Naked Ice Climber Scales Frozen Waterfall
Without Martin around to poke fun at me, there has definitely been less humor on the blog. I did find this news story today.
An ice climber exposed himself to the elements Monday afternoon by climbing a frozen waterfall in nothing but his boots.
Around 2:30 p.m., a National Forest Service employee was driving through Spearfish Canyon when a naked man climbing up Bridal Veil Falls interrupted his view along the scenic byway. A second man, fully clothed, was on the ground photographing the escapade.
“As soon I came around the corner, I kind of realized there was something funny going on there,” said Chris Zoller, an assistant fire management officer. “I was pretty flabbergasted to say the least.”
Zoller kept driving, but reported the brazen scene to Bonnie Jones, a forest protection officer. She arrived just as the au natural climber, back on the ground, was stepping into his clothes.
“He told me it wasn’t as cold as you think it might be,” Jones said.
The two Black Hills area men in their 20s told Jones they wanted to make the free-soloing, or climbing without a rope, a bit more liberating.
“They wanted to have a freeing experience. They thought it might be humorous,” Jones said. “They were just goofing off basically.”
Jones gave the two men verbal warnings. Climbing in the buff may be covered under the state public indecency law that says someone has to be annoyed, offended or alarmed by the public display.
“We would prefer that people don’t climb naked,” Jones said. “It could be distracting if you’re driving. If you see a naked guy climbing, you might drive off the road.”
Naked or not, people are discouraged by the forest service from climbing Bridal Veil Falls because inexperienced climbers are regularly rescued by the fire department after getting stuck at the top, Jones said.
This was the talk of the office today. And the internet is supposed to make more productive how?
I would highly recommend a drive through this canyon. The Black Hills have an interesting mix of “east meets west”. I once ate lunch at that very spot.