Water Ice:
Introduction To The Frozen WorldSM

Students Per Instructor: 1 or 2
Course Length: 2 Days (approx. 8 hours per day)
Seasons Offered: Winter
Alpine Mastery Method: Ice Mastery - Level I
Prerequisites: None

Course Summary: This course teaches the basics of ice climbing. It lays the solid foundation essential for building more advanced ice climbing skills.

Reservations

Course Description:
We start this course by introducing you to the tools you will come to trust as an ice climber: ice axes, ice hammers and crampons. A discussion of other equipment items and cold weather dressing follows, and then it's off to the ice.

After a short presentation on crampon techniques we'll focus on ice bouldering until your crampons feel more like an asset than a hindrance.

Next we'll add an ice tool and learn how to place it. Add another tool, make a few adjustments in weight distribution and we're ready to climb. The remainder of the day will be filled with top-roped ice climbing of easy to moderate difficulty.

On the second day, after learning about ice protection, you will follow climbs led by your instructor, developing skills presented on the first day.

Rock climbing experience will be helpful but it is not essential for this course.

Reservations