And yet, she said her concerns had been skewed heavily toward the recent snowfall: “I more often talk about snow conditions with partners rather than ice stability,” Smith said. She’d climbed free-standing pillars before, knew which temperature patterns to avoid, and chose a line that appeared well-bonded to the cliff. Looking back, Smith said she is still surprised that Code Red collapsed that day. Smith estimated that the ice-fall triggered avalanche ran 1,000 feet. Smith slid face out for 100 feet-dragging Lasko with her-before she was able to self arrest with her gloved hands. Indeed, the ice fall triggered an avalanche that ripped the entire approach gully to ground: roughly 2.5 feet deep, 100 feet wide, and 1,000 feet long. “I didn’t realize the magnitude of what was sliding with me,” she said. As she had climbed on its left-most side, Smith avoided being crushed by its many-thousand pound mass, and instead slid along next to the pillar in terror. Related: Watch Ice Pillar Fully Collapse With Climber Still On ItĬode Red detached roughly 35 feet above Smith, and she and it rocketed down the 30-degree approach slope not attached to anything but an unanchored Lasko.But then, 15 feet up, Smith heard a sharp crack! above her and felt the bottom half of Code Red collapse, toppling over “like a falling tree.” “Looking up,” she said, “I remember seeing a chunk of ice fall past me with my tool still in it.” The ice was brittle but not especially so-certainly not an indication of any large-scale instabilities. “Going up the final gully to the base,” she told Climbing, “I did notice that the pillar looked funky and off-kilter, in a shape I’d never seen before.” But from below Smith said Code Red appeared well-attached to the volcanic basalt, and she gave its stability no further thought.Ī stiff wind blew spindrift onto Smith as she made her first swings into the entrance ice cone. She won first lead and eyed up the left side of the pillar: a gentle ice cone that straightened quickly to vertical. Safely above any avalanche-prone slopes, Smith began flaking out their double ropes. But the new snow was seemingly well-bonded to each slope they crossed, and they trudged confidently up the final 1,000 feet to the base of Code Red. It had snowed several inches the night before and, since both were experienced backcountry travelers, and since their approach brought them across several notable snow slopes, they discussed avalanche risk at length. Code Red is a single-pitch pillar some two hours from the road, and Smith (on skis) and Lasko (on snowshoes) departed at 8 a.m. On January 27, Lauren Olivia Smith and Bailey Lasko, both of Bozeman, Montana, set out to climb Code Red (WI 5) in Hyalite Canyon. Ice climbers enjoy climbing the feature called The Fang and has an ice climbing grade of WI5, which is a level for expert ice climbers with advanced equipment.Heading out the door? Read this article on the new Outside+ app available now on iOS devices for members! The Fang gets its popularity mainly during winter months when the waterfall freezes into a 26-foot wide, 165-foot tall thick ice pole. Normal plunge waterfalls have fast plunge speeds, which makes it hard for it to freeze. The reason why it is such a popular attraction for ice climbing is that very few waterfalls of this type freeze. Even when it is frozen, it will not change its shape. The Fang is a frozen waterfall and a plunge waterfall. It lies in what is called the "Rigid Designator Amphitheatre", which is a significant location in North America for ice climbing and mixed climbing. The Fang is a 165 foot tall waterfall in Eagle County near the town of Vail, Colorado.
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