Back-to-back visits to Ouray! We had just visited over the holidays in December but decided to head back a couple days later to meet friends. Unfortunately we weren’t able to combine the two trips due to work obligations. 

Late New Years my partner and I made the long drive down to Ouray arriving just before midnight. Unfortunately we were pretty wiped and decided not to head to town for fireworks since we were staying just outside downtown. We were in bed and asleep basically at midnight!

We stayed at the KOA just outside of town in their cabins so our pup could come along. After an uneventful New Years eve and crashing early we had a pretty relaxed morning start enjoying our extended coffee break. We slowly packed up and headed over to the park to meet friends and drop some ropes. 

Thankfully the park wasn’t overly busy, probably because of the late night celebrations and fireworks that we skipped. After meeting friends we enjoyed some super leisure climbing and called it a day! 

We met up for dinner and drinks and then called it a night pretty early! Unfortunately these trips are never as long as we like!

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Support the Ice Park:

In early 2021 at the end of the season, the Ouray Ice Park was dealt a devastating blow: 12,000 pounds of rockfall spontaneously fell from the cliffs above the most iconic entrance into the Park, the Trestle, which accesses one of the most popular parts of the Park, the Schoolroom. The rockfall also took out their water supply line that feeds the ice farming infrastructure to the south end of the Park. Because of this, 70% of their ice climbing routes are now offline. 

As a small non-profit, Ouray Ice Park, Inc., was forced to pony up more than $50,000 to replace the bridge and the water supply. A massive project, urgent timeline in order to complete prior to next season’s opening, and a very large bill to pay without means. 

Luckily, the ice climbing community showed up and supported their GoFundMe campaign in enormous proportions, enabling them to increase for a stretch goal and necessary park renovations. 

Without these repairs, their 2022 operating season and the world-renowned Ouray Ice Festival and Competition will be in jeopardy. I’m elated the community stepped up to collectively help our beloved Ice Park. 

There’s still time to donate to their GoFundMe campaign or support the park directly. 

https://ourayicepark.com/