Tuesday in Tuckerman 3/11/25

Mar 11, 2025

It was a beautiful day to have a day on the Eastern Slopes of Mt. Washington. The sun was out, along with the winds, but that did't stop folks from cheesin' ear to ear during one of the first Spring-like days of the season. The snow was soft in most places and was not sticky as anticipated. The rain crust had warmed creating nice corn snow mixed in with pockets of fresh snow from yesterday, both of which were easily identifiable.

We got a bit of a late start and hit the trail just before 9, making our way up the Tuckerman Ravine Trail to Hermit Lake. After a quick snack break and some good conversation, we decided on Tuckerman Ravine as the objective for the day. Traction was good heading up into the Ravine from Hermit Lake with only one slick section and another short stretch of rock which can be avoided by making your way through the trees to climbers right. Winds picked up significantly at this time; luckily it was warm enough for them to cool us down instead of providing the typical bone chill that we encounter in the depths of winter.

Not knowing what to expect in terms of the stickiness of the fresh snow, we opted to head towards Lobster Claw which appeared to be a more uniform and friendly surface. Being mindful of falling ice and overhead hazards, we made our way up until the split (half way to 2/3 up the line). Snow became deeper here with pockets of unconsolidated graupel that was around boot top in depth. We turned around and opted for a sure thing below to get our day started.

At the floor of the Ravine once more we opted to head back up and cut towards Chicken Rock. As we passed underneath Right Gully, I poked up and saw what seemed to be some fun skiing but kept going as there was another party booting up. After making some fun and fast turns back down we set our sights on Left Gully.

We made our way up with intentions of reassessing as we went and not committing to the full line. The snow felt dryer in the gully and therefore not as grabby as more sun affected zones. We kept going and eventually topped out with some spicy scoured snow right at the end. We skirted towards skiers left then dropped down into the Gully, enjoying some heart pounding turns before it mellows out. The snow was soft and forgiving, making for an excellent descent on what is typically a firm and scoured line.

We dabbled with the idea of ticking off another line, but decided we were satisfied and wanted to end on a high note. After running into Spencer, Jake, and Jimmy, we made our way down Little Headwall, back to Hermit, and out the Sherb. Little Headwall is holding on but after another few warm days may be a bit of a gamble as it becomes more undermined. The Sherb skied great given the fresh snow had been pushed around, making for some fun slushy bumps. There are a couple areas of concern where the sun hits it more lower down so we'll keep an eye out on those. No open water bars were encountered.

A 50 cent day up high and a happy 311 day to all! - Greg