Annual spring snow melt creates significant glide cracks, or crevasses, and undermined snow in the Lip area of Tuckerman Ravine. We close a section of the Tuckerman Ravine Trail where it passes through the Lip as a safety measure. This relatively short section stretches from Lunch Rocks in the Ravine to the junction with the Alpine Garden Trail just above the Ravine.
Ascending or descending through this area now has numerous hazards which greatly elevate risk to travelers. The closure also pertains to skiers and riders. The closure only pertains to this section of the Tuckerman Ravine Trail and will remain in effect until melt out eliminates these specific hazards.
FERMETURE ANNUELLE DU SENTIER RAVINE DE TUCKERMAN DANS LE LIP
Une section du Tuckerman Ravine Trail est maintenant fermée à toute utilisation
By Benjamin Allen – Acadia Mountian Guides
03/26/2020
By Austin Hart
03/26/2020
By Mark Toronto – Ski Mountaineer & Instructor
03/25/2020
By John
03/24/2020
To make our forecasts work better for you.
The Avalanche Research Program at Simon Fraser University, Avalanche Canada and several U.S. Avalanche Centers are conducting an online survey to examine how backcountry travelers use public avalanche safety information.
The goal is to better understand how you process hazard and terrain information provided in public avalanche forecasts. The results of this study will offer important insight for improving avalanche safety information products in Canada and the United States.
By Dougald MacDonald
At just 6,288 feet above sea level, Mt. Washington, the high point of the northeastern United States, packs a very serious mountain into a diminutive package. Home of the so-called “worst weather in the world,” Mt. Washington clocked a wind speed of 231 mph in 1934, and hurricane-force gusts (greater than 74 mph) are observed at the summit more than 100 days a year, on average. The summit observatory has recorded temperatures as low as -50°F (-46°C), and an estimated wind chill of -102°F was recorded in January 2004.
Rising at the intersection of major storm tracks and forming a prominent barrier to winds from the west, Mt. Washington and the Presidential Range also receive heavy precipitation. Each season averages 280 inches of snow, and wind-blown snow can pile up to depths of 10 to 40 feet in the east-facing ravines. Yet warmer temperatures can also be a problem, as freezing rain and fog—prime hypothermia conditions—are frequently encountered.
Questions? Concerns? Looking for information?
If you see us in the field, or at the USFS Hermit Lake Cabin, please say hello. We love talking about the snowpack, the avalanche forecast, weather, skiing, climbing and likely anything else you have on your mind.
Social media allows us to post current information quickly and seamlessly when available field time and good visibility allow. Check us out and be sure to follow us to stay informed. We’ll post upcoming events and field observations along with the most current photos from the field whenever we can.
The Mount Washington Avalanche Center is a partnership between the White Mountain National Forest, White Mountain Avalanche Education Foundation and Friends of Tuckerman Ravine and other community organizations. The avalanche forecast applies only to backcountry areas, not operating ski areas, and describes general avalanche conditions which vary locally. The avalanche information provided is the sole responsibility of the USDA Forest Service.
