ICE REPORTS
Ice Report 3/12/26
We are STILL OPEN!!!!!
The weather continues to be very warm for this time of year. We did dip to 20 degrees last night which is the coldest temp we’ve seen in a while. Most of the ice is still in good shape. I am planning on climbing some today, what a great time of year to be outside! The river continues to break up, but everything is still accessible from the bottom right now. If you haven’t already read it, PLEASE read the report from last week, it has more particulars on how to climb safely with the warm weather.
The river ice is still holding at Pumphouse, but it will be gone in the next couple days most likely. There is a ladder ready for when it breaks open, and when the ladder is no longer sufficient, there are signs posted about how to access the wall from the top. At that point, top access will be your best bet for Pumphouse, Devil’s Kitchen and Roly-Poly. There is a great bridge at Dynamite Shack, so that whole wall is easily accessible for the rest of the season! The creek ice is still crossable at almost all of Beer Garden. When it does break open, the best idea will be to cross the bridge at Sherwin Groceries and back track to the Beer Garden trail. This Sherwin Groceries bridge to Beer Garden trail will end up being the best route to access the top of Dynamite Shack, Beer Garden and Sherwin Groceries. As I just mentioned, there is another log bridge at Sherwin Groceries which means it will continue to be accessible for the rest of the season.
Please see the previous report for important info! Remember these are imperfect assessments. Make sure you do your own homework. As always, all the climbing in Lake City is truly CLIMB AT YOUR OWN RISK.
Climb Safe! -Christian
WE
ARE
STILL
OPEN!!!
Ice Report 3.4.2026
We are STILL OPEN!!!!!
We have had a very warm week. The coldest nights being in the low 20s with highs in the 40s and 50s every day. This is not great news for the ice conditions, but it in no way means that the ice is gone or that we are closed or closing soon(technically we never close). Most of our routes are still climbable! It’s a couple weeks or even a month early to be making the transition to “full spring mode”, but unless something drastic happens with the weather we are already there.
So . . . .Come enjoy some sunny T-shirt days of ice climbing! It feels like cheating to not have numb fingers and frozen toes, but it is so nice!
There are a a few things that you do need to be aware of about climbing this time of year. The warm days mean that the ice thaws on the surface in the afternoons and runs down the wall. That means it’s definitely wet later in the day. It also means that all of the ice is getting a nice refresh every day! As temps climb over 40 you should be increasingly suspicious of any curtain, dagger, or pillar. They tend to break at very cold temps or very warm temps. If you are concerned, stay on something a little less steep; all that ice has the ground or cliff to help support it. Also, look out for ice in trees or bushes. When it gets warm the ice at the top of the wall tends to get soft. Bring some blue raspberry syrup and you could make some good snow cones from that stuff!
The river is starting to break up, most areas are still accessible though. At Pumphouse the river is still frozen and there is a ladder for when it breaks open. At Devil’s Kitchen the river is open. At Dynamite Shack there is a nice log bridge. At Beer Garden the river is still frozen. At Sherwin Groceries there is another log bridge. Because of the log bridges this will be our best year ever for late season access!
Watch your feet! Our pipes and hoses can be punctured by crampons. Try to leave hoses where we have them. Remember these are imperfect assessments. Make sure you do your own homework. As always, all the climbing in Lake City is truly CLIMB AT YOUR OWN RISK.
Climb Safe! -Christian
Ice Report
2/25/2026
Sherwin Groceries (2/25)
We had what seemed like a whole year’s worth of weather in a week since the last report. We hit 10 or 12 below 0 on Saturday. Yesterday was 55 and sunny. Last night was 40 and raining. That means a 50 degree swing just for the lows, and a total temperature difference of almost 70 degree!
Despite the warm end of that swing, the ice is looking good. It’s a little melted around the edges, but 95% of it is intact. With the warm temperature and the rain we did decide to turn off all the pumps today. If the sky is pumping water for you, why spend the money on electricity, right? Most of those pumps will be turned back on this evening.
This, in no way, marks the end of the season! We still have a solid month of great ice climbing ahead. I have photos of Beer Garden on April 10 from the last 2 years. In those photos the entire wall is still covered with ice and people were still climbing. Someone climbed Dynamite Shack last year on June 9th. I am not recommending that people book a June ice climbing trip, but am trying to make the point that we still have weeks and weeks of climbing left in our season!
