Course Objectives

• Increasing technical knowledge and skill in all aspects of technical ice climbing including:
  • Lead Climbing
  • Snow techniques review
  • Multi-pitch climbing
  • Rope and belay techniques
  • Rappelling
  • Protection placement
  • Crevasse rescue review
  • Objective hazards review

• Developing educated, self-reliant technical climbers who can evaluate hazards and safely complete a technical ice route.

Course Itinerary
Day 1: 7:00am orientation. Check equipment, drive to trailhead and hike in. Set camp, discuss bivouacs and campsite placements on technical terrain. Review snow anchors and belaying. Nightly review of skills and topics related to technical ice climbing.

Day 2: Snow school review. Review the fundamentals of glacier travel and moving safely on high angle snow. Instruction includes: crevasse rescue, prussiking, anchor placements, belaying and proper glacier travel techniques.

Day 3: Anchors, low, moderate and high-angle ice climbing. Review cramponing and low angle ice climbing, then move onto high angle ice. Instruction covers high angle belays and placing protection on lead. Practice session includes lead climbing belayed by a top rope. The day ends with a number of rappels.

Day 4: Lead climbing, hanging belays, belay placement strategies and rappelling. Return to steep ice for continued intensive skills building in lead climbing, protection strategies, multi-pitch climbing and rappelling.

Day 5: Move to high camp and bivouac. Head up the mountain to one of several technical routes. We locate a protected site and establish our high mountain bivi.

Day 6: Summit day. Conditions permitting, attempt a summit climb. This is a very long and demanding day on a technical route.