Last updated: 5/28/20

It's winter time here in Golden, Colorado! While we do rock climb all year long, we also offer a unique opportunity to have fun outside during the colder months. Ice climbing is truly a unique and interesting sport that not a lot of people have tried or even heard of! Once it's seen in action, many think it's hard or dangerous. Quite the contrary, ice climbing is fun and very beginner friendly. Here are a few reasons why you should give ice climbing a go!

1. It's something new to try! Everything is worth a go at least once!

2. You’ll look badass! I mean, come on... ice axes are some seriously cool looking tools and when you're literally climbing UP vertical ice pillars, you will look awesome. Talk about great Instagram pictures.

3. Speaking of Instagram, the views while ice climbing are breathtaking. Climbing during the winter offers a new way to see your favorite spots. 

4. You'll stay in shape and keep your fitness up for rock climbing season. Ice climbing uses the same muscles you use to scale rock walls but in slightly different ways. These moves will keep you fit all winter long and you'll be ready for those 5.10s come spring! 

5. Every ice climbing trip is unique! The ice forms different every year, giving you unique challenges each time. Plus, as people climb it and new ice forms, it changes it’s shape throughout the season. Ice climbing is a truly unique sport; it's different than any other sport and there's a unique formation every year.

6. You'll experience the mountains in a new way. And get a new respect for mother nature. Some ice climbing spots are a challenge to get to and require extra knowledge and gear for avalanche safety. When you get into the sport, mother nature will be a whole new creature to you.

7. You can “sharpen” your skills. Yes that’s an ice climbing pun. All the basic rock climbing skills (knots, anchor set up, etc.) are still used for ice climbing. Keep your skills on point (another pun) by practicing them in a new environment during the off season. When snow and ice is covering the ground,  it allows for you to look at the environment in a new way and build anchors with what’s available. 

Are you ready to give this new sport a try? Give us a ring or BOOK a day ice climbing trip!

The owners of Golden Mountain Guides love living in Golden, CO. As Colorado natives and Golden residents for over six years, they spend a lot of time playing and discovering fun things to do all year round. Summertime brings a plethora of activities, eliciting fun for the whole family! Here are eight fun, outdoor activities you and your whole family can try while in Golden! 

1. Rock Climbing
Let's just get the shameless promotion out of the way first. Yes, we may be biased, but rock climbing is a great way to play in the outdoors and the whole family can participate! Just outside the city, Clear Creek Canyon offers a variety of rock climbing routes for all abilities, overlooking the river below as it runs through the curvy canyon cliffs. Inside the city limits, you can also climb at North Table Mountain. This crag overlooks the city and with a short, steep hike, you're under the cliffs ready to climb! Book a privately guided trip with Golden Mountain Guides.

6. Biking
There are plenty of places for all types of bikers. Mountain bikers will find many trails exclusively for them (Apex Park) and road bikers have a great selection of challenging roadways to bike (Lookout Mountain). For the more leisurely biker, you can rent bikes at the Golden Bike Library and cruise through town, beside Clear Creek or maybe make your own biking tour of the local breweries and restaurants. 

7. Enjoy the Patio Lifestyle Or Discover A Local Mico-Brewery
Coors isn't the only beer in the game in Golden anymore! Now, there are eight micro-breweries offering amazing beers and great atmospheres for the whole family to enjoy. Parents can grab a brew (or two) while the kids sip on homemade root beers and play games. Many of the breweries have rotating food trucks so you can grab a bite to eat while chilling on the patio. Keeping with the outdoors theme, our favorite is New Terrain Brewing Company where their motto is "Alive is the pursuit of adventures unknown & territories unseen with an insatiable curiosity to explore hops, barely, water and yeast. The unbound journey exists for those who wander." We also love Coda Brewery and their patio nestled in the residential district.

With a ton of great restaurants and breweries within the city, there comes a ton of great patios to relax with the whole family and grab a bite to eat. One of our favorites is the patio at the Bridgewater Grill, right alongside the river with views of Lookout Mountain. 

