The EcoPhotographer climbs the headwall on King Ravine in New Hampshire's White Mountains.

Last Wednesday, I was invited to hike up into King Ravine on the north side of Mount Adams in the White Mountain National Forest and photograph some friends skiing the gullies on the headwall.  King Ravine is a classic glacial cirque, with a steep semi-circular headwall that flattens into a U-shaped valley carved by a glacier during the last ice age (or two).  It doesn't receive quite as much snow as the more famous White Mountain east-facing ravines, especially Tuckermans, but it definitely has plenty of snow this spring.

The hike to the bottom of the headwall takes about three hours from US 2 in Randolph.  Then you are faced with slopes that rise at an angle of 50 degrees and greater in places.  I was without crampons and ice axe for some reason (I guess I'm thinking spring) and found it fairly challenging to climb up the gullies, particularly when I was breaking trail.  It was well worth the effort though, as the views from the headwall are quite dramatic.


Dave Murphy rests during his climb up the Great Gully.

As you can see here, "Murph" was smart enough to bring his ice axe and he was also nice enough to let me use it for my descent of the headwall.  While I can climb up with the best of them, I know I have nowhere near the skills necessary to safely ski down this stuff.  This is strictly expert terrain.  However, just hiking down proved to be enough a challenge for me as it was easy to slip and slide several hundred feet down the gully, which thankfully I didn't do, but my camera did (it came to a rest in a little bush without a scratch!)


In hot pursuit...


Skiing "The Seven" in Black and White.

The headwall is not quite a cliff, but it is steeper than any stairwell I have ever climbed.


Doug Mayer carving a telemark turn on "The Seven"

As you can see, all of these guys are using telemark gear, which is really the only way to go when climbing and skiing some of these narrow ski chutes.  By the way, you'll be hearing more about Doug Mayer (in the photo above) in this blog soon.  Doug and his business partners, Matt and Jenna Bowman, have asked Marcy and I to hang some of our White Mountains prints in their happening Gorham caffeine distribution center, The White Mountain Cafe.  We should have some prints up by the middle of May, which is when we'll also be introducing our first limited edition poster, a photo of Mount Washington at Dusk.  In the meantime, if you're in Gorham, stop in the cafe and enjoy the coffee, sandwiches, pastries, and free wi-fi.  It's right downtown on Rt. 2/16, across the street from Burger King.

Until next time...
-Jerry

 

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