Ice climbing
I had tried ice climbing a bit previously during the winter mountaineering course that I've written about but it was way too brief to give me any kind of confidence to try ice climbing in the mountains. This in mind I woke up at six, ate some breakfast, packed my things and started hiking up to the tunnel that leads to Bâlea Lake. The rest of the group was supposed to meet me there at ten and I was there well in time.
There were four of us plus the guide, which made it easy to ask questions and discuss things. I was slightly worried when I read the schedule for the course as it said that we would learn for example belay techniques that I already knew. I just wanted to learn ice climbing! Thankfully we didn't follow the schedule and I got exactly what I wished for: two days of learning new things.
It's amazing how much one can learn just in some hours. At first every step that I took and every ice tool placement and hit that I made felt awful and I was sure I would fall any second. After an hour or two I was already able to trust the equipment and my skills a lot more and by the end of the second day it felt like I walk up easier routes without almost ever kicking or hitting the same place twice "just to be sure".
Practicing foot work with more or less static ice axes
We spent the first day on a very small ice fall right next to the Bâlea Lake but it was big enough for our short practice runs. At the end of the day we headed towards a mountain hut at the other side of the Transfăgărășan tunnel. The hut is completely covered in snow except for a couple of windows and the door. It felt like entering a snowy Hobbit-hole! Inside it wasn't much like one though as it was packed with climbing and skiing people and perhaps even some "normal" tourists. Music was loud and some people were dancing and apparently pretty wasted. I remember a hairy guy dancing without a shirt, wearing a skiing helmet and goggles and a headlamp in his crotch. Good times!
Coincidentally Nicu, the mountaineering instructor from my previous course was staying at the hut as well. He had even walked past my tent the previous night! We had a chat and agreed to try to get back down together the next day to make it safer because of the avalanches that plague the way.
The snowy Hobbit-hole
For the second day we had to climb up a relatively steep snow-covered hill for half an hour to reach a couple of bigger ice falls. For the rest of the day we didn't do much else than climb, belay and climb and belay some more. I got to test quite a few different ice axes and it was great to find better technique for hitting with them as well as kicking with crampons. I thought that ice climbing would be a good tool to have in my mountaineering arsenal but now I feel like I could go and ice climb just for the fun of ice climbing!
The two a bit longer routes we climbed on the second day
I found a good angle for taking a photo but didn't have my camera with me! The phone did the trick somehow at least.
Everything good must come to an end. At four p.m. we were back down at the tunnel and I headed back to the south side of the mountains to get back to my car. The way down was really fast and I caught up with Nicu just before reaching Capra. A couple of friends of his gave me a ride down to my car, which was very nice of them. I was happy to find my car in one piece and even with new decorations :). Driving back to Bucharest was just as uneventful and boring as always. Till next time!
Someone likes my car!
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