​Summer is officially here! If you haven’t already started planning your summer travel plans, you might be getting started now. As you pick a destination and compile all the things you’re going to do, here’s a few reason why we think rock climbing should be on your to-do list!
 
1. No experience necessary
That’s right, anyone can try rock climbing; no experience necessary! By hiring a guide, you know you’re in the good hands of someone that can teach you the “ropes” and help you overcome any fears you may have. 
 
2. You’ll get great photos
Perfect for Instagram!
 
3. You can find a new way to enjoy the outdoors.
Maybe you’ll find that you really enjoy rock climbing and want to pursue it further.
 
4. Unique Colorado experience
Even if you’re already a seasoned climber, rock climbing in a new location always offers a unique experience. There are new views to check out and different routes to try. By hiring a guide, they can show you the locals’ favorite spots to climb and give you beta on classic routes. Try a classic route in Eldorado Canyon or climb the iconic Flatirons.
 
5. Hone in on your current skills
Maybe summer gives you a little more free time to work on your hobbies! By signing up for a privately guided trip, you can work on your skills like building anchors, self-rescue or technique that will help you reach that next level of climbing! Maybe there’s a route you’ve had your eye on but no partner to climb it with – hire a guide!
 
We may be a bit biased, but rock climbing is a huge passion of ours and we love to share our passion with others! That’s why we think you should add rock climbing to your summer travel plans! 

Book a trip with Golden Mountain Guides! All of our trips are privately guided with a ratio of no more than one guide for every five people. All trips are customizable to your goals/skills! All trips include shoes, harness, helmets and an AMGA certified guide.

Just in time for Valentines Day, we wanted to give you some ideas on how to enjoy the great outdoors with your date, even in the middle of winter! 
 
1. Rock Climbing (or ice climbing, if it’s cold enough!)
We might be biased, but rock climbing is such a fun date - and it's for all abilities! It's what Ben and I, the owner's of Golden Mountain Guides, did for our first date! We’re lucky that we live in Colorado because we can pretty much rock climb any time of the year.  Here in Golden, North Table Mountain warms up nicely in the sunshine and we get plenty of warm days during the winter weeks. If it's just too cold to put your hands on the rocks, try ice climbing with your partner!
Book a trip for your and your date.

5. Ice skating on a mountain lake
Think Hallmark. Mountains all around, fresh air, holding hands. Picture perfect date! Try Evergreen Lake.

Since we're stuck inside today because of rain, let's take a vote.  How many people think the figure 8 knot is the most valuable knot a climber can know?  What about a bowline, clove hitch, or flat overhand?  Well our vote goes to the Munter hitch! (Technically it's a hitch, but that's splitting hairs!)

The Munter hitch, or Italian hitch, is quite versatile and has many uses including a belay, load transfers, and can easily be turned into a clove hitch.  Any self rescue that we perform as a climber is based around proficiency with the Munter hitch and its subsequent knots, the mule knot and the overhand knot.

Let's start off easy.  The Munter hitch is quite easy to tie, especially with only one hand!  Roll over or click each picture for a description.

Now, let's add in the mule knot and the overhand backup.  This is a great way to go hands free in a rescue scenario.  Commonly called "baseline," this particular setup makes it extremely easy to transition into a raise, lower, or technical descent.

It's all too easy to learn these knots once, and completely forget them when you need them most.  Get out and practice with some friends, put your dog on belay with a Munter, or work one on one with a guide to ensure you are the best climbing partner you can be!

Written by Ben Coryell, An Owner of Golden Mountain Guides

It was dark, cold, and above else, miserable.  The wind violently shook the car.  With clumsy fingers, I finished lacing up my boots and stepped out into the howling black of the night.  My hands were already freezing and my toes felt numb.  The sound of crunching snow underfoot reminded me of the 'squeak' styrofoam makes when touched.  I knew the approach.  I had hiked this way hundreds of times, although, something about today felt different.  The cold!  That had to be it!

The normal quick jaunt to Mills Lake seemed to take forever in the overcast, grey sky.  No spectacular sunrise today.  It was so cold I had started to believe the sun didn't even exist.  What were we doing up here?

