The morning started early with a 6am alarm. Ugh, that was painful. It was the first time that I'd been out of bed before the sun in awhile. My body was not pleased with this. I was supposed to meet Nate at a drop off point near the Mass Pike so that we could carpool, but we both had trouble finding it and ended up following each other to the meeting point, a McDonald's in Auburn, MA. It wasn't hard to spot the other Grouponers, they were also dressed for a day of ice climbing. We were a group of 10 with varied outdoor experiences. Nate and I were the only regular rock climbers. A few of the others had tried it once or twice before. We quickly made friends and awaited the arrival of our instructor.
When Michael arrived, we took over the back corner of the McDonald's and tried on our rental boots and crampons while he gave us some tips for beginners. We were basically told to keep our heels down & don't hit ourselves in the face with the ice axes. All around solid advice. I assume Michael had a deal worked out with this McDonald's, as no one came over to ask us what the hell we were doing. The looks from the customers in the restaurant were priceless though.
Once everyone was geared up, we caravanned over to the parking lot that we were going to hike in from. I was a little nervous about the 30 minute hike in, not knowing what to expect. We started out with just our mountaineering boots on, but stopped to put on crampons before descending a wooded trail onto a mostly frozen river. I've never used crampons before, so it was really cool to see how easily you can walk on ice with them. The river was only partially frozen, so we followed each other single file near the edge until we reached the Auburn Ice Canyon. It was an unseasonably warm day with temperatures rising into the upper 30's/low 40's, so there was some melting occurring in the sun. Because of this, the climbs on the right side of the canyon were too dangerous to climb.
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| Getting ready to hike in |
Once everyone was geared up, we caravanned over to the parking lot that we were going to hike in from. I was a little nervous about the 30 minute hike in, not knowing what to expect. We started out with just our mountaineering boots on, but stopped to put on crampons before descending a wooded trail onto a mostly frozen river. I've never used crampons before, so it was really cool to see how easily you can walk on ice with them. The river was only partially frozen, so we followed each other single file near the edge until we reached the Auburn Ice Canyon. It was an unseasonably warm day with temperatures rising into the upper 30's/low 40's, so there was some melting occurring in the sun. Because of this, the climbs on the right side of the canyon were too dangerous to climb.
We dropped our packs on some solid ground in the middle of the canyon and began to get ready to climb. Michael lead the first climb to get to the top of the canyon, where he set a total of 3 top ropes for the group to climb on. After lead belaying Michael, Nate was the first to tie-in. He cleaned the route that Michael had lead. We had a bit of a scare on the start when he fell about 10-15 feet off the ground and gently landed on his feet. I was in awe, as I thought that I had him on a pretty tight belay with my GriGri. But, with a 60 foot climb there was a lot of rope stretch. He shook it off and got right back on. With the stretch taken out of the rope, the rest of the climb went much better & I lowered him down with a giant smile on his face. He loved it!
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| Descending the trail to the river |
We dropped our packs on some solid ground in the middle of the canyon and began to get ready to climb. Michael lead the first climb to get to the top of the canyon, where he set a total of 3 top ropes for the group to climb on. After lead belaying Michael, Nate was the first to tie-in. He cleaned the route that Michael had lead. We had a bit of a scare on the start when he fell about 10-15 feet off the ground and gently landed on his feet. I was in awe, as I thought that I had him on a pretty tight belay with my GriGri. But, with a 60 foot climb there was a lot of rope stretch. He shook it off and got right back on. With the stretch taken out of the rope, the rest of the climb went much better & I lowered him down with a giant smile on his face. He loved it!
Next, it was my turn. I was a little nervous trusting the tips of my crampons in the ice as foot holds. To solve for this, I tried to make some high step moves that just felt and looked awkward. After a few successful upward movements of trusting my feet, I began to relax a bit and started to get the hang of it. By the top of the climb, I was wishing there was more ice! It was beasty and my forearms felt the burn, but it was fun. Hard work, but very rewarding!
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| Auburn Ice Canyon |
Next, it was my turn. I was a little nervous trusting the tips of my crampons in the ice as foot holds. To solve for this, I tried to make some high step moves that just felt and looked awkward. After a few successful upward movements of trusting my feet, I began to relax a bit and started to get the hang of it. By the top of the climb, I was wishing there was more ice! It was beasty and my forearms felt the burn, but it was fun. Hard work, but very rewarding!
Nate and I switched off a couple more times and I ended up getting 3 climbs in - one lap on each of the top ropes. I was ready for more, but the weather wasn't cooperating at that point. It began to rain and the group decided to break down about an hour earlier than planned. I was lucky to have some willing photographers in the group to take pictures as I climbed. Looking back on the photos, I can really see the progress in my form. I can't wait to try it again, but I'll need to invest in some gear first.
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| Feeling comfortable on the ice |
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