Saturday, March 5, 2011

Train to Go Big


Matt has big plans. This spring he is headed to Mount Rainier's Liberty Ridge, a spectacular objective in and of itself. The ice tower some climbers in Michigan constructed near Matt's home was not quite enough training. So Matt decided to come out to Ouray, Colorado for four jam packed days of steep snow and lots and lots of ice.

Matt and I hit the must see venues of Ouray ice climbing. We spent the obligatory day in the ice park honing Matt's technique over the course of around a thousand feet of climbing. The next day we figured, why not a thousand more? So we headed over for a sunny day on Eureka's Stairway to Heaven. Though the good weather did not hold Matt and I were able to get plenty of climbing in over the next two days on Horsetail Falls, several routes at the Skylight area, and a few long laps in the Pic o' the Vic area in the ice park to wind down the day.

Matt is climbing strong and certainly ready to take on Liberty Ridge. Good luck Matt!

P.S. Watch the top outs on Skylight they are a bit slushy/non-existent.