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Ice climbing is a climbing discipline that involves ascending climbing routes consisting entirely of frozen water. To ascend, the ice climber uses specialist equipment, particularly double (or the more modern ) and rigid . To protect the route, the ice climber uses steel that require skill to employ safely and rely on the ice holding firm in any fall. Ice climbing routes can vary significantly by type, and include seasonally frozen waterfalls, high permanently frozen alpine , and large hanging .
From the 1970s, ice climbing developed as a standalone skill from alpine climbing (where ice climbing skills are used on ice and snow). Ice climbing grades peak at WI6 to WI7 as ice tends to hang vertically at its most severe. WI7 is very rare and usually attributed to overhanging ice with serious risk issues (i.e. unstable ice, little protection, and a risk of death). Mixed climbing has pushed the technical difficulty of ice climbing routes by crossing bare rock overhangs and roofs (using ice tools on bare rock is called dry-tooling).
Since 2002, the UIAA have regulated competition ice climbing, which is offered in a lead climbing format on an artificial bolted wall that employs dry-tooling techniques (e.g. and figure-four moves), and in a speed climbing format that uses a standardized wall of real ice. Since 2010, ice climbers at Helmcken Falls in Canada have been able to use the unique characteristics of the waterfall to create new severely overhanging bolted ice climbing routes, that are graded up to WI13, and are the hardest technical ice climbs in the world.
As with rock climbing, ice climbing can be done as free climbing, and performed in pairs where the Lead climbing inserts climbing protection into the route as they ascend. The second climber (or belayer), removes this temporary climbing protection as they climb the route after the lead climber has reached the top. In contrast to free rock climbing, the climbing protection used when leading ice climbing routes is based on the use of specialized steel . Ice screws require considerable experience to use properly and safely, and given that the underlying condition of the ice can change materially over time (including constantly breaking off), the seriousness of leading an ice climbing route is considered to be greater than that of a traditional rock climbing route. For example, while an intermediate ice climber could top rope a WI4-graded ice climbing route, leading WI4-graded route is a far more serious undertaking. In contrast to rock climbing, "the leader must not fall" ethos is a core part of ice climbing.
Ice climbing can also be done as free solo climbing, which is an even riskier undertaking, or done as top roping which is a much safer form of ice climbing and the format used for novices being introduced to the sport.
Ice climbing was developed as part of the broader climbing discipline of alpine climbing, where it is still a key component of the alpinist's skill set. Where the ice climbing route does not fully consist of ice and has elements of bare rock, it is known as mixed climbing. Where the route has no ice whatsoever, but the climber still uses the ice tools and crampons, it is known as dry-tooling. Because mixed climbing and dry-tooling routes can be fully bolted like sport climbing routes are in rock climbing (i.e because there is bare rock into which bolts can be drilled), they have become popular as safer alternatives to traditional ice climbing routes.
Ice climbing routes normally don't move beyond the sheer vertical for sustained distances due to the nature of ice (i.e. ice rarely stays in an overhanging fashion for any length of time). This means that standard ice-climbing grades broadly peak at WI6-7 (i.e. WI7 being completely sheer vertical ice and with additional risk issues). In contrast, extreme mixed-climbing routes have been developed beyond the equivalent M7-grade as they can incorporate routes that cross overhanging bare rock roofs to get to the vertical hanging icicle such as Jeff Lowe's groundbreaking Octopussy WI6 M8 in Vail, Colorado.
In Helmcken Falls in Canada, an unusual situation arises where a perennially active waterfall keeps severely overhanging rock faces covered in thick ice, thus creating overhanging ice routes. Ice climbers have established bolted routes (there is enough rock for the bolts) that are graded above WI7 (currently at WI13, as at 2023) in Helmcken.
Chouinard and McInnes' ice axes would lead to an explosion of interest in climbing on frozen waterfalls in the North American Rockies and in the European Alps. Ice climber and climbing author Raphael Slawinski wrote in the American Alpine Journal: "By the early 1980s ice climbing, from being merely one of the techniques in the alpinist's arsenal, had evolved into a full-blown technical art. The skills gained on waterfalls also gave rise to a whole new generation of alpine climbs. Slipstream (WI4+, 1979) in the Canadian Rockies blurred the distinction between waterfall ice and alpine climbing; the Moonflower Buttress (WI6 M7 A2, 1983) in the Alaska Range applied the highest levels of ice climbing skill to a major alpine first ascent; and the list goes on. Waterfall ice climbing, though initially pursued for its own sake, ended up revolutionizing alpine climbing".
