. That's all the snow there was. The combination of a small snowfall plus wind at the time of the fall meant that this most exposed of the remote areas had no coverage. Wind is always a major factor with every gully.
After lunch we continued along the Westside Trail to the Gulfside Trail and the Great Gulf gullies. The top of each had new snow, soft and deep. A rock thrown in the snow disappeared. Throwing the rock far enough, however, we found frozen corn snow and saw the rock bounce down the full length of each gully. We knew skiing would be good eventually, but powder at the top had to corn, and the corn below had to soften. We were suspicious that we'd never ski the Great Gulf this vacation week; we were unfortunately right, as it was unskiable until June.
To return to Tuck, we hiked up the Cog Railway, crossed the Auto Road to reach the Summit Snowfields, and headed down them to the Right Gully and the Bowl, glissading most of the way. A few persons in the Ravine had gone in to ski on the powder, and even had climbed up to the Lip. Several times each year one finds a new skier, never before in the Ravine, way up on the Headwall under the Lip. He looks down, freezes, and says No. Then he starts edging back down, trying to use the skis in the same way an ice axe is used for support, leaning almost against the snow to get a false sense of security. For a patrolman, there are two choices: to wait, perhaps an hour, for the slower than snail's pace descent, or to go up and help. With ice axes and crampons, we went up; I carried skis back down, and Gard and Shel walked the man. Ten minutes rather than one hour later, all of us were out of the Bowl, and it could be "put to bed" for another night.


OK, so I shall put this serial to bed for another night as well.
Harkin

[Harkin Banks]

Episode Three

Tuesday, April 18. Snow all day. Have you ever prayed for "no snow"? Perhaps never in winter, but in mid-April we do. The snow was so heavy that all portions of the mountain had to be closed. Gard and Shel went down for food. Mark was sick and was allowed to occupy a bed all day at the Forest Service hut; he had special dispensation because of the work we were doing. Finally, about 4pm, hopelessly unhappy, Dave and I went onto Hillman's and found that new snow had not been blown away. We tried to cut it, hoping to avalanche it and fill in the bottom of Hillman's. We had no luck. We were reconciled by then to a narrow Hillman's all year - we weren't wrong.

Wednesday, April 19. Twenty inches of new snow had now fallen. Since this was almost the one morning of the year that a Forest Service Snow Ranger was not on the mountain, we took a pre-breakfast hike to the Bowl to decide what the day had in store. There were three distinct conditions on the wall, frozen granular in great quantity, wind-packed powder (extremely firm but skiable for those with sharp edges), and soft, deep, heavy powder. The day gave a full taste of the extremes of snow conditions found on the mountain. Because of the wind on the previous days, the entire top half of Hillman's was filled with new snow. Thus the unusual took place: Hillman's was closed, and the Bowl was opened after the Forest Service had shot some ice. Up to forty people reached the Bowl on Wednesday. All day every skier took a searching look at the entire wall, of necessity avoiding ice, but unable to decide as he skied down whether the snow below was wind-packed or soft. No one boasted of great skiing, but all rejoiced that our week of skiing had finally started, on the fifth day of the trip. We did heavy planning that night, intending to make up for lost time. The unanimous vote - to the Cone tomorrow!

Which is where we'll have to pick up the story again, time for bed....
Harkin

[Harkin Banks]

