Ice Climbing & Mountaineering

Ice Climbing and Mountaineering Courses are a great option for anyone who wants to work on specific skills and meet other climbers. Please contact us if you are looking for something specific that you do not see listed.

Hiring an Ice Climbing Guide can be fully customized to help you meet your climbing goals, develop technical skills, or explore a new area. Any of the courses listed below can be adapted for private ice climbing and mountaineering guiding any day of the week.

Ice Climbing Courses

Ice climber in blue jacket swinging an ice climbing tool while looking up at the camera.

Intro to Ice Climbing

Ice climbing is a unique and exciting winter pursuit: if you’re looking for a new way to enjoy winter in New England why not give ice climbing a try? We will introduce you to the systems and techniques for scaling ice flows and frozen waterfalls using crampons and ice axes in a fun and relaxed environment.

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Season

Dec-Mar

Duration

1 Day

Group Size

1-6

Skill Level

Beginner

Two ice climbers wearing backpacks stand in front of a steep ice flow.

Women’s & Femme’s Ice Climbing

Ice climbing is a great way to challenge yourself, build confidence, and meet like-minded individuals. Our Women’s and Femme’s Ice Climbing outings provide the opportunity for you to push your comfort zone in a safe and supportive group of femme-identifying folks.

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Season

Dec-Mar

Duration

1 Day

Group Size

1-6

Skill Level

Beginner

Ice climber in blue pants and jacket reaching up with an ice climbing tool on an ice climb.

Intermediate Ice & Anchors

Build your climbing skills and enhance your ice climbing confidence and competency. This course will teach you how to set up top-rope systems for ice climbing and will introduce the use of ice screws for anchors and redirects.

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Season

Dec-Mar

Duration

1 Day

Group Size

1-6

Skill Level

Intermediate

A person dressed in winter gear, including a blue helmet, red gloves, and a waterproof jacket, ice climbing a frozen waterfall with ice axes in hands.

Advanced Ice Climbing Skills

Our advanced skills courses are perfect for developing your ice climbing technique, experiencing new and exciting ice climbs, and challenging yourself in this exhilarating sport.

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Season

Dec-Mar

Duration

1 Day

Group Size

1-6

Skill Level

Advanced

Mountaineering Courses

Person in a blue jackets belays a mountaineer walking up a snow slope.

Intro to Mountaineering

Learn the fundamentals of safe winter travel over snow and ice! Components of instruction include the use of crampons and ice axes, rope management skills, glissading, and self-arrest techniques. This course is great if you are looking to explore winter hiking in New England or if you are looking to train for bigger mountaineering objectives far and wide.

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Season

Dec-Mar

Duration

1 Day

Group Size

1-6

Skill Level

Beginner

Person leaning back on a rope while a second person kneels in the snow to belay them on a snow slope.

Crevasse Rescue

Learn the fundamentals of crevasse rescue! This is the perfect opportunity to equip yourself with skills and knowledge for traveling in potential crevasse terrain and responding to crevasse rescue scenarios. Course content covers knots, anchors, rope management skills, and hauling techniques.

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Season

Dec-Mar

Duration

1 Day

Group Size

1-6

Skill Level

Intermediate

Other Ice Climbing Opportunities

Ice climber clipping a carabiner to an orange rope while ice climbing.

Personalized Guiding

We offer fully customized one-on-one guiding to help you meet your climbing goals, develop technical skills, or explore a new area. Any of the courses listed above can be adapted for private guiding.

Nine people grouped together and smiling with arms raised in from of an ice flow.

Group Ice Climbing

If you want to add climbing or other outdoor adventures to your offerings Petra Cliffs can help! We offer group climbing to camps, school and youth groups, non-profit organizations, and more.

Climber wearing a yellow helmet and blue jacket ascending an ice-covered icefall in a snow-covered mountain canyon, secured with climbing gear and an orange safety rope.

Smuggs Ice Bash

Vermont’s Annual Ice Climbing Festival hosted by Petra Cliffs. Three days of ice climbing clinics, exciting guest speakers, a drytooling competition, raffles, and camaraderie.


Popular Ice Climbing Destinations

Ice climber in a blue jacket reaching up while climbing an ice route.

Bolton Quarry, VT

The Bolton Quarry offers two tiers of ice flows from shorter easier climbing on the lower tier and steep climbing on tall walls on the upper tier. Depending on the conditions you can find fat hero ice, complex mixed climbing, or delicate curtains. The Bolton Quarry provides a great progression of climbs so you can warm up, try hard, and have fun all day long.

A climber dressed in red gear and a helmet ascending a frozen waterfall, using ice axes and crampons, with snow-covered trees and ice formations around.

Smuggler’s Notch, VT

Smuggler’s Notch is a mecca of ice climbing in Vermont with over 70 climbs ranging from top-ropeable single pitches to long multi-pitch routes with world-class exposure. The many different aspects and elevations in Smuggs mean that there is almost always ice to be found. The view from the top of the Notch is worth the trek in: Smuggs rewards the often snowy approach with stunning views in all directions.

Climbing steep ice in the Adirondacks

Adirondacks, NY

The Adirondack Park is roughly the size of New Hampshire and offers a lifetime of ice climbing ascents. Join Petra Cliffs guides as they take you on a tour of New York's finest road side ice. Short approaches means more time on the ice and less slogging, allowing you to log more vertical. Let our guides show you their favorite places to climb in the northeast!

An ice climber wearing a blue jacket, red gloves, and a blue helmet ascending a frozen waterfall with ice axes in hand, surrounded by snow and ice.

Crawford Notch, NH

Crawford Notch is home to the famed Frankenstein area, Mount Willard and may other classic ice climbs. It is a must climb area for all aspiring alpinist. Let our guides take you up a classic like Chia, Standard, The Penguin, Willy's Slide, Cinema Gully or many more!

Mountaineering School FAQ’s