We started out on a starter wall to learn the basics and for Todd to get comfortable with what we could handle. The first line was quick and easy, only about 30’ in height, and slightly sloped. Everyone easily completed the lap without any issues, except waiting our respective turns was a very cold and wet experience.
The second line dropped on the practice wall was on a slightly technical route that gave the option of straddling a waterfall if one wanted to. Justine, Paul, and Bonnie all ascended the right side of the waterfall, making my trip up the right side a bit difficult as their crampons had beaten the ice pretty handsomely. Halfway up the climb I crossed the waterfall with little hazard and cleanly made the top. Liv smartly climbed entirely on the left of the waterfall, a more technical choice that had a slight invert towards the top but less worn, and thus easier to get a purchase with the ice axes and crampons.
She was probably the quickest of the group and seems at home with crampons and axes. Paul’s style was more unorthodox (probably because the muscle memory from years of Nordic skiing didn’t necessarily favor ice climbing) and as he crossed the waterfall in preparation to descend he somehow got tangled in the line and did a nice flip before Todd had him locked off and hanging against the wall. It sounds more dramatic than it actually was.
After exhausting the practice wall, our group hiked a few minutes to a large Moulin to descend into the glacier. Luckily, Monty, another KWG guide, arrived and set up a second line to double our ice climbing shenanigans and the rain had cleared to bring about a beautiful Alaskan afternoon.
I was the first to go over the edge into the ice abyss, a rather unnerving experience, and descended as far as Todd would allow. Stopping at the boundary of blue and white ice, I locked in the crampons and sat halfway down the Moulin as a waterfall flowed past with a stream about fifty feet below. The ascent back to the surface was mostly easy, but the small section of blue ice was definitely harder to get a purchase and made for a very short moment of concern.
The remainder of the Cry crew made their way into the Moulin, all descending about where I had made it, except Liv and Justine tired to push deeper but Todd’s rope would not permit. Bonnie had a quality and typical verbal response as she progressed into the ice but it was very nice seeing her push aside her preconceived fear of the Moulin and truck into the ice.
Monty’s line was more vertical in nature and the ice was considerably dirtier since it faced the sun and saw more melting. Each kick of the crampons and swing of the axe saw saucer-sized chunks of ice fly out from the face as their tips penetrated the wall. Making it as far as I could handle, Monty locked me off and I hung for a while taking in the unusual environment within a 35 mile long glacier. Looking over my should I could see Liv making her way down Todd’s route, but the water falling between our ropes made far too much noise for conversation.
Back at the surface, I watched various Cyr people take various plunges into the ice, each lap pushing the limits of the guides’ comfort with how deep to descend before locking off. I think Paul talked his way the deepest of us all, but Justine and Liv put up valiant efforts to best their father. While we rested at the top, Monty and Todd both headed over the edge, using all but the final few feet of their lines and climbing to the bottom of the Moulin. Both of them returned completely soaked from the waterfall but obviously exhilarated by the experience.
By the end of the day the five of us were bushed, soaked to the bone, and chilled to the core but nearly unbeatable by the experience of the ice climb. I say nearly unbeatable because my ice-climbing boots were slightly the wrong size (causing some odd pressure points) and Liv’s left boot was all fouled up as we hiked off the glacier and gave her a quality blister. But that aside today was amazing.
No comments:
Post a Comment