[tNguyen]

I researched Ouray Ice Park last year. I concluded that it would be too inconvenient to go there. There is no direct flight, and it is too far to drive from Denver. That is not to mention finding a committed partner. Lastly, it is a manmade place. Weeks passed by after experiencing brutal cold in Hyalite Canyon, I changed my mind. I started to look for a partner. I was lucky to find one that was willing to go with me. We tried to have a fallback plan just in case our flight gets cancelled. We booked an early flight to Denver departing Seatac at 5am. Both of our wives were not cooperative, so we booked Seattle Yellow Cab the day before. Yellow Cab was supposed to pick us up at 2:45am, but they did not show up. After a couple of phone calls, our ride was officially canceled at 3:30am. We decided to drive and park at the short-term lot of the airport. We got to the airport in time; our flight to Denver was fine. Transferring flight from Denver to Montrose was uneventful. The drive from Montrose to Ouray was short and easy.

Arriving in Ouray. Little Ouray looked somewhat similar to Leavenworth without a McDonald’s.

Day 1 We drove to the trailhead from our hotel. It took about 3 minutes. Yeah, we literally walked on a gigantic water pipe on the way to South Park. There were handrails and lines. Looked very safe for beginners. I felt at ease! We were sluggish but managed to climb 6.5 reps at a WI3 30m route.

Up and down WI3

I was about to take the skinny pillar

It felt like an outdoor gym

Day 2 We were trying to find a new spot, but it was closed. So we headed to the same spot as the day before. We were late and ended up with a harder route. We did not like it initially, but got the knack of it and climbed at least three times.

It was listed WI4, but probably it was a WI3

Day 3 Our joints seemed well oiled. We were able to trade with another party for a clean and low angle WI3. We did a few reps, a mock lead, then a real lead. We did well. The lower angle, however, was killing our calves when leading.

I was about to complete the route

Ouray felt like Leavenworth without a MacDonald's. Ouray Ice Park felt like an outdoor gym with the exception of allowing climbers to pee in the bush. Am I going to go again? Sure, I will go annually from now on. Am I going to book Seattle Yellow Cab again? The answer is NO. ** Will try to remember to click on 'a' Shop (Ad) above!

[Bootpathguy]

[jinx'sboy]

I haven’t flown thru there in a while, but Grand Junction used to have decent connections thru DEN and Phoenix. A bunch closer…..

[tNguyen]

They probably will when they grow older and do not need a lot of sleep-.

[Now I Fly]

We hiked the trail along the top of the ice park last Fall. Interesting to see the anchors, but also the spickets. The story we were told, was the local water district was having issues with Climbers making leaks in their system to create the ice climbs. Thoughtful minds came together to design a flow from the Water district and create the world class ice park. Not sure if that's true, but it's a fun story.