A World-Class Community Climbing Event
Bozeman Ice Festival Chills Out in Hyalite Canyon
By Alison Grey, 11-28-07
Kris Erickson getting a work out at Genesis during the Bozeman Ice Festival. Previous: Mark Twight teaching on The Sceptre (WI 5) at the Bozeman Ice Festival. Photos Courtesy G. Adam Ruther.
With more than 140 climbs within a three-mile square-radius, Hyalite Canyon, just south of Bozeman, is home to the most condensed, naturally consistent ice climbing in the world. And this week, ice climbers from around the country, from novice to world-class professional athletes, will convene for a one-of-kind festival to compete, teach and learn from each other.
For a second year in a row, Barrel Mountaineering and Northern Lights Trading Company have joined forces, along with Montana Alpine Guides and First Ascent Press, to bring to Bozeman one of the premier, and quickly growing, ice climbing festivals in the nation.
The best-of-the-best in the ice-climbing world will be on hand to compete and teach, exchange stories, eat, drink and be merry. Of course, don’t be intimidated, you don’t have to be a seasoned pro to partake in the festivities; there are plenty of opportunities and clinics for first timers interested in adding ice axes to their outdoor gear vocabulary.
“It’s really a community ice climbing event,” said Mike Cooperstein, owner of Montana Alpine Guides and an avid climber of 16 years. “People can go out and experience ice climbing, get tips from the pros, and see what it’s like. What’s cool is we get everyone together in one spot; all of the top ice-climbing companies, reps, athletes and demo gear.”
Festivities begin Nov. 29, and the schedule is jam-packed with clinics, including a full-day dedicated to the ladies, competitions for all skill abilities, slide shows by renowned climbers and gear demonstrations. And what kind of festival created by a bunch of outdoor junkies could end without a party? On Dec. 2, they’ll wrap it all up with beer, pizza and perhaps some good-natured debauchery.
Joe Josephson, founder and publisher of First Ascent Press, is optimistic that with Bozeman’s close-knit climbing community and an increased interest in the sport in the past decade, most likely due to evolving gear, that this year’s festival is set to be the best one ever.
“This festival has been going on in a number of different shapes and forms for almost 15 years,” said Josephson, who has climbed for 20 years and is the author of Winter Dance, a guide book to ice-climbing in Hyalite Canyon and the Beartooth Mountains. “But, this is the second year where it has been organized into one major event.”
Northern Lights Trading Company and Barrel Mountaineering have historically hosted different ice-climbing events in Hyalite Canyon, but last year, decided to consolidate their efforts and resources and create one big festival, said Josephine.
The organizers hope that as the festival grows, it will eventually bring in a profit. All proceeds from the event go to the Southwest Montana Climbers Coalition, a group that advocates and supports climbing issues, particularly the Gallatin National Forest Travel Management Plan and its impact on winter access to Hyalite Canyon.
When the Forest Service revealed the Travel Plan to the public last year, local climbers were dismayed to see that access to Hyalite Canyon would be curtailed by a gate closure on Jan. 1, curbing a 20-week ice-climbing season into a five-week window.
The local climbing community, led by the Southwest Montana Climbers Association and the Access Fund, along with skiing advocacy groups, rallied together, and with the Forest Service, are working towards preserving certain access provisions to Hyalite Canyon within the Travel Plan.
While access for the 2007-2008 season will remain the same as it has in past years, the future remains uncertain, and for Josephson, Hyalite Canyon and access to it, is an ice-climbing gem worth fighting for.
“Hyalite is home to some of the top routes in the world,” he said. “It’s a unique place. There is a long climbing tradition in Bozeman and Hyalite has always been the center of that. We want to keep that tradition going.”
It’s not to late to sign up for the Bozeman Ice Festival!
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There's got to be guardrails up there before driving cars up Hyalite road in the winter is an acceptable idea. There is federal money for guardrails, so at least some effort needs to be aimed at the delegation to get funding for guardrails for Hyalite.