The Lip

Another steep face to lookers right of The Icefall. This is a great intro to the Headwall Routes. The Lip is a crazy line in concept. In early season, it’s a multi pitch ice climbing route. As the season goes on, improbably large features get completely buried by the astronomical wind loading that occurs in Tuckerman Ravine. Come spring time, this incredibly steep line can see hundreds of skiers per day. Some shredding it in style, others sliding down it headfirst after tumbling on their first turn. When combined with the summit snowfields, this is one of the best runs anywhere. Either climb The Lip or climb Right Gully and traverse over. Hug the bushes to skiers left and cross the blind roll over. Once you get a view of the line, drop in and enjoy steep turns into the bowl below. In the spring, the water flowing underneath the lip that forms all the ice bulges in early season, undermines the snowpack and creates glide cracks. These huge cracks are like crevasses that you could fall into and end up trapped under the snowpack. As a result, this area has a seasonal closure once glide cracks start to open.