Episode Four

Thursday, April 20. What a shock! Seven o'clock, wind at the Forest Service was 25 mph, gusting to 35. The Bowl was not visible in the clouds. The air at Pinkham Notch was quiet. Surely the wind velocity had to be 75-100 on the Cone. Was this to be a day we couldn't ski? The day was proof that there is no similarity between weather at Pinkham and at the Summit. Many people do not recognize that fact and get in trouble. Generally there is a 3-1/2 degree temperature drop per 1,000 feet of vertical rise. The temperature at the Summit should thus almost always be at least fifteen degrees colder than at Pinkham. It may be much more because of clouds and wind. Pinkham Notch Camp is at 2,020 feet, Tuckerman Ravine Shelter is at 3,800 feet. The floor of the Bowl is 4,300 feet, and the Summit is 6,288 feet.
For exercise, we decided to head toward the Gulf of Slides and mark trees for fall cutting. It is only when there is snow that one knows what to cut to open a trail and avoid cutting the unnecessary. In September 1966, Gard, Shel, Mark and I had climbed the Gulf of Slides Ski Trail and found that the trees were so high and thick at the top of the trail that we couldn't even find the gullies. We had to reach them when there was snow. A few dozen had skied the Gulf earlier in April, and had complained bitterly of the bushwhacking required to reach the Slides.
We hiked on skis across Graham's Trail, a narrow (2-3 feet) blazed trail starting about 1/2 mile down the Sherburne Trail from Tuck Shelter and cutting across the bottom of Boott Spur to the 5-1/2 marker on the Gulf of Slides Trail. Across Graham's Trail was heavy wet snow requiring packing - good leg exercise. With no wind in the woods and a warm day, new snow gets wet quickly. We tagged trees at the bottom of the Slides in soft snow and had a leisurely lunch in sunshine, with no wind (the Gulf was protected all day). Then we all decided to try to ski and started to pack the soft powder, moving upward. Hardly had we started to climb the center Slide before we found the snow wind-packed and excellent, and yet little wind was blowing upon us. On later return to Tuck we found that the wind had remained unbearably high there all day.
John Bailey of the Forest Service, who had joined us for the day, was to have the rough trip back. In making a two-pole hop turn, both baskets came off his ski poles, never to be found. This ended his skiing, with the rough trip of climbing up and down through trees on Graham's Trail, unable to use his poles without their totally disappearing in snow if he leaned on them.
We enjoyed blue sky and warm sun all day. On the horizon above us were little snow clouds, constantly blowing from the ridge above - truly a beautiful sight. How lucky we were, for back at home base all that was still skiable was a small portion of Hillman's and the Sherburne Trail. The desire to tag trees to improve future skiing gave us a near perfect day.

And that's all for today kiddles...
Harkin

[RR]

THis is awesome stuff. Btw, GT is now a sweet run.

[P-HUG]

More more more!!!!!!!

[Harkin Banks]

Episode Five

Friday, April 21. A bright clear sunny day, full of hope, notwithstanding the prediction for rain in the afternoon. Today had to be the day for Oakes Gulf, so we're off and up Hillman's Highway. From the Chimney (the very narrow section three-quarters up the Highway) climbing was treacherous. No steps existed; they had to be made in very tightly packed powder. Although the bottom of Hillman's was warm and sunny, with corn snow at 9-9:30 A.M., above was totally different. As lead man above the Chimney, I would gladly have had crampons - heavy kicking to make indentations can put one off balance, and the indentations made were about 10% the size of a step made in corn snow. The tendency exists to charge up the slope, with friction alone holding one to the snow; but this is not a recommended method.
Oakes Gulf was about one-third normal size, with the usual lip on the northern (Mt. Monroe) side of it having no snow and being quite unskiable. The length was considerably shorter than normal, lacking perhaps 50 yards at the top and 100-150 yards at the bottom. The snow had been wind-packed powder, with the sun just starting to loosen the surface. We, therefore, had two fast runs to be sure we skied before the mashed potato type of snow developed.
This was a true spring day, calling for shirtless climbing, good sun-bathing, and lots of sun-tan ointment. At lunch we were to celebrate our trip with real roast beef sandwiches and Tawny Port, the skier's sunshine beverage - not recommended, however, for rehydration. We carried each day about two to three quarts of pink lemonade, good if the weather is bad, and particularly good if one is warm and thirsty. On hot, sunny days a few cans of beer might by chance fall into the pack, and not be found until we hit our destination. Just a few minutes burial in snow restored the beer to proper temperature.
Everyone was starved at noontime, but one extra run was to me a must. At the bottom, just after taking my skis off for the climb up for lunch, I heard the yell of "Nelson". How considerate my companions were, I thought, to want to be sure that I was safe on the run, for there's sufficient dropoff to the slope that there is no visibility top to bottom even with the shortened length of snow. The yell came again; I looked up, just in time to see one loaf of bread rolling at high speed down the slope, quickly followed by Gard. He had apparently been so eager to get the Tawny Port out of the pack that the steepness of the slope where he set the bread was not considered, and away it went. Having fulfilled my duty as bread retriever, we had our lemonade, wine, and roast beef.
With Oakes Gulf snow soft, we decided we had better have a run or two on the Gulf of Slides, approaching today from the top. We headed for the Center Gully, perhaps a half-mile or so away, and found the firmest packed powder we had ever tried to ski. It seemed just possible for me to get a very slight bite on the snow, so I naturally skied above or close to bushes, figuring I wouldn't slide far when I fell. Naturally, Gard, Mark and Shel looked their usual graceful and competent selves, while the rest of us were, shall we say, slightly awkward. We did take the Center Gully down to a transition point, where the slope seemed to get flat, and the snow soft.

