Here’s a recap as my ice season in Ouray, Colorado comes to an end.

Some highlights were working clinics for the All In Ice Festival and the Ouray Ice Festival, completing my AMGA Ice Instructor Course, increasing my physical and mental strength on ice to feel like a solid WI4 leader, and getting into mixed climbing and dry tooling.

All In Ice Festival

The All In Ice Festival, held the first weekend of the year, is a small but incredibly meaningful event focused on accessibility in climbing. This was my second year attending, and my first time working as an ice guide. I believe strongly in the importance of creating spaces like this for affinity groups and minority climbers. It’s so much more than just ice climbing; it’s about breaking down the barriers that prevent people from experiencing the joy of the outdoors. The festival brings together a beautiful community, and it’s been incredibly fulfilling to be a part of it, both last year and especially this year as part of the guide team. My partner, Ken, is also an essential part of the organizing team, and I’m so proud of the energy and love they pour into this event.

Ouray Ice Festival

The main Ouray Ice Festival occurred three weekends later. This festival is huge, with a vendor tent village area, climbing competitions, and countless clinics led by the 6 guide services in the area. It’s a very different vibe than the All In Festival but still filled with people psyched on ice climbing. I was grateful to get two additional days of clinic guiding with Moxie Mountain Guides! I got to assist two experienced guides and climbers, and learned a lot watching them teach ice climbing movement to the students. It was the perfect mentorship getting into ice guiding.

Ice Instructor Course

I completed an AMGA Ice Instructor Course in February. This is part of the Alpine Guide certification track, and enables me to guide single pitch and shorter multi-pitch ice climbs in the backcountry.

The course itinerary included:

• Day 1: Rope systems overview and an ice climbing movement check in the park
• Day 2: Camp Bird Road for an instructor demo on Slip Slidin’ Away, my lead of Talisman Simulator, and my partner’s lead in the (melting and slushy) ice park on Pic o’ the Vic.
• Day 3: Captain Roos in Eureka. I led the right side of the 3rd pitch, which was long, steep and sustained.

  

  

  

• Day 4: Stairway to Heaven in Eureka, a Colorado classic climb

  

  

• Day 5: Back to Camp Bird road for quick up/down lowering transitions and some dry tool climbing

Highlights

The course challenged me to lead some steeper, more challenging ice climbs than I’d led before. I was a little nervous at the start, but each climb felt surprisingly comfortable. I’m thrilled to finish the season feeling this strong, both physically and mentally. Talisman Simulator, in particular, had thin ice, and delicate crampon placements on exposed rock. I was able to move carefully but confidently, and snap into a great head space for leading, which felt pretty special.

This course qualifies me to guide ice climbs in the park and backcountry next winter, working with local guide companies. With this final piece in place, I’ll have year-round guiding opportunities, which I’m incredibly excited about.

Personal Climbs

I spent most of January preparing for the ice instructor course – increasing my personal fitness, my confidence leading ice, and familiarity with local routes that were likely to be climbed on the course. All my preparation came together perfectly for the course culminating in some really confidence-boosting climbs the week before the course. I got to top-rope M6 Corner, a mixed climb that helped me feel way more confident on the thin ice and rock when I led Talisman Simulator on the course. I also led Choppos Chimney in my preparation, which was one of the longer and more sustained flows that I had led at the time. It finished in a narrow chimney with a section of thinner ice that required delicate movements.

I’m grateful to have led a bunch of WI4 climbs around the Ouray area, and to feel really confident on these climbs. I feel significantly different climbing ice now than I did at the start of the season, back in Canmore in December. I feel like a more capable ice climber: I’m climbing faster, my swings and kicks are more precise and effective, I’m finding ice screw placements faster, and I feel significantly more comfortable moving around in the ice environment.

I’m looking forward to pushing myself with steeper climbing next season and getting more into mixed climbing and dry tooling.

Next Up

Ken and I are headed to Las Vegas, NV for the Spring! I’ve got work with The Mountain Guides – Red Rocks, and the Alpine Institute doing single and multi-pitch rock guiding in Red Rocks. I’m looking forward to being warm, climbing dry rock in the sun without a jacket, seeing old friends, and pushing myself to climb hard in the desert.