By now, many hikers have heard that Tropical Storm Irene triggered numerous slides in the eastern High Peaks, most notably in the Great Range and the MacIntyre Range and on Mount Colden.
The western High Peaks did not receive as much rain, and so they survived the storm relatively unchanged. This morning, however, I flew over the western High Peaks region with Jim Knowles, a volunteer pilot with LightHawk, which provides flights for nonprofit organizations (the Explorer is a nonprofit), and noticed what appeared to be a fresh scar on the south side of Seward Mountain.
We were flying over the Cold River valley at the time, some five miles away, so we couldn’t tell for sure if it was a new slide. Does anybody know?
I don’t imagine that many people would want to climb this remote piece of rock, but if it is new, I’m certain somebody will.
Mr. Brown,
The slide is clearly visible in a photo I took from Vanderwacker in August, so it is not new.
Greg Karl
Thanks. It looks pretty white, which made me wonder.
If I’m not mistaken, that’s the “Scooter” slide that formed several years ago…
That’s a great photo. Really shows the unfragmented forest of this region. Forest fragmentation, of course, is a major detriment to the population health and nesting productivity of dozens of forest-interior songbird species.