Ice Climbing School

We are lucky to have in our backyard California’s premier ice climbing locales: June Lake and Lee Vining Canyon. June Lake is an ideal place to start learning the skills since the flows offer a variety of terrain and generally good climbing conditions. Once you become more comfortable balancing on the front points Lee Vining is the place to go to hone your ice skills on icicles and pillars ranging in steepness from 70 degrees to vertical. Legend has it that it was in Lee Vining that Yvon Chouinard developed his ice climbing tools that started the modern ice climbing revolution. Weekends are often busy at the ice and so we run holiday and weekend ice trips at a lower ratio than weekday trips. Small groups help with safety and crowding concerns since ice is a limited commodity in sunny California. We have a variety of ice climbing courses and programs to suit all objectives and skill levels and for all programs we provide necessary climbing equipment including the latest in ice tools, crampons, helmets and harnesses. We divide our programs into two types: “Acquiring the Skills“ These are programs that get you started with the fundamentals. “Applying the Skills“ These are programs that get you out using the skills you acquired in the initial courses and putting them to use, solidifying them and practicing them.

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