Ames Wall

Ames Wall.

Description 

This is the steep, 600 foot cliff overlooking the tiny village of Ames. Ames Wall boasts Ames Ice Hose, and the forest below has a few shorter, easier waterfalls. There is a flow of ice that forms to the right end of this wall.

Getting There 

From Telluride, drive west for 10 minutes or so to 145. Take a left on 145. Drive for another 10 or 15 minutes in a southernly direction, passing Mountain Village (sneakable hot tubs!) and Alta Lakes (good place to park the truck for the night) on your left. Take a right on road 625, AKA Iliam RD. Drive 2 minutes, and take a left on Ames Rd towards the obvious Ames Station, the first power station to generate and transmit AC current, apparently. Park at the station.

Ames Wall is reached by taking the trail to the NE of the station, past the green house on your left, following the powerlines to an old railbed. Don't take the right fork down into the drainage that is used for the Ames Practice Falls & possibly Ames Falls. Follow the railbed for 30 minutes or so to reach the base of the scree/trees leading up to Ames Wall and, on the far north end of the wall, Ames Ice Hose.

The shorter waterfalls are encountered in the forest below the railbed, NE of the station.

The Classics

Featured Route For Ames Wall

Ames Ice Hose WI5 M6 R  CO : CO Ice & Mixed : ... : Ames Wall

I think this route is a three-star-classic on a worldwide scale.The Hose may not have a postcard view or alpenglow ambience, but the climbing is spectacular, and there is always plenty of air below your heels. This route is dangerous at the bottom and will humble most any dry-toolin' psychopath, but at the top it gets fat and widens out to a steep slab of blue ice clinging to the black wall.Approach: 1 hour. Start at the power plant and find a tr...[more]   Browse More Classics in CO

Photos of Ames Wall Slideshow

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Conditions 2/6/7. AIH to the left (beyond) the ph...