OK, that's it for today, although the story is getting paused in the middle of a day's recounting, and I shall finish their account of April 21 tomorrow.
Harkin

[Harkin Banks]

OK, I feel compelled to finish the April 21st installment in the same day.....

Friday, April 21 (cont.) Some of us are kidded unmercifully about transition points, where we stop because we say the slope is flat. In most cases, what we don't want to ski is comparable to the expert areas at many of the large ski areas.
These transition points are the tip-top point for dozens who come to Mt. Washington, but who can leave and say they've skied there. We who ski there more frequently, and climb for numbers of runs per day, decide that only the steep areas have the challenge, and that for non-lift skiing one just shouldn't be walking up and skiing down on the same steepness of terrain that one can ski all winter. Perhaps this is the reason Lunch Rocks in the Bowl is so popular. It's the conversation point for those who ski the Headwall, mixing those who just ski down to it with those who climb only that high and start down from there.
Four of the group of six went across to the North Gully at the Gulf of Slides for a run. As of this writing the North Gully does not connect to the Ski Trail except in a very, very deep snow season. In fall, 1967, the Ski Patrol and friends will have cut out all timber preventing easy passage to the Gulf of Slides Ski Trail. Then all three gullies can be skied on the minimum of snow that fell in the first four months of 1967. The upper portions of the North Gully seemed steeper than the Center Gully, allowing two of us to use the excuse that we'd save our energies for a last run down Hillman's.
The area above the Chimney on Hillman's was mighty firm, although we knew it had been looser during the day from the tracks on it. We were close to an hour late, for the sun was already well behind parts of the mountain, and in particular the top of Hillman's, which is in the shade by 2:30 P.M. in mid-April. In April on a cool day, the shade causes good corn to turn to frozen granular in just a few minutes. The time is unbelievably short. Some skied the Highway; others sideslipped; our experience prevented trouble. At the Connection, halfway up Hillman's, the point where one cuts to the Lower Snowfield, we hit perfect corn snow, and thus ended the day on the glorious note of easy skiing.

And so ends today's two-part installment.....
Anybody getting tired of this yet?
Harkin
Harkin

[Castlerock]

this is wonderful

[Affix Snow]

Awesome. I cant wait for the next installment!

[RR]

Please sir, may (we) have some more?

[Rainman]

These guys are ANAMALS! Just the trip over to Oak from GOS took the wind out of me. I did two laps in Oak then headed out GOS and still didn’t make it back before the shade hit. These guys did 3 or 4 runs in Oak then a few in GOS then back over to Hillmans!! WOW now that’s a serious day trip!!

