Ice climbing in the Badrock Canyon a good primer to the sport

To most, the bitter cold temps of mid-winter in the Flathead are a burden, but for a handful of dedicated climbers, the cold temps only mean one thing; waterfall ice climbing. Ascending frozen waterfalls is one of the most spectacular and surreal ways to experience connect with nature in the winter. Much different than summer rock climbing, waterfall climbing comes at a cost; frozen hands, bitter cold and the “screaming barfies” are often the norm when it comes to climbing ice.

Badrock Canyon and the Columbia Mountain trailhead are some of the most popular ice climbing crags in the Valley due to the minimal approach and ease of access.  In the right conditions, a short walk from your car will bring you straight to gleaming blue ice. Care for this brittle medium is needed so that the flows remain intact and can be enjoyed throughout the whole season.  The ethic among climbers is to only climb the ice when it is in “fat shape.”

If climbers can’t safely lead the ice (starting at the bottom and ending at the top while placing protection to stop a fall) then they hopefully leave the ice be, coming back when the ice is more resilient and ready.

Back in the 1970s members of the famed Dirty Sox Climbing Club like Terry Kennedy, Steve Jackson, and The Kanzler brothers cut their teeth on the same ice climbs we practice on today. Sheer will was heavily relied on to get them up the flows, as early ice climbing gear was often inadequate and unreliable.  Nowadays, climbers hone their skills on these same cliffs that generations of Flathead Valley alpinists before them have.  

Waterfall ice climbing is completely condition dependent and these flows often are unformed and unsafe to climb, except in the heart of winter.  Eager climbers looking to sharpen their skills will instead turn to the many natural drytool and mixed climbing routes at Badrock Canyon. Drytooling or mixed climbing is the act of ascending rock faces with ice tools and crampons in order to reach daggers of ice. 

The skills practiced at these local cliffs are then brought to a grander scale in Glacier National Park where miles of ice and unclimbed snowy faces await.  The ease of access to Badrock and Columbia grant eager climbers the opportunity to gain important experience on ice in order to prepare themselves for longer alpine ice climbs in the Park. 

Though these ice flows are a stone’s throw away from the car, climbers need to remember the dangers of ice climbing and understand that safety should be the top priority as accidents can happen at the crag as easily as in the mountains.