Here’s the first thing you need to know about ice climbing: it’s not as hard as it looks. Yes, you’re scaling a vertical frozen waterfall with sharp metal objects on your feet and in your hands, but some say it’s actually easier than rock climbing.
“Ice climbing can be more straightforward than rock climbing since you’re not desperately looking for holds,” says Ryan Scott, owner of Maine’s Atlantic Climbing School, which leads ice climbing trips in Acadia National Park. “The holds are everywhere you put a sharp thing.” You don’t even need to have any rock climbing experience to get started on ice. “If you have some basic climbing skills—tying into a rope, putting on a harness—that’ll help, but it’s not necessary,” Scott adds.
Whether you’re a rock climber looking for a new winter hobby or you’ve never climbed before, you can learn everything you need to know on the ice. We’ve put together a primer to get you started.