Southwest Adventure Guides

Snowdon West Buttress

benk — Thu, 12 Apr 2012 18:59:24 +0000

Keith had climbed Snowdon multipule times but had never been up the West Buttress or down the Northwest Ridge. We decided to make a day of it. Keith left Farmington early in the morning and picked me up in Durango on the way North to the mountains. The route was in great condition and the weather was perfect, it’s hard to not have fun with a combo like that. Below are a couple pics from the day. Enjoy!

Training for the Himalayas Part 2

benk — Wed, 21 Mar 2012 16:54:51 +0000

Julie is training to climb Nun and Kun in Kashmir this summer. Julie came up to Durango and climbed with me in January during an Intro to Mountaineering course. She just returned last week for some more. We started out with two days of ice climbing. Day one in Cascade Canyon going over the basics, and day two in Ouray at the Skylight area and a little in the Ice Park. We then headed up to Snowdon to learn some crevasse rescue, how to ascend a fixed line, team rope travel, make a summit bid, and do some winter camping. On the fifth day we made a summit bid, but turned around part way up because of the avalanche conditions. We hiked back to camp, packed up, and were back in Durango by noon so we switched out gear and went rock climbing at X-Rock for a few hours. The last day we headed back to Cascade Cayon for some more ice climbing, before Julie started the drive back to Flagstaff.

Great climbing with you Julie!

Intro to Mountaineering

benk — Mon, 12 Mar 2012 04:48:32 +0000

Erin came down from Boulder to learn some skills and gain some experience in the world of winter mountaineering. Since it was only her we tweeked the itinerary to fit her needs. We started out with a half day of ice climbing in Cascade Canyon. Then drove up the pass and hiked into our Engineer camp in the afternoon. The next day was a skills day in which we went over avalanche rescue, snow anchors, self arresting, techniques for walking with crampons, etc. On day three we got up early and climbed Engineer Mountain! We had perfect weather the whole time which makes it hard not to have a good time! Good climbing with you Erin, I hope to climb with you again in the future!

Ice Climbing in Cody, WY

benk — Mon, 12 Mar 2012 04:31:02 +0000

I picked up Chris at the airport in Cody on Wednesday night. On Thursday morning we were climbing ice in South Fork, which is a mecca for ice climbing. Chris and I climbed great multipitch ice for three days. Below are some photos from the trip. I look forward to doing it again next year Chris!

AIARE Level 1 Avy Course

benk — Wed, 22 Feb 2012 21:25:08 +0000

Over Presidents day weekend we had a great group of people attend an Avy 1 Course. Below are some photos from the last day of the course, taken around Molas Pass.

Ouray Ice!

benk — Sun, 29 Jan 2012 00:30:52 +0000

Alex, Michael, and Scott all flew out for 4 days of ice climbing in Ouray, Colorado.

On day 1 we went to the Ice Park. We refreshed some rusty skills and learned some new ones while climbing some great pitches of ice! At the end of the day we did a short multi-pitch to get warmed up for some multi-pitch backcountry ice the following days.

On day two we climbed Dexter Slabs just North of Ouray. It was a low visability day but we got it done and had a great time doing it!

Day three found us climbing at the Skylight Area where we climbed a few ice routes and then got on a mixed route to let the guys see what dry tooling was all about. I’m pretty sure everyone slept great that night. Well, everyone except Alex who was kept up by his new born daughter Zoey.

On day four Alex opted out of climbing because of sleep deprivation. So Scott, Michael and I headed back to the Skylight Area to to climb a route called Choppo’s Chimney, then headed back to the Ice Park for a few more pitches to finish off the arms.

Great trip guys! I hope to climb with you all again!

A picture is worth 5897 meters.

info@swaguides.com — Thu, 19 Jan 2012 16:06:09 +0000

Ecuador Update January 15

info@swaguides.com — Mon, 16 Jan 2012 17:22:38 +0000

The team has been doing great and are through the first stretch of their acclimatization rotation and are now headed to the Jose Rivas hut on Cotopaxi.

On Friday the team climbed Ruminahui (15200 ft) in Cotopaxi National Park and enjoyed some breathtaking views of Cotopaxi. The following day they hiked to the Jose Rivas but and completed snow school and glacier travel training above the hut in preparation for the ascent of Cotopaxi. Today they are resting in the morning at the wonderful accommodations at Chilcabamba prior to hiking back up to the hut for the next nights climb of Cotopaxi.

The weather seems to be trending towards the favorable for the team and if all else goes well they should be standing on top early in the morning on the 16th.

After that it is on to Banos for some rest and relaxation at a lower altitude and then Chimborazo. Stay tuned for more updates and pictures!

-ND

Team Getting Ready for Ecuador’s Volcanoes

Aaron Ball — Wed, 11 Jan 2012 13:35:09 +0000

We are getting set for a 12 day Cotopaxi and Chimborazo climb with a group of 10, and the guides are in Quito, Ecuador making final preparations for the trip as the bulk of our group is scheduled to arrive this evening.

Two of our guests for this expedition are already here, having decided to come down a few days early to get some additional time to acclimatize. Today they are hiking Rucu Pinchincha just outside of Quito. The hiking is easily accessible from the Telepherique/Gondola and makes for an enjoyable hike and climb of this 15,000 ft peak.

This evening the rest of our group will arrive and the trip will begin in earnest. Stay tuned to our blog for daily updates on the trip and the teams progress as well as pictures.

We will also be posting updates and pictures on our Facebook Page.

Brothers

benk — Fri, 06 Jan 2012 16:46:50 +0000

Chris has been talking about how great his younger brother would be at climbing for months. This last weekend Chris flew out with his brother Eric for some ice climbing in Ouray. Both brothers did great! Eric was floating up steep ice like he had been doing it for years, and Chris was leading and mock leading in the ice park despite a tweeked wrist. Chris will be out for some more ice shortly and there are rumors of Eric coming out for some rock climbing in the future!

Thanks for the great New Years weekend guys!