[Harkin Banks]

Episode Six

Saturday, April 22. The day can be called the day of outwaiting the rain. It was the day of the annual Harvard-Dartmouth Slalom. At 8 A.M. it started to pour, and it rained and rained.... and rained. The temperature was 40 degrees F., and all snow, saturated with water, became heavy mashed potatos. Hundreds climbed from the bottom, arriving completely soaked through. Some found Tuck Shelter such an impenetrable mass of humanity that they turned around and went right back down the mountain. The clouds were so dense that no one among the patrol or the Forest Service really believed that the Slalom would be held; it was, but certainly not in its usual form.
Our group debated several times whether to leave Saturday, for the weather report was rain continuing all day, and rain or snow Sunday. All we could think of was that the ice stage of early week was about to begin all over again. No one really wanted to climb down in the rain, and some of us were prepared to drown our sorrow in a little liquid libation. We were rewarded for our wait (maybe even our prayers). At 2:00 P.M. the rain stopped; the clouds lifted high as Connection, and we all went up for three to four runs from just below the Chimney. The snow was a little soft (one couldn't lean heavily on the poles in a turn), but it was almost corn, and we skied with real enthusiasm until 5:00 P.M.

Sunday, April 23. The day was cold and windy, but sunny. The entire mountain shone, meaning ice everywhere. We had had it. Our measurements were sufficiently complete, and we had many more weekends ahead to do what we couldn't do in vacation week. I had a fiancee who hadn't seen me for the week (which included her birthday and three nights she was before the footlights in a theater production) and hoped I'd be back Sunday to give her a little affection. The high school contingent said they needed to study. We needed no more exercise. We had started the week with crampons and ice axes, and thought perhaps we wouldn't end it the same way. So off down the mountain, having to explain as we hiked down early why we were leaving, as the hundreds climbed up to get their exercise and to see the shine on the mountain.
Thus ended one week that will be forever memorable. It was spent with great lovers of Mt. Washington, a group of the finest skiers ever to ski on the mountain - particularly in the Wayland High School contingent of Gard and Shel and Mark. I was with three of the finest fellows, greatest companions, and best friends that any man can ever hope to have. May they many years hence be as fortunate as I in the companions with whom they can spend a high school vacation skiing and hiking the remote areas of Mt. Washington.

So ends that part of the story, but, since I have a day off tomorrow, I will continue to type the start of their assessment.

THE REMOTE AREAS

The remote areas are defined as those outside Tuckerman Ravine (Headwall, Little Headwall, Hillman's Highway, Lower Snowfield) and are as follows:

Oakes Gulf
Ammonoosuc Ravine
Great Gulf
Summit Snowfields
Raymond Cataract
Gulf of Slides

There is a call to the remote areas for all those who have long skied Tuckerman. There is an urge to ski away from the crowds, to find a smooth corn surface free of moguls, to have enough space and so few companions that one can see his own tracks after a run. There is the companionship of a small group that is strongest when the group is the total populace of a given area.
One who goes to a remote area, however, must recognize several things:

1. He doesn't know the conditions there; he only thinks he does.
2. It's a long trip there, with the return even longer when one is tired.
The shadows may have hit his return route, and the snow will be icy
and dangerous.
3. There is no ski patrol or accessible first aid equipment. There's no
chance to grab extra food, or a raincoat, or a sweater. All must be
carried, and each person must be prepared for any weather. A map is
not only helpful, but also obligatory of the first-timer.
4. Footsteps will have to be kicked in the snow wherever one goes. To
do this takes time and energy. Breaking trail for 100 yards, much less
than the sometimes half-mile required, separates out those not in top
physical condition. A person without the stamina to kick steps puts an
unfair load on others, and perhaps should not take the trip.

Before planning to ski any remote areas, the new-to-Mt. Washington skier should ski several days on Hillman's Highway and/or the Headwall to get the feel for steepness, narrowness, corn snow, the effect of shadows on corn snow, etc,. as well as to have some assurance of his own physical condition. The food and clothing suggestions, plus climbing above timberline data, as required for spring skiing in the remote areas, can be found in Winter and Summer portions of the A.M.C. Guide Book, as well as the USFS publication entitled "Tuckerman's".
There is also a call to a few to ski the steep gullies. The super-super expert gullies are called "no fall" gullies by Brooks Dodge. They are all ten degrees or more steeper than the Lip. All have a fall line into rock on terrain on which one cannot stop, having fallen, no matter what the snow conditions of the day. All are normally reached from the top, so that it is not possible to know what the conditions or snow cover will be until one starts down. Ordinarily one can see whether there is snow cover from a distance, but it is only when one is on the snow that he finds if there are slabs of ice, or rock, just under a corn snow surface.
Brooks Dodge has, over the years, taken a few people down these gullies. To date, we know of only twelve persons who have skied Dodge's Drop. It is thus well for the person who wants to try a no-fall gully to go with one of the few who have already skied the gullies.

