Jay Knower began climbing in 1993 at Devil's Lake in Wisconsin and climbed for years before ever clipping a bolt. That all changed when he moved to New Hampshire in 2002 and found Rumney. Waimea became his new home. While he was working his way through the Rumney classics, he slowly inched toward adulthood, starting a family and a business. After stressful days at the office, he began wandering through the Waterville hills with his dog Topher, looking for rock. Sometimes he found good climbing, but more often he and Topher just enjoyed the peace of the area--the clear mountain streams, the thick forests, the sweeping views from the peaks.

Once the pandemic hit, and Rumney was closed, Jay teamed up with other local developers to work to realize the route climbing potential in the area, starting with Yellowjacket Crag, moving to the high-altitude Osceola High Camp, and eventually to the cliffs of Russell Crags/Merriam Woods. Once the area increased in popularity, Jay realized the importance of preserving access and encouraging good stewardship, which led him to connect with the CNHC. These days his main motivation is to protect and preserve the unique climbing found in this region. And to send some of his too-hard-for-him projects.

Lee Hansche has been climbing in New Hampshire for well over 30 years. He has traveled extensively for climbing and has lived for short periods elsewhere in the US. Growing up, Lee regularly hiked the Welch-Dickey loop trail. While hiking there he and his family dreamed of climbing on its impeccable granite.

Now after adding many of his own routes to Dickey Ledge, the nearby Yellow Jacket Crags, Mt Osceola and of course Russell Crags he feels even more of a connection to the central NH climbing scene and the area as a whole. Becoming a part of the CNHCA seems like almost a given after having so much to do with the latest surge in climbing activity there. Many local climbers are aware of Lee from his 20+ years running Vertical Dreams climbing gyms, his work on Mountain Project, new routing at Rumney, his GunksApps guide authorship, First Ascent Podcast which he hosts with Jay Knower and just his general presence in the NH climbing scene for decades. Though always happy to chat at the crag Lee sees himself as a quiet, introspective climber who climbs first and foremost, as a reason to spend time in the woods. “Difficulty can be rewarding but flowing over stone and expressing myself through movement and route development is the best."

Sam Johansson resides in Franconia NH. Climbing has been part of his life for a decade amidst many other outdoor pursuits that seem to come and go. In his own words, “climbing has been the only one to hold my short attention span through the years because of the diversity of aspects”. He loves that there are endless new projects, bigger walls to climb, boulders to bang your head on, and more recently Sam dove headfirst into the world of development and protecting access to cliffs.

Sam has had the pleasure to work alongside many of the members of Central NH Climbers Association for the last several years developing a new region. From the start, development has been done with others in mind. Sam has been involved in plenty of climbing and first ascents that were for self glory, but he feels this recent experience was different. Every route was done so with the conversation of what the greater climbing community would enjoy.

He loves that working on projects with CNHCA takes that mindset another step further in the direction of protecting access so these amazing places can be enjoyed by many for years to come.

Katie resides part-time in Boston, MA but spends the majority of her free time in Woodstock, NH. Katie first fell in love with the great state of New Hampshire as a little kid, vacationing with her family on Squam Lake every summer. Since then, she has enjoyed all that the mountains have to offer. From hiking to skiing and everything in between, which is how she came to find rock climbing. Eight years ago, in an effort to overcome her fear of heights, Katie walked into a local gym, roped up and never looked back.

Climbing has brought so many amazing things to her life. The challenge, both mentally and physically. The ability to explore so many local and distant climbing areas. And lastly, but certainly not least, the community. Katie believes that in order to be a true part of the climbing community, you need to give back. To her, this means being a good steward to the land in which she climbs on and utilizing her background in outdoor education to teach others responsible use so that these areas can be enjoyed well into the future. By joining CNHCA, Katie is able to work side by side with some amazing people in an effort to help protect the climbing that can be found right in our backyards.

John grew up in Nashua and climbed for a few years as a kid at Boulder Morty's climbing gym. After a long break, he came back to climbing four years ago. He enjoys all disciplines of climbing, especially bouldering, sport climbing, and ice climbing. His home crags are Pawtuckaway and the plywood spray wall in my garage. He also loves to climb up in the Waterville region on weekends and got involved with CNHCA to help preserve access to the excellent climbing in the greater Merriam Woods / Russell Crags areas.

Jeff has been climbing for 20 years. Originally from CT, he's now living in Boston and travels to NH as much as possible for rock and ice. Jeff's a part of the Central New Hampshire Climbers’ Association because he is passionate about conservation and access issues. When not climbing or developing, Jeff enjoys volunteering with MITOC and Outward Bound.

Mike was born and raised in Central New Hampshire. After relocating multiple times across the country, he accepted the inevitability that New Hampshire is home for him and is currently settled in Plymouth. Mike found climbing in 2019 while living in North Conway and took to it immediately. It has given meaning to trips around the world, and he has built a network of friends and community that he never imagined could be so fulfilling. In his words, “being a part of CNHCA brings me pride, purpose, and a greater sense of what climbing can be”. When he’s not climbing rocks, he’s climbing trees for an occupation.

Greg is originally from the Saratoga region of New York but he has called New Hampshire home for almost 9 years now. He’s been climbing for ten or twelve years, and so far, he loves it! Greg says that getting involved in route/area development and now the CNHCA has been a great way to be a steward and a positive voice for the outdoor areas he cares about. If Greg is not climbing, you can find him trail running, skiing, or tending bar in Lincoln. You gotta work sometimes!

P.S - His profile photo was not taken in NH. Just in case the jumbo cams and big bro on his harness didn’t give it away.

Chris is a Massachusetts native who has been visiting the White Mountains of New Hampshire ever since he was a kid. These days he tries to be up there as much as possible. Chris has always loved sharing outdoor experiences and educating others about how to be good stewards of the land and respect the mountains, cliffs, and waterways that we all love. He has put his knowledge of digital marketing to work by volunteering with organizations such as the Appalachian Mountain Club, Southeast New England Climbers Coalition, Friends of Merriam Woods, and now CNHCA. When not climbing, you can find Chris sitting somewhere thinking about climbing…He also enjoys running, mountain biking, hiking, or playing Metallica riffs on his guitar.