Intro to Ice Movement and Techniques Clinic, $279
Ice climbing is much more technique dependent than rock climbing. Learn the skills properly in a full-day introduction to the sport of ice climbing. Warning: it’s addicting! By the end of the day you’ll be able to:
- Climb a waterfall up to WI3 (don’t worry, we’ll also teach you what ice climbing grades mean!)
- Have an understanding of some of the inherent risks of climbing ice and how to mitigate them
- Properly belay in a top rope setting and efficiently communicate with your partner
- Identify the ins and outs of ice climbing equipment, including proper fit and use
- Tie a few basic knots to keep you connected to your partner—and the mountain!
Prerequisites:
- None! This is an appropriate course for anyone who is interested in learning about ice climbing, or for climbers looking to refresh their skills for the coming season.
Level Up on Ice! Intermediate Skills and Techniques Clinic, $279
This clinic is for climbers who have climbed ice and are looking to progress on steeper terrain. Building on the foundational skills needed to move up moderate ice, we’ll teach more advanced movement techniques and positions with the goal of helping you confidently climb WI3+ to 4 smoothly and effortlessly by:
- Mastering foot placements, tool swings, and everything that happens in between with your body
- Having adequate sequences of movement execution
- Learning positions of rest and tricks to avoid getting “pumped”
- Finding proper positions of balance
- Reading the ice and choosing the right path
Prerequisites:
- Participants must have previous experience ice climbing, preferably in the last year. (If you climbed once five years ago, we highly encourage you to take our Intro to Ice Movement clinic—it will be more fun and you will progress faster.)
Steep Ice Clinic, $279
If you’re an avid climber but want to master your craft on vertical ice and pillars, this clinic is for you. Steep ice is highly technique dependent, and we’ll spend five hours instructing and helping you hone your skills on them steeps!
- Movement on WI4-5
- Climbing vertical ice and pillars
- Clearing bulges
- Positions of rest
Prerequisites:
- Must be an avid climber with frequent ice climbing experience up to WI3+.
Beginning to Lead Clinic, $279
In this clinic we’ll approach graduation from being a competent ice climber on top rope to taking the first steps into learning how to lead an ice climb. In a mock lead scenario, we’ll follow the natural progression to safely and efficiently lead an ice climb. You’ll have a chance to learn from our guides:
- Reading the ice and understanding its behavior
- Leader’s movement on ice
- Ice screws: correct placement, mechanics and limitations
- Protection spacing
- Ice screw anchor building and V, A & 0-threads
- Top anchor belay
- Lead belay and back ties
Prerequisites:
- You must be an avid climber with proven experience on waterfall ice.
- Some leading experience on rock (even at the rock gym) is a must.
- Clear understanding of what “leading” means to prove readiness to move into it.
- This clinic is not a “learn how to ice climb” clinic, although some instruction to improve your movement as to guarantee efficiency and safety as a leader will be provided.
Open Climbing with Guides, $129
We had the idea that maybe folks come to the Ouray Ice Fest to climb. Weird, right?! New for the 2024 Ouray Ice Fest, each day we will hang 4-6 ropes on routes in the Schoolroom. Our guides will coach, mentor, and generally be resources to support you with whatever aspect of ice climbing you’d like. The goal will be to create a supportive environment in which you can climb with highly skilled partners. We’ll check everyone off for belaying and we’ll ask you to belay when you’re not climbing, so our guides can help climbers on the ice.
Prerequisites:
- Participants must have climbed ice previously and understand how to belay.
Please note: If you need Mountain Trip gear, plan to meet your instructor(s) at the Mountain Trip office in Ouray (801 Main Street) at 8:30 a.m. For those meeting us at our office and using Mountain Trip gear, we’ll provide a shuttle to and from the festival. If you plan to demo or bring your own gear, plan to meet your instructor(s) at the Mountain Trip tent near the lower bridge and the judges’ table toward the entrance of the Ouray Ice Park at 9:20 a.m. From there, we’ll walk over to the clinic.
