Summary
Trust the Ice
This was the mantra my climbing instructor, Lani Chapko of IRIS Alpine, had encouraged me to repeat as I attempted to ascend a towering frozen waterfall. With my boots still firmly planted on the ground, this seemed like a reasonable statement. However, at 30 feet in the air, with nothing more than spiky crampons and an eighth-of-an-inch-wide steel point anchoring me to the side of a ravine, it sounded ludicrous.
In most parts of the country, ice climbing is considered a niche adventure sport. In Ouray, a small town cradled in the mountains of southwestern Colorado, it’s the lifeblood of winter. Shop windows carry the sign “please remove crampons before entering.” The unofficial town slogan is “Have an ice day.”
Ice Climbing in Ouray: A Unique Winter Adventure
On a frigid January weekday, I drove five and a half hours from Denver to join climbers from around the globe at the annual Ouray Ice Festival. Elite athletes go to compete, while enthusiasts and curious novices partake in a long weekend of educational clinics, gear demos, and nightly outdoor parties. The events are centered around Ouray Ice Park, one of the world’s first man-made ice climbing parks, spanning almost two miles of the Uncompahgre Gorge just outside of town. A mostly volunteer team of “ice farmers” carefully grooms its 150-plus climbing routes using excess town water fed through a system of 300 sprinklers and spouts. This endeavor is part engineering feat and part natural sculpture garden.
Ouray Ice Park has undoubtedly helped popularize the sport of ice climbing. Many argue it has also contributed to saving the town. Founded in 1876, Ouray was initially sustained by mining for a century. However, when that industry dwindled, the community relied on summer hikers and off-roaders to keep businesses afloat. In winter, with no ski resorts, Ouray turned into a ghost town.
Historically, a handful of climbers would typically make the pilgrimage to scale the area’s naturally formed backcountry ice. One of those diehards, Kitty Calhoun, a climbing legend who co-owns IRIS Alpine (formerly Chicks with Picks), shared her perspective: “By the early 1980s, Ouray was essentially dead. It truly felt frozen in time. The arrival of the ice park in 1996 changed everything.”
Today, the town’s Main Street, registered as a National Historic District, bustles with visitors all winter long. Its beautifully preserved Queen Anne and Victorian buildings resemble a film set, but many have been converted into boutique accommodations, restaurants, and craft breweries.
Early on my first day in town, I joined three other Denver-area women for a two-day beginner’s clinic. Some had ice climbed before; others, like me, were complete newbies. A 30-minute hike allowed us to practice walking in our crampons, which turned our feet into wolverine claws. In an area called the School Room, Chapko demonstrated how to kick our crampons into the ice and then swiftly swing one ice ax at a time overhead. Our grip had to stay relaxed to avoid cutting off blood flow to the fingers, which can lead to a painful phenomenon known as the screaming barfies. From below, pillars and cauliflower-shaped ice formations, shimmering blue and white, were so captivating that my nervousness shifted to curiosity. I volunteered to climb first as a partner belayed me from the ground.
By day two, we graduated to steeper walls. Soon it was my turn to ascend Pic O’ the Vic, a near-vertical, 130-foot ice wall, which proved to be my most challenging climb yet. The group cheered me on as I swung my ice ax overhead, remembering to execute a sharp downward movement from my elbow, followed by a flick of the wrist to secure a strong hold. The pick planted with a reassuring thunk, locking into the ice. Taking a deep breath, I swiftly kicked my right boot up and into the wall, followed by the left, sinking the razor-sharp blades of my crampons into the ice like fangs.
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Icicles crashed down nearby — a reminder that ice is anything but predictable. The last thing I wanted to do was let go of one hand, but Calhoun encouraged me to occasionally shake out my arms to maintain blood flow. Halfway up the 70-foot face, I contemplated quitting. However, Calhoun coached me toward secure holds, and I discovered that when I established a rhythm of two kicks and two swings, the climbing became meditative. Before I knew it, I had reached the top. I let out a big whoop of accomplishment, then realized I had to lean back, push off the ice, and get lowered down — which was almost scarier than climbing up.
However, Ouray offers plenty of options to release an adrenaline rush. Back in town, I thawed my frozen limbs and achy muscles in natural hot springs at Box Canyon Lodge & Hot Springs and sipped a Box Canyon Brown Ale from Ouray Brewery. Gazing at the snowcapped mountains, I understood Calhoun’s obsession with the ice and her commitment to sharing it with others. Now that I had scaled a frozen waterfall, I felt capable of achieving anything.
America’s Top Ice Climbing Spots
Adirondacks, New York
Yvon Chouinard, founder of Patagonia and innovator of ice climbing tools, put this area on the map in 1969 when he ascended a route now known as Chouinard’s Gully. Adirondack Rock & River makes the sport accessible with lodging and an ice park exclusively for clients.
Cody, Wyoming
The South Fork of the Shoshone River Valley has one of the largest concentrations of multi-pitch ice climbs in the Lower 48. Wyoming Mountain Guides can arrange tours of the South Fork.
North Conway, New Hampshire
The International Mountain Climbing School offers guided climbs up challenging routes like Pinnacle Gully as well as clinics throughout the White Mountains.
Valdez, Alaska
Home to more than 180 ice climbing routes, both novices and professionals can find a challenge here. Alaska Guide Co. leads trips all winter to well-known routes like the 600-foot Bridal Veil Falls in the climbing mecca Keystone Canyon.
A version of this story first appeared in the December 2021/January 2022 issue of GoTravelDaily under the headline Mind Over Matter.