By the end of the 1980s, ice climbers had effectively reached the limits of what could be climbed at grade WI6-7; ultimately, the inherent tendency of the medium to hang in a vertical fashion limited the possibilities for development. It was mixed climbing that began to drive development in ice climbing as pioneers like Jeff Lowe dry-tooled bare rock overhangs and roofs to get to more radical ice features, such as hanging icicles; the culmination of which was Lowe's historic ascent of Octopussy (WI6, M8) in Vail in 1994, which lead to the birth of modern mixed climbing.
It would not be until 2010 when Tim Emmett and Will Gadd began to put up ice routes at Helmcken Falls in Canada that ice climbing development would take a leap forward in technical development. Helmcken Fall's unique characteristics provided severely overhanging iced-routes, and in the next decade, grades were proposed up to WI13 with Mission to Mars in 2020. Emmett and Gadd consider Helmcken to be a potential Yosemite of ice climbing.
Amongst others, the UIAA runs two main competition ice climbing events, the annual Ice Climbing World Cup (which is run as a series of events in the year) and the bi-annual Ice Climbing World Championships (a single, once-off, competition).
Most of the IWC lead climbing routes are held on bolted dry artificial surfaces and thus employ dry-tooling techniques (e.g. and figure-four moves). In contrast, the IWC speed-climbing routes are on a standardized wall of ice that takes seconds for top roping ice climbers to complete (as per speed rock climbing).
Over the years, the UIAA has increased the regulation and use around competition ice climbing equipment, including the prohibition of leashes on ice tools (so they cannot be used as aid), and increased controls on the use of "heel spurs" while climbing (to counter their use for resting).
As well as ice screws, the ice itself can be used for protection, with the most common technique being the Abalakov thread (or V-thread/A-thread). This consists of two intersecting tunnels bored into the ice using ice screws that form a V-shaped tunnel. A sling is threaded through this tunnel and tied into a loop. The climbing rope is passed through this sling, which remains left behind after use. Because of the difficulty in construction, the common use of V-threads is as anchor points for or belaying, and not for lead climbing.
The ice axes (or ice tools) are rarely held at the same level — which can result in a very inefficient and energy-sapping "chicken wing" action — and thus there will usually be a higher axe placed at close to maximum extension above the climber and a second one placed below it (see photo opposite).
Once the higher axe has been secured into the ice, the climber — resting their weight on the higher axe — will bring their feet up into a "squat position" until they are again level. Once the feet are secured and front-pointed into the ice, the climber will stand up straight and will start to swing with the other axe to reach the next position of maximum extension above their body. The technique has been described as "squat-stand-swing".
The WI-grade is for "hard ice"; steep snow slopes, which are encountered frequently on alpine climbing routes, are not explicitly graded but instead, their steepest angle (approximate figure or a range) is quoted (e.g. 60–70 degree slope). WI-grade is for "seasonal" hard ice; an AI prefix is used instead for "alpine ice", which is year-round and usually firmer, more stable, making AI-grade routes slightly easier than WI routes.
In Canada, the WI prefix is sometimes dropped from the grade, and for longer multi-pitch ice routes, a "commitment grade" (a Roman numeral from I to VII) is also added to reflect the seriousness of the overall undertaking (e.g. the grade of a Canadian ice route can appear as III-5)
The following WI-grades and descriptions are provided by the American Alpine Club (republished in 2013) who note: "Ice climbing ratings are highly variable by region and are still evolving. ... The following descriptions approximate the average systems:": Additional comment is from Will Gadd.
As the routes were bolted like M-grade climbs (a metal detector is used to find the bolts), Emmett and Gadd re-established the link with M-grades as a guide on the WI-grade. The result was a series of new routes that laid claim to being the new "world's technically hardest ice climbing routes", starting with Spray On at WI10 in 2010, Wolverine at WI11 in 2011, Interstellar Spice at WI12 in 2016, and Mission to Mars at WI13 in 2020.
There has been debate in the ice climbing world around whether Helmcken-WI routes are M-grade climbs. In 2023, British ice climber Neil Gresham said that Helmcken routes are "definitely harder" than WI7 routes and that a confident M-climber will take time to adjust to the Helmcken WI-equivalent.
Emmett has described Helmcken as the ice climbing equivalent of Yosemite, and it has attracted some of the world's best ice climbers.