OK, that's it folks.... next installment will start with Oakes Gulf, but that won't be until tomorrow. Glad you like it!
Harkin

[Harkin Banks]

OK, this wasn't supposed to happen until later, but I'm playing hooky today and it's still early, sooooo, where were we? Oh yeah, Oakes Gulf. You're gonna love this first paragraph! Apparently one of our favorite denizens of the Ravine got his start a lot earlier than we ever thought!

Episode Seven

Oakes Gulf

Oakes Gulf has become in recent years, next to the Summit Snowfields, the most popular remote ski area on Mt. Washington. In the spring of 1966, thirty-two persons skied there in the same day, a record. The day was highlighted, before the arrival of two or three rugged girls, by a full-length ski run recorded on film for history of Marc Steinberg, a top Montreal skier, dressed only in socks and boots.
Oakes Gulf is a wide snowfield, sometimes much more than 100 yards in width, that has a length of several hundred yards before it narrows into a small gully almost twenty feet in width. With a 40 degree pitch on its lip, most of it is about 35 degrees in pitch, with the top section approaching 37 degrees. It is approached from the top of Hillman's Highway. One goes almost directly up to the Davis Path, essentially aiming due west. On the Davis Path there is a small rise of rock, perhaps fifty feet higher than the ridge itself. Cross the south side of the rise, and then gradually swing northward as if you were going to hike around Mt. Washington, always keeping on the same contour line of a topographic map. As one swings northward a few hundred yards, he'll find Oakes Gulf, with the majesty of Mt. Monroe and Lakes of the Clouds Hut across from him. Here on a sunny day one can usually find no moguls, firm corn, and exciting skiing.

Great Gulf

The Great Gulf is a magnificent and infrequently skied area. The sun hits later in the year than in other Mt. Washington areas, so that the powder lasts longer, and corn comes late. The distance from Tuck is long, and any ski there requires a climb back up, including the kicking of steps, for the shortest route continuing down the Great Gulf Trail would be 6.5 miles to the highway. The alternative is never recommended, and no one hikes out on the Great Gulf Trail.
The shortest route from Tuck Shelter to the Great Gulf is to cross the Alpine Garden, climb to the top of the Northeast Snowfield, and then go directly down the northwest side of the mountain to the Gulfside Trail, between the Cog Railway and the Great Gulf. Great Gulf Gully 3 is the only no-fall gully. It is found exactly at the lowest point of the Gulfside Trail before the trail starts upward toward Mt. Clay. Distance from Tuck is about 2-1/2 miles. If one hikes from there, one run will probably be the maximum. The few who ski the Great Gulf generally wait until the Auto Road opens and use it, for it makes the Great Gulf accessible at its best time, mid-May to early June.
Great Gulf Gully 3 (looking upward from Spaulding Lake) runs beside a high rock face for the first few hundred yards. Gullies 1 and 2 are to the left, and Gully 4 to the right, coming down a gully and chimney off of Mt. Clay. Gullies 1 and 2 vary in width, and are really a collection of skiable sections, without the easy definition of Gully 3. Gullies 1,2 and 3 intersect about 300 yards below the Gulfside Trail, the starting point for the three gullies. Detail is not given, because Gully 3 will always be skied first, and then the skier may observe the paths from below, and decide whether he wishes to try other gullies. Suffice to say that Gullies 1 and 2 create the closest thing, as one observes them from the top, to the sensation one has from the observation platform on a tall building looking down the building's side.

OK, that's it for now. So, this last part on the Great Gulf was written before the names of Airplane, etc. were given to those Gullies 1 through 4. Since I've not yet skied in the Gulf, could anyone who has figure out what the new names are in relation to the 1 through 4 earlier designations?
Harkin

[Castlerock]

I believe Gully 3 is Airplane and Gully 4 is Pipeline. 1 and 2 I'm less sure of. But I have heard names of Stinkbug and other for those.