As temperatures warm the ice wall gets a nice refresh daily from the afternoon melt. There are a couple things that you do need to be aware of this time of year, though. As temps climb over 40 you should be increasingly suspicious of any curtain, dagger, or pillar. They tend to break at very cold temps or very warm temps. If you are concerned, stay on something a little less steep; all that ice has the ground or cliff to help support it. Also, look out for ice in trees or bushes. When it gets warm the ice at the top of the wall tends to get soft. Sometimes it turns in to something akin to snow. It’s not easy to get an ice screw to hold in that stuff!
I climbed a few of the brand new routes at the upper end of Sherwin Groceries yesterday. There is some great stuff! There will be a lot of great meandering climbs perfect for leading that ascend through hanging gardens of gnarled bonsai trees.
Watch your feet! Our pipes and hoses can be punctured by crampons. Try to leave hoses where we have them. Remember these are imperfect assessments. Make sure you do your own homework. As always, all the climbing in Lake City is truly CLIMB AT YOUR OWN RISK.
Climb Safe! -Christian
Namesake of Sherwin Groceries
Ice Report 2/18/26
It’s been a peaceful week at the Ice Park. Even this last weekend felt relaxed and a little quiet for a holiday. The temps have been trending a little colder the last few days which means we have been able to get a lot of routes refreshed!
In my desire to be accurate when reporting the conditions at our ice park, I think I have sometimes forgotten to point out a fact: We have SO MUCH ICE!! Yes, this year has been strangely warm and we have had some setbacks with pumps and electricity. But, that does not change the fact that there are dozens and dozens of routes to be climbed with thick blue ice. The Lake City Ice Park has not been just trying to make it through this season, we have been blessed to have an insane abundance of great climbing! And, our best days of the season are yet to come! As of today our route count is right around 200! By contrast, the people count for today is less than 20 so far. As stated in the last report, we are farming 10-20 brand new routes at Sherwin Groceries right now!
Pumphouse: Everything here looks great! All routes are in from the cave to the lower point. Wearing crampons is always a good idea at the bottom, up the trail, and at the top of the ice wall. That is especially true right now, there are some slick spots on the Pumphouse trail.
Devil’s Kitchen: The main wall in this area is really fat right now. Some of the meandering gullies to climber’s left are a bit sun baked, but many of them are still in good condition.
Roly-Poly: Everything at Roly looks really good. The only exceptions is the lower angle ramp on the lower(left) end. There is only one route on that and it pretty chopped out. On the upstream side some of the lower angle routes have some snow on them. The best way to get the snow off of them is to climb them!
Dynamite Shack: All the features here are in great shape! Check out the new trail to the tent. Instead of popping out of the willows right under the biggest tallest wall, it takes a safer more direct route to the tent that eliminates congestion.
Beer Garden: There are a lot of great routes here. As always, I know there are routes that have not been climbed even once this year. Try to think outside the box. Ask yourself, “Where are the lines that people are not climbing?” There are a lot great routes hiding in plain sight.
Sherwin Groceries: This is such a great addition to the Park. There have been a lot of people commenting on how interesting and fun the routes are. A climber told me last week that he spent some time cleaning a narrow rock chimney with a little ice in the back of it. He said that you could protect it with trad gear and then climb the vertical pitch of ice above it.
Watch your feet! Our pipes and hoses can be punctured by crampons. We have recently had to repair several singular hoses with not 1 or 2 holes, but with up to 5 holes in them! These hoses are generally not hidden, the contrast of a black hose on white snow is fairly stark. Count avoiding hoses as good preparation for rattlesnake season! Also, try to leave hoses where we have them.
Remember these are imperfect assessments. Make sure you do your own homework. As always, all the climbing in Lake City is truly CLIMB AT YOUR OWN RISK.
Climb Safe! -Christian
Ice Report 2/12/26
I was out moving hoses around today. It felt like May. It was dusky, it was warm, and I could smell the earth and the trees. It was muddy and there was very little snow; last night’s skiff was long gone. It’s been such a strange, warm, and dry winter. All that said, we still have so much great ice here!