The grade milestones at Helmcken Falls are as follows:
Types of routes
Ice climbing can take on a broad range of . A common type of ice route is a frozen waterfall, particularly one that cascades down a mountain face or a down-mountain gully. Ice climbing routes can also take the form of high alpine snow-covered that are permanently frozen year-round. Giant icicles (also known as ice-daggers) have also been climbed as ice routes, and also as part of mixed routes; although such icicles can often dangerously break off and have been a source of several ice climber fatalities.
History
For decades, ice and mixed climbing were part of the alpine climbing skill set. During the 1960s, ambitious early ice climbers began to use to climb harder ice routes but this was dangerous and very unstable. The breakthrough came in the 1960s when Yvon Chouinard designed a new wooden-handled ice axe with a curved serrated pick called the "Climax". This was followed in 1970, when Hamish MacInnes designed the all-metal aluminum alloy ice axe that had a radically dropped pick called the "Terrordactyl" (or Terror). These two ice axes revolutionized ice climbing and eventually became merged into the modern all-metal ice axe (later the ice tool) with its dropped pick but curved and serrated tip (the now familiar "banana shape").
Competition ice climbing
The International Climbing and Mountaineering Federation (UIAA) has organized and regulated the sport of competition ice climbing since 2002 when the very first "Ice World Cup" (IWC) competition took place under the new UIAA rules and codes.
Equipment
Ice climbing uses items of equipment that are common in rock climbing such as climbing rope, climbing harness and climbing helmet, as well as mechanical devices such as . However, the nature of the medium means that ice climbers also use equipment that is specific to their type of climbing.
For climbing
For protection
Where ice climbing is done as lead climbing (i.e. not top roping), the key tool for protection is the ice screw, a hollow metal threaded steel tube with cutting teeth on its base and a hanger eye on the opposite end. It is screwed into the ice and its stability is dependent both on the angle and quality of its placement and the soundness of the ice. Some ice climbs, such as in Helmcken Falls (see below), and mixed climbing and dry-tooling routes, have enough rock to enable them to be bolted like sport climbing, avoiding the need for screws.
Technique
The core techniques that are used in ice climbing are considered to be straightforward for even a novice to understand, however, it takes experience and skill to apply them efficiently and safely. This is particularly relevant on very steep ice (i.e. at or above the grade of WI4) where inefficient technique will quickly drain the climber's energy, resulting in a potential break of the "golden rule of ice climbing", which is "don't fall".
Front-pointing
Modern ice climbing is built around the technique of front pointing, which means kicking the front spike(s) of the climber's crampon into the ice to enable the climber to ascend the face. A critical part of front-pointing is ensuring that the heels are neither elevated — as often required in rock climbing — or held too low; both scenarios which can result in the front teeth of the crampon shearing off from the ice and the climber losing their foothold(s).
Squat-stand-swing
In moving upwards, ice climbers start from a balanced position with both feet exactly level, shoulder-width apart, and front-pointed into the ice, with the knees slightly bent forward and touching the ice.
Grading
WI-grades
Ice climbing uses a WI (for "water ice") grading system. WI-grades broadly equate to the mixed climbing M-grades from WI1 up to WI6, but after M6, mixed climbs become overhanging, which ice does not. WI-grades try to take some account of the difficulty of placing protection on the route but, as with M-grades, are more focused on the technical and physical challenge of the route, and are thus more akin to the French and US sport climbing grades, although as with the US system, the "R/X" suffix is used for danger.
Helmcken routes
In 2010, ice climbers Tim Emmett and Will Gadd began to put up ice routes at Helmcken Falls in Canada that had unique characteristics. Unlike WI7 ice routes that rarely overhang, these routes were significantly overhanging like extreme M-graded routes. This was due to the intense spray from the active waterfall, which covered the overhanging routes in ice so that there was little dry-tooling, with all the movements on hard ice.
M-grades
When ice climbing is done as mixed climbing (i.e. there are both ice and bare rock sections), a separate M-grading grading system is used, which goes from M1, M2, M3, ..... , M13, M14, etc.
D-grades
When ice climbing is done as dry-tooling, which is ice climbing on bare rock, the M-grade is replaced by a "D" prefix to denote a pure 'dry-tooling' route, however, the systems are otherwise identical.
Evolution of grade milestones
The following ice climbs are particularly notable in the evolution of ice climbing grade milestones and ice climbing standards from being a skill used by alpine climbing to a standalone sport in its own right:
Free solo
A number of ice climbers have set new grade milestones in a free solo climbing style (i.e. no protection such as ice screws):
In film
A number of notable climbing films have been made that feature ice climbing, including:
See also
Notes
Further reading
(2025). 9780762782772, Falcon Guides. ISBN 9780762782772
External links
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