[Harkin Banks]

Episode Eight

Ammonoosuc Ravine

Ammonoosuc Ravine is as remote as any area, and definitely the least reliable for skiing in the spring. If the winter has brought forth deep snows, and if there has been a wind from the northeast during snowstorms, then there may be a large and long snowfield. The author has been there several times only to find a patch little larger than the porch of Tuckerman Ravine Shelter. Snow cover varies with the prevailing wind during snowstorms during the year. There are great variations from year to year in the gullies. Some are not skiable for several years in a row. The skier with only one or two years' experience can thus be misled into thinking that a rock area has no snow, or vice versa. The field can be half a mile or more in length, and several hundred yards wide, with a pitch of about 30 degrees. There is always a narrowing at the bottom as the gully develops. The Westside Trail crosses the top of the snowfield which is about equally distant from the Crawford Path - Westside Trail intersection. Distance from Tuck Shelter to the top of the Ammonoosuc Ravine is about 1.9 miles via the Tuckerman Ravine Trail over the Lip.

Gulf of Slides

The Gulf of Slides has three parallel sides. All are of about the same degree of difficulty; however, the northernmost slide is slightly steeper than the Central, which in turn is slightly steeper than the South Slide. Considerably farther south is a substantial snowfield, not considered worth skiing because it is shorter and less steep than the three slides.
The slides may be reached from Pinkham Notch Camp via the Gulf of Slides Ski Trail (3 miles), which was brushed and had blowdowns removed in the fall of 1966. Normally skins are used on the skis for climbing. The trail is not foot-packed. In the fall of 1967, cutting has been planned to connect the three slides to the ski trail for minimum snow skiing, thus removing the necessity for bushwhacking found in recent years. There is no shelter in the Gulf, but the trees give great protection from wind. The Gulf generally has far less wind than Tuckerman Ravine, particularly when the winds are from the north.
The Gulf is most easily reached for most of the spring from the top of Hillman's Highway. From Hillman's go directly up the rise of ground (westward) until reaching the Davis Path to Boott Spur peak, just beyond the Boott Spur intersection. If one stands on Boott Spur peak, he will look down along a riverbed on the floor of the Gulf itself, and across to visible portions of the Wildcat Ridge Trail. After sighting this line, drop directly down off Boott Spur peak, following the sight line. In about 200 yards one is at the top of the North Slide. The tops of the other two slides are within 300 yards of the top of the North Slide.
The Gulf snowfield is slightly south and east of the intersection of the Glen Boulder Trail with the Davis Path.

OK kids, that's enough for another day. Time for beddie-bye.
Harkin

[RR]

Facinating stuff!

[Harkin Banks]

Thanks RR! I've got the next story lined up when I finish this one. I only wish I had a scanner so that I might be able to put up the graphs, charts and pix that go with this article. I'll try to reproduce the Charts, since the data that they amassed while doing this survey is all represented there.

Episode Nine

Raymond Cataract

Raymond Cataract is to most people a short waterfall over which one can ski. To the skier it is the path from the Alpine Garden all the way down to the waterfall area, ending below on fairly flat terrain, from which one bushwhacks back to the Tuckerman Ravine Trail. If skied, it is done early in April before one has heavy bushwhacking from the Alpine Garden to the snow.

Summit Snowfields

The shortest, most direct route is over the Lip or up the Right Gully. Once one is on the Alpine Garden, the Snowfield is in front of him, and little description is needed. The usual needs of adequate clothing, food and liquid must be respected, plus recognition of ever-changing weather. The Snowfields, other than the Southeast, are wide and steep. One can make tight turns or swinging turns. On a warm sunny day in May, with eight to ten persons, it is sometimes worth sitting a little while just to hear the ecstatic statements made about the skiing. No man has really skied the mountain until he's had a few runs on the Cone.

