Elizabeth topping out on ice

Elizabeth from Florida decided to take plunge into the world of climbing frozen waterfalls.  Elizabeth, an avid rock climber, spent the day with me and Tim climbing ice near the Blue Ridge Parkway in North Carolina.  The conditions were fantastic as the tempers had warmed up, but the ice was in great condition.

We started with some basic mechanics on ice climbing and with some drills and quickly moved to climbing ice.  It was a pleasure to be out swinging the tools and teaching climbing.  Sunny skies made for a cheerful winter experience.

Elizabeth did a great job learning the skills to make ice climbing efficient.  She had some difficulties with placing the crampons level at first, but soon had the idea of balanced movement and level feet.

Thanks for a great day and I hope to see you out climbing this summer.

Patrick Weaver

Appalachian Mountain Institute

Learning how to use crampons

Gearing up for ice climbing