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Cullen7777 t1_j53f38p wrote

Lafayette is more of a hike than a mountaineering route. IMO you should do more winter hiking before you try mountaineering. That will give you time to dial in your basic clothing, equipment, and safety systems.

I hired a guide for my first course. After that I did meetups and met various partners through messages boards

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Cullen7777 t1_j53flge wrote

There’s quite a few guide services in the Mount Washington Valley that offer an intro to mountaineering as well as guided ascents of Mount Washington or some of the routes in Crawford Notch. Synnott Mountain Guides is run by a friend. Give them a try.

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Sky-Grey OP t1_j53hdai wrote

If we wanted to do more winter hiking before mountaineering would you recommend Lafayette?

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Cullen7777 t1_j53i91u wrote

It depends. Do you have whiteout navigation experience? If the answer’s no, then be very careful about the weather forecast. It’s doable, but you need to hit good weather. Also, just because the forecast doesn’t call for snow doesn’t mean there won’t be snow available for wind transport…pay attention to forecasted wind speeds. Have a backup plan. Most importantly remember the mountain will be there in the future.

Mount Washington Observatory publishes a daily Higher Summits Forecast.

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