It’s time to be mixed up. A little good-humored anarchy prepares us for the fearful chaos of winter climbing.
This isn’t mixed climbing, where one foot is on rock and the other is on ice. This is climbing rock with ice tools.
Without crags developed for climbing with tools and crampons, it would be nearly impossible to be an ice climber living in the Black Hills. Being an alpine climber would be entirely impossible. But with our specialized crags, when the waterfalls finally freeze in Cody and the faces and gullies ice up in the Big Horns, Tetons and Canadian Rockies, our strength and balance are tuned up and with a few swings of the ice tools to knock the rust off, we are back in the game.
Now,we just wait for the cold.
Dedicated to the Game 
Reblogged this on sykose's Blog and commented:
This has to be as extreme as it can get, climbing rock with ice tools. We salute you .
Thanks for sharing this!
We are getting prepared for winter here in Slovenia in a similar way, and I hope winter is getting prepared as well!
Here is a exhibition of my momentary capacities LOL :
Now THAT is a great drytool crag!
That’s a nice thing to say. R limestone here of is often in low estime.
But let me get back to the rock (Bravo to the younger tribe member, BTW). I was wondering if the rock you are climbing on is the same as that of the Needles, is it that old granite of some sort?
Love it…nothing like climbing with ice tools!
Borut, no this is Madison (?) limestone. We have some of the darker rock as in your photo as well.
Wow, I see you have quite a variety of rock in the Black Hills. As I first took a closer look, I thought it was limestone, but then rejected the idea. Strange. Maybe the close up got me mixed up.
Madison. Thanks. I’ll have to check that out..