We haven’t really grown any ice this past week, but we still haven’t really lost any either. The tops of climbs are definitely getting soft in the afternoons, but that also means that everything is getting refreshed from the daily thaw.
The Fest was great! We didn’t have very many competitors, but it was our biggest day ever at the park, lots of spectators and many people participating in the clinics!
Keep a look out for any trees or rocks above your climb that have ice in them. Warm afternoons will often cause that stuff to release. Best practice is to knock any loose ice down when you are at the top setting up. Have someone in your party at the bottom of your climb to make sure no one in within 50’ and remove any ice that looks precarious while rappelling down. Also, remember that climbs that get more sun and the tops of most climbs are getting soft. Don’t count on ice screws holding in that stuff!
The Big Announcement For The Week: We have water running on the other half of Sherwin Groceries! We are enjoying watching the ice (and mostly water) find it’s way down cliffs for the 1st time! If it ever gets cold again we might have some brand new routes in a couple weeks!
Remember to look out for hollow spots right at the top of the cliff from where we spray the water especially when leading. Watch your feet! Our pipes and hoses can be punctured by crampons. Try to leave hoses where we have them.
Remember these are imperfect assessments. Make sure you do your own homework. As always, all the climbing in Lake City is truly:
CLIMB AT YOUR OWN RISK.
Climb Safe! -Christian
Ice Report 2/5/2026
LAKE CITY ICE FESTIVAL - COMING UP THIS SATURDAY
This is a quick update, not much has changed since the last report. The temperatures have swung back to unseasonably warm again. The night have been cold enough to make ice, but the some days have been up in the 40s! This makes for some relaxing climbing, but does present some issues. A few of our climbs get afternoon sun and the tops of those climbs are getting soft, this is not a big deal if you’re on top rope. Definitely look for any ice that is not well attached (like a blob that is only connected by a couple icicles) and ice in trees. These issues are more likely to occur at the top of the wall.
We’re excited about the Fest this weekend! It should be busy, but we have more routes now than ever before; there should be plenty of space for everyone. Hopefully we’ll see you there! Please refer to the last report for all other info.
Ice Report 1/29/26
Winter finally hit hard this week! We had several nights this past week where temperatures fell below -10 degrees. Those temps probably mean cold fingers and toes, but no ice climber cares about that! What we really care about is what that means for the ice conditions, right? All of the areas have grown some PHAT, beautiful, blue ice in the last week. With all the warm weather this season, I had forgotten how amazing the ice can look this time of year with normal cold temperatures! Couple that with the fact that we have had very few people climbing here the last week. So much ice, so few people!
Pumphouse: Lots of great ice in this area. There are many routes that went from thin to thick this last week.
Devils Kitchen: Many of the meandering gullies on the left or downstream side are really starting to look good. The upstream end has looked great of a while and is now really thick and blue.
Remember to look out for hollow spots right at the top of the cliff from where we spray the water especially when leading. Watch your feet! Our pipes and hoses can be punctured by crampons. Try to leave hoses where we have them. Remember these are imperfect assessments. Make sure you do your own homework. As always, all the climbing in Lake City is truly CLIMB AT YOUR OWN RISK.
Climb Safe! -Christian
Roly-Poly: There is something especially beautiful about how the main cliff in this area starts with a nice curve of ice and then transitions to a sheer curtain that touches down to the river. Many of the low angle gullies upstream from this cliff are finally making their way to the bottom.
Dynamite Shack: Almost everything here is smooth and blue. There is a huge intimidating pillar on the downstream end right now. There are a couple of routes in now that are in the Hanging Garden section. These are interesting climbs that end with a sheer cliff at the top. They make for a great 2 pitch routes or even a long tope rope solo.
Beer Garden: This wall is looking great! We have had some hoses freeze on the upstream end which is the part of Beer Garden that sees the most traffic. This means the ice there is somewhat stepped out. So, if you want fresher ice move to the middle or downstream(left) end of the wall.
Sherwin Groceries: This area has so many interesting features and so much ice! There are still routes in this new area that have never been climbed. We have a brand new route starting to come in on the upstream end. Remember to check out Shorty’s Mini Mart for your school group or 1st time leading. See previous report for more info on that.
LAKE CITY ICE FESTIVAL
JUST 1 WEEK AWAY!
SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 1st
Ice Report 1.23.2026
Welcome All Ice Climbers! Sorry for the report being later in the week than usual. We had a great weekend, it was our busiest ever- even topping last year’s fest! It seemed like everyone had a great time and there were still many routes with nobody on them. Since then we’ve been working hard to get everything refreshed. This weekend is bound to be much quieter since it’s not a holiday and Ouray’s Fest is happening. So come on over to some space and quiet. Things are a little fatter than last week and there are some new routes coming in, but overall last week’s report still sums it up. So, see that below!
LAKE CITY ICE FESTIVAL is around the corner……..
Saturday, February 7th!
Ice Climbing Festival
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Sat. Feb 7th, 2026
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Ice Climbing Festival 〰️ Sat. Feb 7th, 2026 〰️
ICE REPORT 1.14.2026
We had a great week for growing ice! We hit -5 a week ago and have been in the teens and single digits since then. Everything has been refreshed in the last few days. Many routes have fattened up and we have been able to add some new routes for this year. We have over 120 routes that are climbable -even more if you’re up for something thin or mixed!
It’s warming up again. Plan on the climbs being wet. Check the top of your route for hazards- detached ice or ice hanging from trees. If you see a hazard you can always pick another route OR best practice is to knock any loose ice down when you are at the top setting up. Have someone in your party at the bottom of your climb to make sure no one is within 50’ and remove any ice that looks precarious while rappelling down.
We are looking forward to Martin Luther King Jr weekend. It’s going to be busy! It usually is a busy weekend for us, and on top of that, Ouray is still working to get up and running. Let’s all do our best to keep everyone safe this weekend. Triple check before you rappel something to make sure there isn’t someone leading or otherwise right below you. Everyone be ready to climb close to your neighbor(but not too close!). Let’s keep that small-town vibe! Give all your fellow climbers a nod or a wave or strike up a conversation. This is not a big city commute, this is a relaxing and challenging experience to be shared with friends and strangers. Take some time to get to know your fellow climbers!
Pumphouse: Things are staring to fill in between the gullies and cracks, there are quite a few new routes on the open faces. The cave(left end) and lower point(right end) are looking great!
Devil’s Kitchen: Some of the gullies are finally coming in, but that could be reversed with the extremely warm afternoons we are having. Luckily there are only 10 or 15 routes in the whole park that are susceptible to afternoon melting during the middle of our season.
Roly-Poly: This spot has seen a lot of action this week! Many of the routes have gotten thicker. I was able to confirm with a friend this week that the longest climb in the park is at Roly-Poly. Most of it is definitely not steep, but it was a fun climb up through a forested gully with a short vertical section at the top. Total route length: ~70m(230’)!
Dynamite Shack: In addition to everything looking amazing here, there are some new(for this year) and scary routes coming in on the left side. Do look out for the huge hanging daggers in this area. One weighing several hundred if not thousands of pounds came down in the middle of the night last season.
Beer Garden: We had several days this past week without water on the right end of this wall due to a clogged pump. That coupled with another cycle of river flooding due to ice dams meant that this part of the wall got pretty stepped out. We got that pump cleaned out and we are running a lot of water to get it refreshed. There are so many other great climbs on this wall with some new ones starting to form on the left side.
Sherwin Groceries: This area is looking great! There were some people climbing some mixed routes and super thin ice cracks here this week. There are also a couple routes here that are getting fat!
Check out our latest addition: Shorty’s Minimart! Right below the Beer Garden Trail we are working on a wall that is probably 30-40’ tall. It’s going to be a great addition for school groups, beginners and first time lead climbers. There is a top access trail that is a lower fork of the Beer Garden Trail. The trail is not for the faint of heart, it is across an 80 degree cliff. Check it out!
Remember to look out for hollow spots right at the top of the cliff from where we spray the water especially when leading. Watch your feet! Our pipes and hoses can be punctured by crampons. Try to leave hoses where we have them. Remember these are imperfect assessments. Make sure you do your own homework. As always, all the climbing in Lake City is truly CLIMB AT YOUR OWN RISK.