The Mt. Washington Ski Technique (by Sheldon Perry)

The Mt. Washington skier must change his ski technique from the easy and carefree style he may have had all winter to one which will ensure reliable control and stability. Mt. Washington's terrain with steepness over 40 degrees means a fall in dozens of places could mean a long tumble over jagged and abrasive rocks. The need for safer skiing results in a technique which allows for a slower speed on steep slopes, accomplished mainly by edge control, and a stable body position over the skis.
A skier is often surprised on extremely steep terrains at how easily a ski will turn without the accustomed unweighting motion. Thus the skier must be certain to avoid overturning by keeping his upper body primarily facing downhill. Such a position provides excellent edge control for both a left and right turn. The unweighting motion is initiated by a slight up and down movement of the knees. Each completion of the turn must be made by a firm edging of the ski, instead of the sideslip used by many skiers on less steep slopes.
The steep slope skier also must learn to avoid the unforgiving mistakes of leaning too far into the hill and getting his weight too far back. Instead, a forward lean and a square position on the ski is advised. This means that there is no apparent leaning to the left or right, which might induce the ski to slide out from underneath. One trick used by many Mt. Washington skiers to achieve a stable body position is to use a double pole plant, rather than the single.
By adopting some of these basic ideas to one's own style, a skier can make safer and more controlled turns on steep slopes. It will also lessen one's fear, increase one's pleasure, and permit the skier to gain confidence on slopes perhaps 10-20 degrees steeper than he has ever been on before.


OK, so ends the text part of the story. In the next installment I shall attempt to transpose the charts with all the neat numbers and such...
You're gonna love THAT stuff!
Harkin
P.S. With apologies to the ladies on the list, these accounts were transcribed verbatim, and any references to the skier as "he, him and his", are the result of the general patriarchal nature of our society before 1970 (not that things are much better now ;) )

[Harkin Banks]

I just checked my profile page. 355 views on my Serial thread and only THREE reps given? What's a guy gotta do to get some props around here?!
:rolleyes: :p

[RR]

I just checked my profile page. 355 views on my Serial thread and only THREE reps given? What's a guy gotta do to get some props around here?!
:rolleyes: :pThat's the spirit...rep whoring is a time honored tradition!

[Affix Snow]

I repped ya dood!

[Harkin Banks]

That's the spirit...rep whoring is a time honored tradition!

Well hell! My damn fingers have just about fallen off from so much typing! Gotta be worth sumpthin! ;) Especially since I know how much y'all love this stuff!
So, how can I transfer a spreadsheet type of page with all the data from this article from my computer to this forum? Inquiring minds want to know. Unfortunately, the inquiring mind that's trying to do it doesn't know squat about operating a 'puter. (moi, bien sur)

[RR]

Well hell! My damn fingers have just about fallen off from so much typing! Gotta be worth sumpthin! ;) Especially since I know how much y'all love this stuff!
So, how can I transfer a spreadsheet type of page with all the data from this article from my computer to this forum? Inquiring minds want to know. Unfortunately, the inquiring mind that's trying to do it doesn't know squat about operating a 'puter. (moi, bien sur)If you have adobe reader on your machine you may be able to save the documents to a pdf file. That can be hosted anywhere on the WWW.

[Harkin Banks]

If you have adobe reader on your machine you may be able to save the documents to a pdf file. That can be hosted anywhere on the WWW.

I'm afraid I have NO idea what that means. :o

[mtnmike]

I'm afraid I have NO idea what that means. :o
Thanks for providing the info - great reading!

[skicdave]

Should give you a web page for all this Harkin. Great stuff!

[PWDR8S]

I just checked my profile page. 355 views on my Serial thread and only THREE reps given? What's a guy gotta do to get some props around here?!
:rolleyes: :pBe a rep sluht !
Oh come on, you'll love it!

Be a rep sluht !
Come on... It'll be funnnn!

Be a rep sluht !
Don't make fuss,
...just get on the bus! http://www.timefortuckerman.com/forums/images/smilies/tongue.gif
........
........
........
Be a rep sluht !
The boys in the crew have a present for you!
A present for me???
heh heh heh..... with leather.... and rubber? http://www.timefortuckerman.com/forums/images/smilies/biggrin.gif