Stillwater MN route information

All,

two questions:
1) Does anyone have an update on the Stillwater, MN Ice climbing status? - I went there this weekend and there was NO ice at all. Did they stop farming? I tried to be polite and knock on the front door of the house on top of the cliff, but no one was home to answer.

2) Does anyone have any information on the routes bolted on BOTH sides of the river in Stillwater (just 100 yards south of where the ice usually is, AND on the opposite sides of the river). Yes, i know the rock is not great and many of the bolts look rusted out, but i am curious. There looks like some fun, but dirty, climbing. Is there a route sheet/info page? does anyone climb here? I have climbed nearly everywhere in the midwest, but never here. We saw the routes while wandering after we found out the ice wasn't in.

Hey Eric,

I saw your post about Stillwater the other day and changed my plans and headed to Sandstone this morning instead. I talked to a guy there and he said that the left side (the ramp)at Stillwater was in. But not the pillar on the far right that was there last year.

So is there really no ice at all or is it just not climbable ice? I live in St. Cloud otherwise I would make a recon trip myself.

Hey,
I live in Stillwater. As far as I have been able to figure is that the ice on the Wisconsin side was farmed, and it apparently is not being farmed this year. I don't know who was responsible for the farming so I can't find out details of how to keep this going or who to talk to, but if any info becomes available let me know and I will do whatever I can to help.

As for the bolted routes on the Minn. side. There are maybe 30-40 routes of varying qualities. If you are looking for adventure sport climbing you may well find it here. Many bolts are of questionable quality, but I have climbed on a few routes, and think that with some investment of time (and money) we could replace some bolts with glue-ins and have a nice little area here. Let me know if you want to check some stuff out or need anymore beta. I know a bit, and have a good friend who knows even more. PM at chase.roskos at gmail

Thanks for the great info and feedback.

As for the left flow being in, yes, there was SOME ice there, but very thin and more like climbing an icy mud slope (at least that is how it was 10 days ago). Last year, the center was FAT, but broken off 20 feet up. Above that, it was great. The Right pillar was also in last year, but nothing at all this year. Too bad they stopped farming this ice. I tried to ask the owners of the house above about it, but they weren't home. If nothing else, it would be nice to know what happened, or if we can repair the relationship if something happened. Keep in mind that the Ropes for growing the ice are still there...

As for the Stillwater rock routes, i will be in contact Chase. If nothing else, these routes should be climbed and recorded here. If there is some documentation or just word of mouth, lets get it recorded for everyone's reference. Maybe some more traffic on these routes will get some excitement and we can get some help rebolting some of the better ones.

Thanks!

Has anyone done any recon on this flow this season?

The main flow is in and really nice looking. The main flow is really big (fatter column); the rest does not look too great tho.

Thanks Peter! You ever climbed it before? Thinking about making a trip over this weekend.

I went out there last season. It was rotten ice and I led up 30 feet or so, before the pro was just garbage and I backed off. I think the property owner will let you drop in from the top side, but he was not home when we went, so we did not want to trespass. Haven't made it out there this season.