Climb Safe! -Christian
Pumphouse
Sherwin Groceries
Ice Report 1/7/26
Welcome to the New Year and Welcome all Ouray refugees! We have been sad that our sister ice city and the OG ice park has been struggling. May colder days come soon. In the meantime, everyone is welcome in Lake City. We did have a very busy weekend. Thanks to everyone for coming out to climb! A note: busy for us means that about half of the routes in the park have a rope on them.
Since the last report, the weather has moderated some. We have had a lot of nights in the teens and a few in the single digits. That means we are growing ice! I counted routes a week ago and we had around 90 that were climbable! Since we were busy last weekend a lot of stuff got chopped out. We are working hard to refresh everything again.
Pumphouse: With daytime temps still being fairly warm, there are some cliffs that have been melting on us in the afternoons. But, a lot of the gullies and all the classic routes are in. The cave (left end of Pumphouse) looks great with some interesting pillars. The Lower Point is also climbable now (right end of Pumphouse).
Devil’s Kitchen: Our sunniest wall, therefore, the gullies here are coming in slow. We have made a lot of headway the last few days and some of the gullies are connecting to the bottom now. The upstream end of Devil’s has been solid for a month now -lot’s of ice and climbed less than Pumphouse.
Roly-Poly: This little spot has everything right now. Quick access, pillars, low angle, vertical, short climbs, and maybe the longest climb in the park (TBD).
Dynamite Shack: Loads of great routes are in. I still can’t believe how tall some of the faces are, I am in awe every time I cross the bridge.
Beer Garden: Things are looking good here. The river has iced over enough to finally access most of the middle right climbs. The open water that remains can be stepped over in a lot of places. There are some interesting and challenging lines on the downstream half of the wall with staggered curtains and detached fangs.
Beer Garden
Lower Point at Pumphouse
Devil’s Kitchen
Dynamite Shack
Sherwin Groceries: People have been really trying out this new area! There are some interesting slanting cracks and tall walls at this area. The water was off here for around a week. It’s back on now, refreshed and growing. Check out our latest addition: Shorty’s Minimart! Right below the Beer Garden Trail we are working on a wall that is probably 30-40’ tall. It’s going to be a great addition for school groups and beginners. There is a top access trail that is a lower fork of the Beer Garden Trail. The trail is not for the faint of heart, it is across an 80 degree cliff. Check it out!
Remember to look out for hollow spots right at the top of the cliff from where we spray the water especially when leading. Watch your feet! Our pipes and hoses can be punctured by crampons. Try to leave hoses where we have them. You are here to climb ice, it’s ok if you get a little wet!
Remember these are imperfect assessments. Make sure you do your own homework. As always, all the climbing in Lake City is truly CLIMB AT YOUR OWN RISK.
Climb Safe! -Christian
Ice Report 12/24/25
Merry Christmas to all ice lovers everywhere! Come climb the best (only?) ice anywhere in the lower 48. It’s been a T-shirt week at the ice park for sure! Probably the warmest Christmas of my middle-aged life here in Lake City. We haven’t really lost anything this week, but since we haven’t really gained anything either, read my report from last week. The changes have been minimal. Do LOOK OUT for falling ice! We are not having any major delamination issues, but definitely large chunks can fall from trees that have been sprayed or from chandeliers etc. Be aware that the top of climbs may also be somewhat slushy.
We were able to get Rolly-Poly running a week ago and there is a bit of new ice there, so look for that. There is a somewhat hidden low-angle gully that goes all the way to the top. I am thinking that it might become our new longest route, but it hasn’t been climbed yet.
Please refer to the last report for all other info. See you next year!
Climb Safe! -Christian
Sherwin Groceries is coming along nicely. There are already a few climbable routes. There is a log bridge toward the far end of where there is (vertical) ice now and you can probably walk across the frozen river almost anywhere. Top access to Sherwin Groceries is up the Beer Garden trail.
Henson Creek is crossable at all 4 areas and most climbs that start at the river channel are accessible with a little creativity- most of our climbs start on the river bank and are always accessible. Keep in mind you will probably encounter thin ice or variable conditions including chandeliers and jellyfish. Remember to look out for hollow spots right at the top of the cliff from where we spray the water especially when leading. Watch your feet! Our pipes and hoses can be punctured by crampons.
Remember these are imperfect assessments. Make sure you do your own homework. As always, all the climbing in Lake City is truly CLIMB AT YOUR OWN RISK.
