Overview:
The five-day Mountaineering Development Series course sets you up perfectly for climbing bigger glaciated peaks. Individuals will spend the first two days learning extremely vital skills such as the different types of winter anchors and proper crevasse rescue for yourself as well as your team. The third day will focus on climbing, multi-pitch systems and transitions. Day four – you take the lead! You’ll be mock-leading while your guide coaches and provides feedback. On day five, we’ll climb a classic mountaineering route in Rocky Mountain National Park!
All of our courses can be run as custom outings. If you’re interested in a course, but it doesn’t fit into your schedule, please check out our custom guiding options.
Details:
Rocky Mountain National Park provides excellent terrain for learning mountaineering skills at any time of the year. Depending on your own personal goals, climbing conditions may affect which time of year you decide to enroll.
May through early July: The best time for snow climbing in Colorado. The mountaineering program this time of year is prime for alpine snow and couloir climbing.
July through November: Much of the seasonal snow has melted by this time of year and all that remains are the perennial snowfields. Largely, the mountaineering courses during this time are centered on rock skills with 3rd/4th class terrain management being the focus. Snow can still be found at times, but can sometimes be difficult to reach and is never guaranteed.
December through February: Winter in the Colorado Front Range. The focus of the mountaineering program during this time is winter travel skills. Often times snow conditions are 1) Too unconsolidated to provide any option for true snow climbing and 2) Too dangerous from an avalanche hazard perspective to venture onto steep snow slopes. The course is centered on mixed rock, snow and ice objectives in a wintry environment.
March and April: March and April can be hit or miss for prime snow conditions. Often times the Front Range receives large spring storms that can make snow climbing unreasonable or we can benefit from warmer temperatures creating good snow climbing conditions on particular aspects. This time of year, the focus of the program could be on snow climbing or rock-centric depending on conditions, which are often quite variable.
Sample Itinerary:
Day 1: Winter Anchors – Learn to build different types of winter anchors – from pickets in the snow, to cams in rock and screws in ice, this course teaches you to construct effective anchoring systems.
Day 2: Crevasse Rescue – This is a mandatory skill to have if you spend any time in glaciated terrain. Learn how to pull yourself and your team out of a crevasse in case of an accident.
Day 3: Climbing day & multi-pitch systems – We’ve spent two days out in the field working on skills, now it is time to get some climbing under our belt. We’ll climb a route conducive to the conditions and work on multi-pitch systems/transitions.
Day 4: You’ve learned how to place protection, avoid crevasses and follow multi-pitch climbs – now it’s your turn to take the sharp end. You’ll be mock leading (with protection from above) your own pitch and receive coaching and feedback from your instructor.
Day 5: Climb a classic route in Rocky Mountain National Park. After climbing, we’ll head back to the classroom for a final debrief.
Meeting location:
Colorado Mountain School
341 Moraine Avenue
Estes Park, CO 80517
Lodging:
If you require lodging at our Estes Park Adventure Hostel, please make your reservations online in advance. Beds are available on a first-come, first-served basis. Our hostel features 16 beds in 3 rooms, bathrooms, showers, a full kitchen with appliances, dishes and utensils, wi-fi, ping-pong table, and a lounge area. Please be considerate of others lodgers during your stay.
Notes:
COVID-19 Contingency:
We believe that your training is best taught by combining theoretical concepts and experiential learning. Some topics are best learned in a comfortable classroom setting and others in the mountains, moving through terrain. You’ll have both.
The first portion of your course will be conducted in a classroom setting. In the interest of health and safety for our students and instructors, classroom format for the 2020/21 season may include e-learning and/or group video discussions in an effort to limit close contact in closed spaces.
The majority of your course will take place in the mountains where we will learn in an open-air environment. You should be prepared, mentally and physically, to stay immersed in the backcountry for up to eight hours. You will be assigned to a small pod consisting of one Instructor and a maximum of six students to allow intimate instruction and physical distancing.The nature of this pandemic requires us to be flexible and adaptable in how we deliver a quality training experience. Rest assured, from the moment you enroll all the way up to your course field day(s) and beyond, our instructors will be a part of your learning progression and will provide you with the tools and resources you need to best prepare for your training. If you’d like to learn more about what we are doing to manage COVID-19 risk for our students and guides, please view our FAQ page.
All Upcoming Dates and Locations:
- May 29, 2021 - June 2, 2021 - Mountaineering Development Series: Level 2 - Estes Park, Colorado
Heath W –
The Mountaineering Level 2 Course was simply fantastic. I came with some basic expectations to fill in a few skill sets for more intense mountaineering–specifically, snow anchors, ice climbing, crevasse rescue, and roped travel. Max did an absolutely superb job, covering all of these subjects and more. He had a challenge to overcome from the start, instructing a farmboy from Oklahoma and a Latvian from Florida, but he worked through it all.
I expected some basic instruction and what I got was the most enjoyable week of climbing and high-altitude mountaineering lessons I could have asked for. We laughed, we learned, we had a blast…best week I’ve had in a long time. Max was patient, clearly passionate about the craft, and deserves the title of your best mountain guide. We joked about him being an average astronaut, but I think it went over his head.
Thanks for a great week CMS – I’ll be referring more people to your course and hope to attend a few more myself. Truly– World Class Instruction!
David Tandberg (verified owner) –
An incredible experience. I feel like my son and I gained years’ worth of skills development and knowledge in 5 days’ time. Our instructor customized his instruction both to where we were at in our development and also to our needs and what we wanted from the experience. The experience exceeded our expectations.