Last week we went ice climbing on the Matanuska glacier. Sheri's colleague at Adventure Alaska Tours, Joe, whom I finally got to meet was kind enough to take us and infect us with his enthusiasm. We made use of the camp spot overlooking the glacier to stay the night and thus had ample time for the actual climbing. Donned with warm clothing, boots, crampons, helmet, climbing harness, ropes, screws and ice axes we went on our way.
The access to the glacier is really near to the carpark, so we only had to walk a short while until we had to put on our crampons. After reaching a suitable wall, we got a crash course in tying knots and roping up (and all the lingo that goes with it) and we were on our way to climb the wall. Kicking the points of the crampons in the wall and using the ice axes to hook into the ice; it is amazing how these tiny points of contact can bear your weight. Of course once in a while it doesn't (user error) at which point it is good to know that you are roped to the top of the ice wall and someone is belaying you to stop the fall. The equipment gave me such a confidence that I wasn't bothered by any fear of height and it felt good to go higher and higher. It does require quite some coordination and strength, so we were rather tired when we came back to our camp site. After climbing for a couple more hours the next day we were beginning to feel our muscles protest, but we had a wonderful time.
If the pictures aren't enough, you can watch a short movie at:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-dkpE2CQ4v0
Tremendous big thanks to Joe for all his patience and willingness to teach us and being a fun companion.
