While a rogue storm recently turned the homeland into a snow globe, I’ve been enjoying relatively mild weather up here in Montana. It’s been hovering right around the freezing point for a week now, and a lot of the ice that had been iron-hard prior to the festival is now soft and forgiving. We’ve taken advantage of the favorable conditions with several dawn patrol missions into the canyon. The hikes have been cleansing, the climbing has been classic, and I’m constantly reminded why I had daydreamed about this winter for months.

Just another December day in Bozeman…

When I say “we” in reference to my climbing outings, I’m almost always referring to my new friend, Jason. As I mentioned a while back, Jason responded to a post I put up on the Montana Ice website. He was interested in a weekday partner, and I had no real obligations at the time. Since then, we’ve tied in together no less than twice a week, and we are gradually turning into a pretty good team.

Jason tests the bottom of "Curtain" — Hyalite Canyon

It’s a rare and beautiful thing when you [Read More]