Climb Safe! -Christian
Ice Report 12/16/25
We are stoked! Although the days were very warm this last week, the nights were decently cold and we were able to make some good ice. There aren’t any routes that I would give the “Phat” rating to, but some routes are “Fat” or at least “Sub-fat”. It’s still early season, but things are definitely starting to fill in.
Don’t just stay at Pumphouse, there are so many great routes farther up the canyon! That being said, there are probably 10-15 good routes at Pumphouse and Devil’s Kitchen now and plenty of places to get across the river.
Some people might have noticed a little new ice after Devil’s Kitchen, but before Dynamite Shack. That is one of our expansions for this year. We have been affectionally calling this area Roly-Poly. Technically, this is part of Dynamite Shack, but it still has it’s own name. This area had water running for a week or 2, but we had to shut it down because of one of the pump failures mentioned in the last report. If all goes well, this system will be up and running again by the weekend. Stay tuned!
Dynamite Shack is looking really great! 10-15 routes are in and the new bridge makes it easy to get to.
Beer Garden also has 10-15 routes that are climbable. There is a 50’ section of creek that still is open water. We put some logs across at different spots on the open water today. We are hoping that will accelerate the freezing. The water is only 12 inches deep anyway so get stoked and be creative and climb those great routes.
Even though we only had a few climbers this past weekend, people moved a lot of our hoses. Some of the places they put them created some big hazards and problems. Always do your best to leave our hoses where they are. If you have to move one for some reason or trip on one please do your best to put it back exactly how it was. Never spray them up in the air. Never point them away from the cliff or uphill. Never point them straight down at the ground. Some places we have very specific goals in mind. This time of year, one of the things we are trying to accomplish is building safety walls made of ice at the top of the cliffs. This makes our job and set up for climbers safer.
The ice at Pumphouse and Devils Kitchen has only been growing for a week. Despite the short amount of time, there are probably 5-7 routes that are climbable. The river is frozen enough to cross in several places.
All of the most iconic lines at Dynamite Shack are in! There are probably 8-10 climbable routes already! There is a new log bridge to get across the river at Dynamite
Beer Garden already has around 10 climbable routes. There still is some open water in the middle of the wall, but you can cross several places to get to most of the routes and to the top access trail.
Ice Report 12/9/2025
Welcome to the 25-26 Ice Season!
We are open and we have ice-and it’s growing fast right now! If you have heard that we don’t have any ice -don’t believe it! If you have read on the internet or even on our own website that we are closed -don’t believe it.
We have had our fair share of challenges this fall though. After tireless work all summer by Ben and Danny we are in the process of bringing 3 more pumps online and expanding a lot! We have had issues getting the electrician to complete the electrical work. We have had 2 pumps stop working. We have had heat tape quit working. We have had to drag dozens of frozen hoses for up to a mile and then carry good ones back out.
As most of you probably know by now, we are overcomers! (Yes, it’s a word) Because of that fact, despite the setbacks and a near tropical November, we have ice! Keep in mind that it is early season. Don’t expect to be able to sink those 22cm ice screws, probably not even your 13s in a lot of places.
And now, we are proud to announce our newest area: Sherwin Groceries! This area (a couple hundred feet past Beer Garden) has only had water flowing for a couple days, but it’s starting to take shape. Were excited to see ice on these walls for the 1st time. We are still waiting for the electrical to be completed for the second half of Sherwin Groceries so stay tuned!
Most years we have climbable ice by Thanksgiving, but this fall was exceptionally warm. REMEMBER Lake City Ice never actually closes in the spring or opens in the fall. If there’s any ice and you want to climb it, it’s fair game!
Henson Creek is crossable at all 4 areas and most climbs that start at the river channel are accessible with a little creativity- most of our climbs start on the river bank and are always accessible. Keep in mind you will probably encounter thin ice or variable conditions including chandeliers and jellyfish. Remember to look out for hollow spots right at the top of the cliff from where we spray the water especially when leading. Watch your feet! Our pipes and hoses can be punctured by crampons. ***Remember these are imperfect assessments. Make sure you do your own homework. As always, all the climbing in Lake City is truly CLIMB AT YOUR OWN RISK.
Climb Safe! -Christian
