Mt. Washington, New Hampshire - Winter Summit Attempt (and Success!)

Went up to the White Mountain National Forest this past week for a summit attempt and some local ice cragging.  This was my third time visiting the area and climbing in the whites.  I hired a guide from IME named Craig and we left North Conway at just after 6 am on Thursday (March 21, 2019), arriving at Pinkham Notch and geared up and set out at 6:45 am.


Tuckerman's trail was great and not too icy so we did not even need microspikes, although we had them.


We made good time getting to the split off for Lion's Head trail.  Donned our crampons and began up the steeps.  It was warm enough so I didn't need more than my baselayer and my good old halo sweat head band.


We popped out of treeline and the views were AMAZING:






We made our approach to Lion's Head.  Decided to keep our crampons on through the rocky sections.  It was mixed with rock and some ice.  Slow going but not bad at all.  Mostly just needed walking poles.


Again, views were great as was visibility in the area.  Here's Huntington's Ravine:


And a great shot of the summit cone:



And well, here's one of me :)


Looking back at Lion's Head:


Onward up the summit cone and onto the ridge.  Mix of rock and ice.


We walked up into the clouds:



And onto the summit landing:




Spent only about 10 minutes on the summit and headed back down.  Took just under 5 hours to the top and just about 4 hours back down.  We were in no rush.

Some down pics:




Got back to the car at just around 4 pm.  All around it was a fantastic trip.  Thanks Craig and IME...you guys rock.  The next day we hit Frankenstein and the standard route and did some self-arrest practice.  Saw a few mini avalanches as the snow was building up on the Frankenstein cliffs.  So that was cool.

My kit included the following:

Arcteryx Alpha 45 pack
La Sportiva G2 SM boots
Petzl Sarken crampons
Kahtoola Microspikes
Petzl Summit ice tool
BD walking poles
Smartwool base layers, top and bottom
Injinji hiking toe socks
Marmot Scree Pant w/ OR Suspenders
Fleece vest
Marmot Tullus puffy 650 down (didnt use it once)
EMS "over it all" puffy 800 down (didnt use it once)
Marmot Alpinist Shell (this was excellent)
Marmot powerstretch gloves
OR Alti Gloves (with inserts)
Halo Headband, Buff Dew Rag, Marmot Wool hat
Julbo Goggles Zebra 2-4 (didnt use it once)
Spare cheap goggles
Marmot Expedition Mitts (didnt use it once)
Petzl Headlamp with Anker powerpack, small cylinder one
2 x OR Water Bottle Parka
Few biners for attaching stuff here and there

Fuel:
2 x 32 oz nalgene with EFS (Endurance First Sports) Mix of electrolytes and calories.  Note: Should have brought 3 instead of 2 of these.  Got very thirsty and a little crampy on the way down.  
2 x Rx Bars
1 Gu Roctane Gel
2 Packs of Cliff Shotblocks. Note: Should have brought more of these.

Also worth noting is the patch of moleskin I put on the back of both heels.  This helps tremendously if your feet are not accustomed to mountaineering boots and being from NJ, mine are not.

Looks like a good time. Way to go. 

 Good write up! Congrats