White Mountain Characters ~

[Cath]

A true White Mountain Character & good friend to many has passed away.
Al Dwyer, who was known for his good humor, SMILE and fast pace, will be greatly missed by all those who had the pleasure of spending time with him on the trails.

Could be that quite a few folks don't know that Al was with Kevin Rooney & Brutus on the hike to gain Owl's Head in Winter, the day that the western slide approach was deemed to be too sketchy for Brutie, and the Brutus Bushwhack was laid out ~

Maybe everyone can remember to give out a WAHOO! the next time they are crossing the Brutus Bushwhack in memory of Al

 

[Hillwalker]

Thanks for rekindling the memories Cath.

 

[John in NH]

Thank you for posting this. My condolences to his family. Al literally lived down the street from me and I would often see him pass by on his long daily walks. I had the pleasure of hiking with him a few times, especially early in my winter hiking career when I was just learning the ropes. He was kind and yes, had a huge smile much of the time. I am saddened to hear of his passing and will remember him in my prayers.

 

[Jazzbo]

A true White Mountain Character & good friend to many has passed away.
Al Dwyer, who was known for his good humor, SMILE and fast pace, will be greatly missed by all those who had the pleasure of spending time with him on the trails.

Could be that quite a few folks don't know that Al was with Kevin Rooney & Brutus on the hike to gain Owl's Head in Winter, the day that the western slide approach was deemed to be too sketchy for Brutie, and the Brutus Bushwhack was laid out ~

Maybe everyone can remember to give out a WAHOO! the next time they are crossing the Brutus Bushwhack in memory of Al

Al was active in NH Chapter Excursions committee. I received email today from Excursions committee chairs informing members his death was unexpected and "Apparently he had just gone hiking to Owls Head, came home, and passed away in his sleep." I hiked with Al a couple of times. He was on one of my mentored hikes when I was qualifying for membership to NH Chapter excursions committee. I was glad to have him with us when it started to rain as our party of 10 were traversing Webster Cliff Trail. His calm easy going presence certainly helped the group. He was indeed a pleasure to know. He will be missed and offer my humble condolences to his family.

 

[Dr. Dasypodidae]

A true White Mountain Character & good friend to many has passed away.
Al Dwyer, who was known for his good humor, SMILE and fast pace, will be greatly missed by all those who had the pleasure of spending time with him on the trails.

Could be that quite a few folks don't know that Al was with Kevin Rooney & Brutus on the hike to gain Owl's Head in Winter, the day that the western slide approach was deemed to be too sketchy for Brutie, and the Brutus Bushwhack was laid out ~

Maybe everyone can remember to give out a WAHOO! the next time they are crossing the Brutus Bushwhack in memory of Al

Thanks for starting this thread, Cath.

I have not posted here since Tropical Storm Irene when I got into a flame war with other posters when I defended TV broadcast meteorologists for warning people about the impending storm and the USFS for shutting down the WMNF, which likely saved many lives. I thought that I had been permanently banned from posting, but apparently not.

I wish to recall a story that I believe was posted here during the winter of 2006 after Al, GS, and I hiked Owls Head together. We were on our way down the top of the slide (I am not sure why we were not using the Brutus bushwhack that was established the previous winter), when GS slipped and fell over 500 vertical feet (GS sent us a GPS track later, which was really cool in the way that his fall was depicted). For the only time that I can ever recall, Al was not smiling, especially when I suggested to him that he should stay with GS (dead or alive) and I should hike out to get help. I was a founding member of PVSART the year before, and I feared that this rescue or recovery would be our most difficult yet. Fortunately, we found GS very much alive and able to hobble out under his own power with very little assistance from us, although Al's upbeat self kept us moving ahead that night until we exited at the Lincoln Woods parking lot after 11 pm.

There are so many other stories to tell about Al, one of my all-time favorite winter hiking companions. R.I.P., my friend; sorry that I cannot make your service this Saturday in Concord, N.H.

 

[Raven]

I never had the pleasure of meeting Al.

I appreciate the thread. After reading Dr. D's story and Jazzbo's info, it strikes me that perhaps Al's final hike on Owls Head was filled with the memories of GS's dramatic fall there. Al was at a place of an incredible event in his life; he was able to be present again with that experience before passing. There's value in that. Maybe there was closure in that connection for him.

Rest In Peace.

 

[Dr. Dasypodidae]

I never had the pleasure of meeting Al.

I appreciate the thread. After reading Dr. D's story and Jazzbo's info, it strikes me that perhaps Al's final hike on Owls Head was filled with the memories of his dramatic fall there. Al was at a place of an incredible event in his life; he was able to be present again with that experience before passing. There's value in that. Maybe there was closure in that connection for him.

Rest In Peace.

Just to be clear, Al did not fall; GS fell. But, Al was prepared to spend the the night with GS on the slide if it had become necessary.

I noted above that there are so many other stories. I am hoping that arm might post something about Al's dislocated knee that ended a winter hiking season on an Adirondack climb. After a long recovery, Al completed his Adirondack 46ers in winter to become one of a smallish number to complete the Northeast 111 highest peaks in winter.

 

[MTNRUNR]

Thanks so much Cath for posting about Al!

I feel blessed to have hiked with Al and a few other amazing hikers/bushwhackers as I was working on NE100w list.

He had such a great attitude, as did most of the others I was lucky enough to hike with!

I remember a trip report where you were with Al hiking the Captain!

When Al fell into a spruce trap on the way to NKD the others laugh'd and joked how he was usually the one to "spring" the traps

Pix on hike to COP Snow in Maine on Jan 2, '09 w/Al, "Onestep", DocRoss & DRitter. R.I.P. Al!