Ice Fest teaches students all about ice climbing

Despite the mild winter, a group of 10 Norwich students found some ice to do some cold-weather training.

The students are members of Norwich's Mountain Cold Weather Company.

On Friday Feb. 5, the students went on a weekend-long educational trip to participate in Ice Fest, a program that instructs its participants on ice climbing.

Ice Fest is hosted by the International Mountain Climbing School which is located in North Conway, N.H. according to Brittany Weigle, 20, a junior nursing major from Carlisle, Pa.

After arriving and signing in with the climbing school on Friday night the students checked into their hotel in North Conway and woke up early Saturday morning to begin their studies.

The program is a unique opportunity for students to climb with state-of-the-art professional gear. 

"There are mountain-climbing equipment companies that do demonstrations and allow you to check out some of their gear for free and use it for the whole day," Weigle said.
Once the students had the gear they needed they were instructed in ice-climbing techniques by an instructor who was familiar with the area. 

"I learned a lot of stuff. The instructor had a wealth of information that we had never heard before," said Eric Birr, 19, a sophomore athletic training and health sciences major from Long Island, N.Y.

"We learned the basics of ice-climbing such as the proper footwork and how to use the tools," Weigle said.  

"It is very important to know where to hit with the ice pick because you don't want to hit the wrong spot and have it fall," said Kara Son, 20, a junior biochemistry major from Bridgewater, Mass.

Ice climbing was a new experience for the students on the trip. 

"We had never really been ice-climbing before," said Melody Nesel, 20, a junior criminal justice major from Red Hook, N.Y.

The program was different than other trips the Mountain Cold Weather Company members have been on in the past.

"When we went on Ice Trek we did a lot of mixed route climbing which is a lot of skiing, and snow shoeing, so it was a good experience doing another type of cold weather activity," Nesel said.

This unique experience was not open to every member of the Mountain Cold Weather Company. According to Son the trip is limited to approximately 10 students due to financial issues.

According to Weigle, one requirement to go on the trip is the completion of Green Stick training, and the earning of the MCW black hat. 

In order to receive a black hat a student must "learn the knots, simple rope systems, basic survival skills and first aid," Son said.

A student must also pass a written test, and earn a score of 270 for a physical fitness test that includes pushups, sit-ups and a two-mile run according to Birr.

According to Nesel, Ice Fest is "usually sophomores only."  However, this year a small group of female juniors also attended.

"Last year they did not allow females to go because it would have cost too much money for two hotel rooms," Son said.

This year there was a real push for the females who did not get to attend last year to be able to participate in the unique experience.

When the Ice Fest program concluded the 10 students were left with knowledge they did not know before they arrived in N.H.

"We learned how to properly and safely ascend a wall of ice," said Son.

According to those who went on the trip, Ice Fest was an unforgettable experience.