ICE CLIMBING

Score an Adirondack 'Hat Trick': Three Classic Multi-Pitch Moderate Routes

by Jeff Edwards

Climbing up a dark cleft of ice on Multiplication Gully. Photo by Mark Meschineeli

Climbing is an addictive pursuit and when a highly visible cascade of frozen water demands an ascent, the desire to take on a classic piece of ice can overwhelm one's daily order and gnaw away at the productive soul. Every climbing area possesses its ultimate plum, or plumb line, that beckons like no other. Such climbs tug at the visceral essence of what it means to be an upwardly mobile anthropoid with the requisite time and technology.

Few climbing areas provide three such alluring ice climbs within reach of novice climbers. In the case of the Adirondacks, it's possible to score a "hat trick" of stunning multi-pitch moderate climbs in a long weekend. These routes highlight the qualities of an essential line with reliability in yearly formation, exquisite setting, and varied challenge in abundance. With the High Peaks as a backdrop and roadside access, it's difficult to go wrong with Chouinard's Gully, Roaring Brook Falls and Multiplication Gully.

Ice climbing is a dangerous activity full of predictable and unpredictable risk. Each of the climbs described below has had its share of climber mishaps that have ended in injury and/or death. Taking on these three moderate multi-pitch climbs will demand solid ice leading skills. Competent parties should get a feel for Adirondack climbing by first toproping and leading single pitch routes before embarking upon a multi-pitch excursion. Don Mellor's Climbing in the Adirondacks, published by the Adirondack Mountain Club, is a handy reference for descriptions and locations. Seek proper instruction or hire a guide for the climbs.

Chouinard's Gully
Chouinard's Gully is a logical starting point because it is historically significant and the technically easiest of the three. It was here in 1969 where Yvon Chouinard, who later founded the Patagonia and Chouinard Equipment companies, introduced radically short hand tools and piolet traction, or front pointing, to the American alpine scene. Previous climbs of similar ice flows had required climbers wielding mountaineering axes to cut steps for their feet. Without front points on their crampons, this was a cumbersome and time-intensive approach.

Chouinard and partner Jim McCarthy astounded a group of assembled climbers with the revolutionary technique when they climbed the nearby Chapel Pond Slab route. They later scampered up the previously unclimbable terrain on the far side of the pond to establish what is today one of the most sought-after routes in the region.

To reach Chouinard's Gully, park at the Chapel Pond parking area along NY Route 73, 4.5 miles south of Keene Valley. Walk down the slope, out onto the frozen pond (use caution) and behold the wonder of the ice climber's arena. It's not the Montreal Forum, but the vertical walls dripping with icicles hold some of the most demanding territory in the Northeastern United States, including a New England Ice System (NEI) rating 5 climb called Power Play. Chouinard's Gully checks in at a more attainable NEI 3 grade and begins just left of the Power Play area above a prominent triangular talus slope forested with white birch. Over 300 feet of ice cascades down ramps and shallow corners. Three or four pitches will get most parties to the top with the 15-foot off vertical wall halfway up the first pitch providing the route's technical crux. Walk off the top, way around to the left, or rappel the route with two ropes. Chouinard's Gully forms early in the season and remains late as nary a ray of sunshine hits it from November to April.

Roaring Brook Falls
The second tally on the way to becoming one of the night's three stars is Roaring Brook Falls. This one is hard to miss as photo-snapping rubbernecks routinely linger along the road to admire its splendor. Park in the Giant Mountain-Roaring Brook Falls parking area, 3.5 miles south of Keene Valley on Route 73. Walk the hiker's trail to the base of the falls.

The first pitch of Roaring Brook Falls is the real business. While only NEI 3+, it often features radically shaped mushrooms, bizarre pods and a sort of wind sprayed crust. The top of the pitch can have a large window open to the raging falls within, depending upon conditions. A fall into the window would surely be fatal. Another pitch or two up the enormous snowy slopes of the football field brings one to an ice screw belay and the final steep pitch.

Chouinard's Gully is dark, firm and foreboding. Roaring Brook Falls is quite the opposite with its sun catching bowl making it pleasant on even the coldest days. The final rope length demands the leader's attention with funky ice and a narrowing slot to finish. Walk back to the car by way of the prominent hikers' trail. What could be more pedestrian?

Multiplication Gully
Completing the hat trick will require more than just floating one down into the empty net at the buzzer. Multiplication Gully lacks the history of Chouinard's Gully or the radiant appeal of Roaring Brook Falls. Its sinister attraction comes from purity of line and a step up in technical difficulty. Multiplication Gully is still only graded NEI 3+, but it projects an ominous aura. The ice slashes up a dark cleft in an enormous cliff with the rapids of the Ausable River churning below. Climbers are eager to complete it and fearful of its reputation.

To get there, locate the "Town of Wilmington: Home of Whiteface Mountain" sign just beyond Wilmington Notch on Route 86 between Lake Placid and Whiteface Mountain ski area. A steep talus hike directly up from the sign deposits one at the base of the first icy steps. Most parties climb past the cedars on the left to a rock belay on a higher terrace to the right. The second rope-stretching pitch features bulges, a chimney section, and a dicey finish groping for the trees. It's possible to rappel the route with double ropes or walk north for a lengthy thrash back to the road.

Finishing the Adirondack ice climbing hat trick demands talent and fortitude. Score that third goal and earn the right to walk into any North Country pub on a Saturday night, order a Labatt's, and demand that the television channel be changed to "Hockey Night in Canada."

Jeff Edwards (yakfest@adelphia.net) teaches English and environmental science at Northwood School in Lake Placid. He also guides rock and ice climbing for Adirondack Rock and River Guide Service in Keene.

©2000-2003 Adirondack Sports & Fitness. All rights reserved.