http://www.nydailynews.com/news/national/nyc-hiker-found-dead-n-h-mountains-article-1.2118000
I’ve spent a considerable amount of time doing winter mountaineering in that range but mostly on Mt. Washington. It is probably among the top 5 least hospitable places to f*ck around. Yesterday on FB, the Mt washington observatory put the temps with windchill at -75F on the peak, in other words, 32 degrees or freezing would require a 112 degree warmup (I know windchill isn’t the same as absolute temp but you get the point). The death rate is way out of line in that part of the white mountains because people continually underestimate and disrespect the remoteness and weather patterns. If you run into problems you are very much alone when winds are above 100 mph and visability doesn’t exist.
For some reason New Hampshire and “rugged back country” don’t seem to go together in my mind. I mean Alaska and rugged back country or Colorado and rugged back country seem to go together.
They’ve measured sustained winds of 231 mph on that peak in winter. In winter winds average 50-60 mph and 80-90 mph is just a really gusty day.
This was me up there a few years ago. It’s pretty rugged. Moreso than most '14ers, its where a lot of Everest bound folks go to do avalanche and cold weather training. They get about 55 ft of snow a year in Tuckerman’s Ravine.
If I’m not confusing the people, her husband and she had a goal of climbing the highest peak on every continent and had already done a few, if not all, I believe. Shocking for sure. And the conditions were forecast. Supports BS’s assertion that the mountain is continually underestimated. So sad.
BS, are you in an area that is considered “ridgeline” in your pic?
This would be a ridgeline in the picture.
If you were stuck up there when weather moved in you would die. Typically logistics are handled in almost a military mission planning fashion. You move at a fair pace, break at the treeline and get your shit in order then move with a purpose until you accomplish whatever you need to above the tree line then book it back down immediatley. I’ve watched cloud banks rush at me at eye level at speeds of about 60 mph across a valley and the weather situation just deteriorate within minutes. The entire surface that is rough slag rock turns to an ice rink with up to an inch of ice sheet on everything and then the winds shoot to 80 mph. From that point forward you’re moving with ax and crampon against a force that threatens to sweep you off your feet and across the slick surface of the mountain or at least makes progress difficult. There is nowhere for shelter up there. The weather is substantially worse than many much higher peaks around the world. People often climb Killimanjaro which is a summer hike compared to this and think they’re on the way to Everest but it’s apples and oranges.
About 135 people have died on Mount Washington in NH, versus about 240 for Everest. But noone knows MW and you can drive up there in the summer, which causes it to be continually underestimated in winter.
Wow, good to know. In little old New Hampshire. Reminds me of the mistakes people make in airplanes and sailing. Don’t mess with mother nature. She seems to hold her own.
Reminds me of a local lad who passed away this past week. Cab dropped him off at his home on a cold night (out with friends, might have been drinking) and he couldn’t make it up the stairs (in a wheelchair). Spent the last night of his life huddled under a plastic tarp on his front lawn only to be found by a neighbour the next morning. -20C or -4F. -34C or -29F with windchill.
Cold kills even at street level. RIP. Bundle up everyone
Um…krnyc…confirm you are alive please.
^ That occured to me as well, but reading the article it wasn’t her -> the woman was married.
ive climbed washington a few times but before doing so i read all about it and saw the information about the harsh climate in the winter. I would start the hike in shorts (mind you this is in the summer) and by the summit i would be in multiple layers of pants and a winter coat
was she really a charterholder?
August is the most deadly month for this reason. A lot of people are not as well prepared as you and it’s not unusual for a day with 80 degree temps at the base to suddenly plummit to 20’s to 30’s at the peak and you have people in shorts and a wind breaker fighting an ice storm.
says linkedin
Mount Washington and surrounds is extremely dangerous…as if Black Swans statitistics are not convincing enough I believe it is also the place with the highest recorded winds on earth. They have a science observatory on the peak to study weather / wind extremes. Such a tragic thing it is mind boggling to me why she would attempt this alone in such extreme weather conditions but everyone no matter how accomplished has done ill advised things but some things have a horrific down side.
Black Swan that is a helluva picture…pretty awesome