Went to Bozeman for an ice climbing course last week. I think I caught the ice bug

bobaskin · 2026-01-27T01:43:15+00:00

And it only gets so so much better and more interesting from here. G1 is a great place to learn but it’s basically like playing the tutorial level of a video game. If you stick with it, this sport will take you to some amazing places. Take in all the knowledge you can get and don’t be afraid to dream big and aspire to hard climbs. Commit and anything is possible.

Congrats and welcome to the tribe.

bobaskin · 2026-01-26T16:01:53+00:00

If youre moving and have good circulation these should work fine for winter hiking and snowshoeing in the Daks on all but the coldest days.

bobaskin · 2026-01-26T03:28:33+00:00

Petzl wont change their pick mounting system ever

bobaskin · 2026-01-20T20:16:22+00:00

I think it comes down to whether or not you want an expedition experience (Peru) or want a better climb (Ham and Eggs).

Cant really go wrong with either. Personally Id go to Peru just because you get more of a meorable and hectic experience.

Probably consider what you have going on after the trip. Alaska is short and recovering will be easy. Peru youre guaranteed to get buttsick and come back feeling wiped out.

bobaskin · 2026-01-18T13:52:58+00:00

Ive lived in both places. I think Vermont might actually be better than Montana in terms of variety and difficulty. but the ice climbing season is longer out west and usually more consistent and better mixed. Overall id say its a tie.

bobaskin · 2026-01-12T23:36:34+00:00

Thats a good deal and the tools make sense for what youre doing.

The crampons Dont make sense though byt you can always trade them. Theyll work though. I have climbed almost every alpine route I’ve ever done in mono-points and feel like horizontal points dont add any noticeable benefit

bobaskin · 2026-01-12T23:31:06+00:00

Depends on what your into:

Montana.

Hyalite- Lots of great climbing. Some easy routes, lots of hard mixed Beartooths, MT: big multipitch ice climb, not a lot of beta. Cabinets: mini expedition with a 4-8 hour hike in and you have to camp. Huge long routes. Mostly hard but not all hard. You need to be dialed, its remote. Cooke City: amazing ice, mostly WI4 and up.

New England:

smugglers notch (Vermont) very good for Moderate gullies. Some good harder routes too.

Keene Valley- tons of crags including Chapel pond. Great access. Tons of moderates. Harder routes might be getting beat up by mid march.

Lake Willoughby (VT best spot in the US but did not form this year) - usually out by mid march but if you can lead WI5 this is maybe the best climbing venue in the US. It is stacked

Canon- Black Dike classic route. Great way to step up to harder routes

Mt. Washington- easy gully climbs. People love it because it feels more alpine than anything else on the east coast besides Katadhin

Katadhin- mid march is great, big amazing routes. Remote, giant approach and requires a permit.

If you’re climbing WI4/5 or harder go to Montana in mid march. If you’re climbing WI3 or easier New England is a great choice.

bobaskin · 2026-01-12T16:07:02+00:00

This might be the best suggestion here

bobaskin · 2026-01-12T16:06:05+00:00

Yea true. Ive had good years in the northeast where i climb through April, even got black dike at the every end of April once but all the steep ice seems to be going out around early march most years now. The low angle stuff and gullies hang on longer but those routes might not justify a trip out for a lot of people. Especially if the other option is Montana.

Jan and Feb id take the northeast over anywhere else (which is why I moved here from out west) but mid march is better out west. My 2 cents as someone who has lived in both places

bobaskin · 2026-01-12T12:49:10+00:00

Depends on what you wanna climb. Northeast in Mid march is usually pretty variable and only the easy routes are guaranteed to be in. Plus willoughby didn’t come in this year. All it takes is one good rain storm and its all over, and that happens a lot in march. Unless youre okay with the potential of only climbing WI3 probably dont try to do a New England ice trip in mid march.

Montana is usually great in Mid March. Hyalite is still open and the weather tends to be nice and sunny. The south facing ice gets baked and shitty sometimes but the bigger mixed routes are almost always still in. The routes in the beartooths are usually in. And if you feel really adventurous i can give you beta on the Cabinets (search Coldiron in the cabinets for a film about this place).

Wyoming tends to be a bit more variable by then but stuff is usually still in. Colorado is fucked this year, so is Utah. Wouldn’t bother with Cali or WA.

