Generally when one thinks about mountaineering they have visions of climbers roped together crossing a high, snow covered ridge line or cresting a giant peak in the Himalayas. They don’t think about Minnesota. Minnesota is for fishing. We’re the land of 10,000 lakes not 10,000 peaks or 10,000 ft. peaks. The average elevation here is 1,200 feet and the highest point is only 2,301 feet. When you include all lakes in the state over 10 acres in size (15,291) we have over 6 ½ times more lakes than we do of vertical feet at the highest point. Even our highest point is only a big hill. The entire hike from the trail head parking lot to the top is only about 500 feet of vertical gain over 3.5 miles. For climbing on rock and ice though all you really need is a steep cliff that has enough vertical gain to make it worthy of bringing out a rope. For ice climbing you also need the right conditions which are water and cold temperatures. Minnesota is well known for both. Somehow this jungle of concrete, ancient industry and the WPA has granted us some easily accessible jewels.

The best ice climbing places in Minnesota are far from the Minneapolis Metro Area. There are a number of tributary rivers running into north shore of Lake Superior such as the Manitou and Devil Track rivers that offer up some pretty nice ice climbing. We also have quarry climbing near Duluth and Robbinson Park in Sandstone, MN that have great ice climbing. We also have farmed ice just across the St. Croix River in Wisconsin. Beyond that its way up in Canada on the northern most point of Lake Superior.

All of these trips require an entire day or longer if you want to get your crampons icy. Then there are areas around the city that are very near, in heavily populated high traffic areas but well hidden from the eyes of people very near by. A few of them are from street run off and others are from water seepage through cliffs. Nearly all are along the banks of the Mississippi River or only a few blocks from the river on a tributary creek.

The conditions must be right for the ice formations to occur just like any other place. Some years you see it and some you don’t. We need rain in the fall and the right mixture of freezing and thawing in the winter months to make it happen. If the climb forms and it gets too warm for too long they generally don’t come back again in the same year. For the most part these areas have always been on a low key only being passed on by word of mouth. You generally find out because someone else took you there but in recent years with a boom in the sport they are now well know by climbers but still unknown to people outside the community. We also all have our “secret areas” and few people talk about those due to fear of losing the areas when people flock to them. We don't advertise them at all. There are also questions on whether or not it’s actually legal to climb there so nobody talks about them for that reason as well. There are also areas like Minneahaha Falls, which are totally off limits. Being seen will likely bring about a pair of handcuffs. It has happened.

The areas are not at all destination climbs or epic but rather a way for climbers to get out and get their climbing jones on without spending half the day in a car. You can head out after work for a few hours or on a weekend day and get back home in a short time. It’s like going to a climbing gym for ice climbers. Here are a few we all know about that are in the “ok” zone.

St. Paul - Shepherd Road and Homer. (a.k.a. Odyssey of Homer, a.k.a Shepherd Road, a.k.a “That slot canyon by the river.”)



The Shepherd Road climb is a small slot canyon that is fed water through a two-foot concrete pipe from street run-off. Its only about 20 feet from the intersection and most years it does freeze in a way that allows for safe climbing.

The climb itself is about 40 – 50 feet high in a small bowl carved out by the water over many years of water coming out of the pipe above. There is only enough room for one top-rope and a small group to climb here. If you see others there you either have to wait or move along. The city of St. Paul has a permit system for ice climbing. It is allowed in this area but due to the city wanting to track the sport and have people sign waivers releasing them from liability they have created a permit system with a $25 fee to help pay for the program administration. You can investigate that Here.

Below is a video Josh and I started at Shepherd Road a few years back but haven’t finished due to poor conditions in following years and lack of time.




St. Paul – Lilydale Brickyard. (a.k.a. Brickyards, a.k.a. Cat Litter box)

This area was once a quarry and a storage area for Twin City Brick. From the parking lot there is a wide path that goes straight for about a block and then winds up the bluff/hill. There are a number of small ice bouldering areas and two large bowls. The first one you encounter is the main bowl. This is generally where people climb. There is enough area to support several top-ropes and plenty of room to hang out. This location also falls under the St. Paul permit regulations.


Enough cheese here to score a buy-out from Kraft

During the climbing season if the ice has formed sufficiently there will likely be a number of climbers there on the weekend. In the past 8 years much of the dirt and “cat liter” looking matter has fallen into the bottom of the bowl and settled into what is now a ramp leading to much shorter climbs. It still has an appeal though due to the proximity and other ice bouldering in the area.

Minneapolis - Franklin Avenue Bridge (a.k.a Graffiti Tunnel)


Climbing at the Franklin Avenue Bridge Click here for more.

The Franklin Avenue Bridge climb is located on the east side of the Mississippi river in Minneapolis just about thirty steps north of the bridge. Like Shepherd Road its only a few steps from a busy intersection and completely invisible to people above.


Ice climbing under the Franklin Avenue Bridge

Out of the three climbing areas mentioned here this has been the least reliable in the last decade but in recent years due to warming temperatures its come in a few times and its been very nice. Last year the conditions with freezing and thawing were perfect. It was the best I’ve ever seen it. The climb forms from massive amounts of water coming from a street run off system above. Its full of salt dumped by public works vehicles to melt street ice and oil and carbon from automobiles. There are probably a number of other chemicals and things that shouldn’t be going into the river in it as well. I always wash my ice tools off when I get home from here. This climb is also only about two miles from my house so I can just ride my bicycle there. (Yes, we ride bicycles here even in the winter. It's normal here.)

Unconventional Climbing? There are those days too.


Climbing the walls in Minneapolis on Mt. 27th and Fremont Avenue Estates.

If you want to give ice climbing a try here are some options.

Vertical Endeavors offers courses through its outdoor program called Vertical Endeavors Guided Adventures (VEGA). They have great instruction classes and some highly experienced guides. To find information on their classes visit Vertical Endeavors.

Midwest Mountaineering occasionally offers free intro and informational classes taught by Carolyn Hansen as well as free classes for women only on an ongoing basis for rock climbing. For information on classes visit Midwest Mountaineering.

You can also attend the Sandstone Ice climbing Festival at Robbinson Park in Sandstone, MN. For the last two years they have offered intro seminars during the festival so people can get out and give this a try. They will have all the equipment on hand. Visit the Sandstone Ice Climbing Festival ice clinics page.

For a full list of ice climbing festivals Click Here.