So March was a fun and exciting month but I didn't have any big trips so I kind of neglected to post any pictures. All of my trips were relatively short, a weekend at most. I had a couple of people ask me why the lack of activity so I thought I would post a little summary of my March activities.
Crystal and I headed out to Jewell Lake one morning in RMNP to grab a couple pitches. Jewell Lake is nice consistently forming icefall in Glacier Gorge in the park. It is approx 3 mile approach with snowshoes or skies. Amazingly it was pretty easy to find which is always stunning when it is your first time to an area. I have killed hours trudging around in snow looking for some hidden climb. We found the ice to be 100 feet wide and 30-60 feet tall. The ice was a bit inconsistent quality. I specifically chose this climb for its potential to be my first lead climb. I initially started the easiest line I could find but quickly found that the middle half was rotten ice thinly smeared over rock. I backed off and reconsidered. The toproping potential hear is somewhat limited due to the lack of an easy way to the top. To the right was a deep snow slog that in the right conditions would avalanche. After poking around I tried the lead again, this time slightly right of the previous line finding better ice. I topped out after placing 4 screws in 30ft. Probably a bit overkill. We toproped a few more lines on the right side and then booked it out of there as Crystal was slowly becoming a popsicle.
Lincoln Falls
We took BW out on his first ice climbing trip to Lincoln Falls. The Ice has been super fat here in the last couple weeks as freeze/thaw cycles are kicking into full gear. Bryan even found some crazy mixed line to climb.
BW sinking some tools for the first time! |
Bryan inching out... |
Also our buddy Nate got married the last week of March. CONGRATS NATE and CASEY!! We headed up to the beautiful Devils Thumb Ranch for the wedding. Devils Thumb is a ranch style resort catering to cross country skiers. It truly was an amazing venue and a great place to spend a few days surrounded by good people. Unfortunately I didn't take any pictures while we were there....lame right?
With spring in full force I will be starting to transition to mountain biking and climbing as my focus. Stay tuned for some new posts. I am vowing to be more active in my posting and drag my camera with me everywhere I go.
1K update
As of today I am 29% done with my 1K project (see January post if you're confused)
I have over 206,000 ft of ski descent, 39 Ice pitches, and almost 10,000 ft of mountaineering elevation gain. I must say that this challenge has really forced me to take full advantage of every day I get out. It forces me to grab one more run, pitch, or problem. I get at least 2 and usually 3 days a week out in the mountains. I am sore and tired, which I think is a good thing. Even if I don't meet the goal the challenge has pushed me to get better.
Til next time,
-Mike
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