The Colorado Climbing Company

12/03/2024

Efficiency on bigger climbs isn't just about climbing fast. It's also good to know the strengths and weaknesses of your anchors. Not everything needs a 3 piece anchor. Some terrain may not need an anchor at all. Quick, minimalist anchors are key to getting thru big terrain in a day.

1. Two #2 anchor on 1st Flatiron. Not perfectly equalized but they're so bomber that's ok!

2. Masterpoint carabiner on chain anchor. Sling would be fine but requires more gear and more time. I like using the triple action lockers for this even though I'm standing right next to it while belaying.

3. Using the rope to anchor. If we were rapping I would of just fed an end through but in this case I didn't want to untie. Little bulky but quick and no extra gear needed!

4. Natural gear is like a gift! A 4 inch pine frozen and tied low will actually hold more than 1000 lbs. and ice screws in good ice are much stronger.

Advanced anchor building skills require a little more nuance. Understanding likely modes of failure is an important part of knowing where to draw the line.

12/02/2024

Who's ready for season cuz it's underway down here in Lake City! With backcountry ice and avalanche conditions in good shape now is the time to do some of the bigger

11/18/2024

Is one better than the other? Maybe, but not by a lot and in reality, either is plenty secure. If you're not sure the benefits of doing this or why one might be just a hair better than the other then keep an eye out for our sport classes we'll be offering next season!

11/09/2024

Current ice conditions of Pumphouse with . Let's go! The .juan.soda.co is renting gear again this year or give us a call if you want to learn some new skills and get into the backcountry.

10/31/2024

Doing some things and some stuff this weekend. Thanks to and for the hardware so a little town in the San Juans can have a couple rock climbs after this weekend...hopefully.

08/13/2024

Where do you want to go? Cascades? We got you. Crestones, We're there. Black Canyon? Eldo? Garden of the Gods? Rocky Mountain? Absolutely!

One of the most challenging things for any guide operation is getting permits. Every year, we get another, but it's really tedious and time-consuming, not to mention costly. As much as we'd like to just go wherever we want there are, of course, some limitations. Surprisingly, though it's not a limitation based on skills or qualifications but under staffed government agencies using outdated data and information with limited tools. When I'm not getting ghosted the response time is in months! Now we've got time entry on top of that. Are we really loving places to death, or is the managing of these places just kind of using the only tools they're used to? With groups like , , there are a lot of people doing great work advocating for access for the general public. Once a member of that public hires a guide though they have much more limited access and nobody really seems to talk about that. A really amazing, qualified guide, may not be able to go with you certain places. If they can somehow work with somebody else it may not be worth their time with the structure of how a concessionaire operates and pays. While the does have some advocacy involvement it's really about training guides and they're very good at it. You can get good at guiding or get good at the non guiding skills like taxes and permits. It's rare to do many things all well all the time.

It's clear there's a problem, but I'm not sure exactly what it is or the best way to fix it. I love to climb, and I just want to take people cool places, not chase down government employees and file paperwork...

08/08/2024

Not too hot a day yesterday in which was a pleasant surprise and then back to the to catch some of the rain. Feels like fall in the air and I'm looking forward to sending temps and stable weather. Still some time though!

07/05/2024

If you're not getting a pancake breakfast from your guide how good can they really be?

06/19/2024

Little guide training, little hiking, couple instruction days and of course now....a little bit of rain. We're flexible and we'll make it happen and it's kind of a nice change from the blazing 90's!

05/09/2024

Alpine climbing season is getting off to a gnarly start. With 70 mph winds and feet of snow, the main successes have been some great experiences in some amazing locations. As the saying goes, it doesn't have to be fun to be fun!

04/08/2024

We're on a glacier in AK. Expect response times to be drastically effected...

04/01/2024

Dont pass up natural anchors to save gear. When they're as substantial and strong as this you can trust you don't even need anything to back it up!

02/25/2024

Sending it set the ! Come join us for some stellar weather and learn some skills.

02/06/2024

Missed our climbing clinics at the ? Don't worry we do private instruction until the ice melts. Usually around April but I've seen The Sherman Route still clinging on in May!

01/10/2024

Comment now!

Exciting news! The BLM is inviting the public to comment on the proposed acquisition of Escalante Ranch until January 11, 2024. If acquired, this would open Cabin Wall back up for public use, including climbing.

Click the “Participate Now” button on the left sidebar to submit.
https://eplanning.blm.gov/eplanning-ui/project/2030404/510

Please note❗️Until the acquisition and assessments are complete, Cabin Wall is not open to public use. Please do not jeopardize the forward progress of the acquisition by climbing at Cabin Wall yet.