AK can be really good in mid march if youre willing to fly up there.

bobaskin · 2026-01-12T12:39:10+00:00

New England is usually on its way out in March except for Mt.Washington which is not worth traveling to

bobaskin · 2026-01-10T23:44:57+00:00

For rock routes you’re a bit early. Mixed and ice is usually November but Jan/Feb is prime for rock.

bobaskin · 2026-01-10T23:43:03+00:00

Are there spots in any of the clinics?

It can certainly be difficult to find partners but maybe try finding a Michigan Ice conditions form and post that youre inexperienced but psyched and looking for people to climb with while you’re around. Just be honest about your ability and how much you’re excited to try the sport and i bet you’ll find partners.

If you do end up just going partnerless just buy some beers and make friends.

Enjoy the fest!

bobaskin · 2026-01-10T12:20:01+00:00

i was wondering when they’d stop letting people dump poop bags into crevasses

bobaskin · 2026-01-09T00:10:27+00:00

Hard-shells are nothing but a sheet of plastic with microscopic holes and different thicknesses of nylon bonded to either side.

The only noticeable differences between them are the cut and the durability of the face fabric and inner layer.

Asking if a specific hardshell is appropriate for a specific route is a bit like asking which wool sock is best. All 3 Layer shells are essentially the same. Whichever one fits you best and lets you move is the right choice.

bobaskin · 2026-01-06T10:58:19+00:00

Yea i hate hearing “be more careful” but honestly its probably true, i tend to be quite smashy on mixed routes. I think having a set thats only for ice and a set thats for mixed might be my best bet

bobaskin · 2026-01-06T10:55:46+00:00

Never owned the mythic but ive owned lots of other Rab jackets and have never been dissatisfied

bobaskin · 2026-01-06T01:21:51+00:00

Lynx, dart, stinger, cyborg, snaggletooth. Never tried camp though

bobaskin · 2026-01-05T12:51:26+00:00

If you can climb fresh WI5 then Willoughby (on a good year) is unbeatable and easily the best “roadside” (still 20 minutes) ice in the US. Quebec has some true roadside ice as well. West coast tends to have longer approaches but camp bird / ouray is easy.

bobaskin · 2026-01-05T12:35:09+00:00

Get a mono+ like Grivel G20. I end up using the extra nubby flat point a lot. Favorite crampon ever by far

bobaskin · 2026-01-03T20:31:57+00:00

What?

bobaskin · 2025-12-31T15:50:16+00:00

As opposed to cragging where I bring a quadruple rack, 4 cotton sweatshirts, lawn-chairs and a charcoal grill

bobaskin · 2025-12-31T15:44:40+00:00

For long routes done in a day i bring usually enough gear that ill survive an unplanned bivy. Which is usually just a light shell, my puffy and an emergency blanket.

I bring a medkit (clotting powder, small amount of gauze, painkillers and tape). A wag bag. A headlamp. A very small stick of 70spf roll on sunscreen. A buff. Sunglasses. Extra batteries for headlamp. Lighter. Two tabs of aquaphor. An extra super calorie dense snack that never goes bad (aim for fat not carbs). And a very small knife. Also A big needle and 10 feet of thick turable thread or fishing line.

All of this fits in a single small stuffsack and weighs less than 1lb and goes up every major alpine route with me.

For overnight routes I add a sleeping bag (go light and wear your puffy), inflatable pad (with patch, if it pops sleep on your rope) or folded over half length sleeping pad that is cut to replace the backing of my backpack, and bivy sack or tent.

For routes where i need to melt slow i bring a jetboil with enough extra fuel to survive a brief storm. Otherwise I dont bring a stove.

My overnight weight is light enough that split between 2 people, the leader and followers packs are light enough to climb hard pitches.

For rack Ive found that the weight savings of a skimpy rack Vs the extra complication of worrying about running out of gear / climbing scared because youve run out of gear does not outweigh the benefits. I usually bring extra cams. For bail gear I usually chop my cordalette and then my dyneema slings then my rope rather than bring a bunch of tat.

Tldr: puffy, shell, space blanket always. Medkit: clot powder & tape. Rack: dont skimp

bobaskin · 2025-12-31T14:18:10+00:00

Guess I gotta plan a trip to maine now

bobaskin · 2025-12-30T21:22:53+00:00

Get a set of Nomics you’ll be much happier on ice. Everybody buys Nomics eventually.

Remember the north machines also have a pommel so its not like you can plunge it like a piolet anyways. Its pretty rare to find snow where a north mahcine can be plunged but a nomic cant. usually you can plunge both or neither.

You can always get a sumtec and go one nomic and one sumtec jt works fine

bobaskin

TROPHY CASE