I had heard many horror stories of the the approach to the Rocky Mountain National Park classic, All Mixed Up.  As normal, I was convinced it would not be as bad as everyone said.  I was very wrong!  The words post holing, flailing, groaning, and suffering didn't even come close to describing the misery of wallowing through waist deep sugar snow for 1,700 vertical feet.  For every step we took upwards, the snow put us back two.  The path we excavated was quickly back filled behind us as the 60 mph gusts concealed all traces of human activity.

Two and a half hours after beginning up the slope of misery, we stood at the base of our objective. The ice looked much thinner than expected.  Today, it was more mixed up than normal.  A quick snack, some water, and the chill of the wind brought us back to reality; we were here to climb!  After trying to take pictures with numb hands, I realized that my camera was frozen.  How was I supposed to update my Facebook from a belay ledge?

I stepped up onto the slabby gneiss with delicate tool placements.  The scrape of crampons on rock was dulled out by the ever loudening growl of the wind.  The few patches of climbable ice were delaminated from the rock behind it.  10cm stubby screws bit firmly, then poked through the backside of the ice.  The reverberation of tool placements was sickening.  There was nothing holding the ice up! There were no cracks for hexes or stoppers.  Thank god we had a few pins for the hairline fractures in the rock!

Even though we climbed with efficiency, we were still chilled to the bone.  Looking into the wind was miserable.  Our breath froze on our faces.  We had icicles growing from our eyelashes.  After climbing quickly above poor protection, I was at the top.  My partner climbed efficiently and met me at the belay.  We set up the rappels and descended with lightening speed.  Everything was covered with an ever growing coat of rhime.

We faced the same post holing nightmare on the descent.  Our tracks had been covered up, and we again had to excavate a path down the slope to Mills Lake.  The thought of warm food and cold beer at Ed's Cantina kept us moving with a purpose.  Less than an hour later, we were back at the car.  I half expected it to be flipped over on its side courtesy of the wind.  As I unlaced my boots and peeled layers of frozen clothes off, I couldn't help but smile.  Despite all the suffering, the freezing cold, the bone-chilling wind, I still had fun.  Perhaps the suffering made our ascent more fun?  Yeah right!

When learning any new skill or exploring a new area, be it hiking, running, skiing, snowshoeing, or climbing, hiring a guide is one of the best things you can do for yourself. Climbing is a pretty technical sport and we highly recommend hiring a guide to learn the "ropes" (see what we did there?).

We know what you just said in your head: “But my friend knows how to do that. They’ll teach me.”
​
Your friends may be pretty awesome climbers, and it seems like total sense to ask them to teach you their skills, but here are some real benefits to hiring a guide:

1. You’ll Have Your Guide’s Undivided Attention
When starting to climb, it is super tempting to tag along with a group of experienced people. Normally what happens is they teach you a few things, you wait around at the bottom while they get some climbs in and then when you’re finally on the rock, you’re left dangling from a rope on the wall, straining to hear your buddies at the base.... and they even drank all your beer! Believe me, we’ve all been there. With a guide, it’s just you and them and you have their undivided attention. They are there to teach you, not for their personal outdoor experience.
​
2. ALL THE SKILLS!
Your friends may be very smart, legends even, but chances are they are not certified. With a guide, you get the collective knowledge of hundreds of people who spend 200 plus days a year in the mountains teaching. They’ve taken many classes, passed many exams, read many books, and know the five most efficient ways to do just one thing. Your friends have their way, but that one way may not work for you. Having five options to learn a new task is more beneficial, especially for different types of learners.

3. Safety First
You like your friends, but when hanging out with a group, sometimes it’s not as cool to wear a helmet. Your guide is going to make protect your brain as they constantly assess the terrain and the risks associated with climbing. Plus, helmets make you look like an “alpinist.”

4. …which means you’ll feel more confident
Your guide has the knowledge, skills, and medical training to handle any situation that may occur (but wont because prevention is key). That means you are free to feel more comfortable and able to tackle those difficult tasks.