American Alpine Club working toward special use permit.
A few years ago Afton applied to the Forest Service for a special use permit to create an ice climbing area in Swift Creek Canyon. The project never really got off the ground.
Several months ago Jim McCarthy of the American Alpine Club, an ice climbing group that has a long standing relationship with the Forest Service, approached the Town of Afton with the desire to move forward with the ice climbing project. The American Alpine Club agreed to complete the application process for the special use permit.

While the ice climbing route in Swift Creek Canyon is still in its infancy stages, the Town of Afton is hopeful that things will move forward.

“The American Alpine Club has a lot of experience in getting special use permits and establishing ice climbing areas,” said Town of Afton Administrator Jim Sanderson. “When the Town of Afton tried doing this before, we really just didn’t know how to go about it. Now we have people who know what they are doing and are interested in seeing the completion of this project.”

According to Sanderson, he is working to set up a meeting between McCarthy and Brent Smith, engineer with the Swift Creek power project. The goal of the meeting is to get the two different groups thinking about how they can “stay out of each other’s way” and both move forward.

Sanderson is also plans to attend a board meeting in Ouray, Colorado. The Ouray Ice Park was opened in 1995 and was the world’s first park devoted exclusively to the sport of ice climbing. Today climbers come from all over the globe to participate in ice climbing events in the park. Climbing in the Ouray Ice Park is free.

“I am going down to Ouray to learn from what has been done there and what has been successful,” said Sanderson. “While the American Alpine Club is the driving force behind ice climbing in Swift Creek, the Town of Afton wants to have a say in what is done in the canyon.”

According to Sanderson, Ouray is a great information resource for the Town of Afton. The Colorado town has first hand experience with how an ice climbing area is run.

“What the Town of Afton is primarily interested in is the economic development and business ice climbing would bring to the town in the winter months,” said Sanderson. “Every year more than 100,000 climbers visit Ouray.”

According to Sanderson, over the next few months it should become clear whether or not ice climbing is in the future of Swift Creek Canyon.