Alaska is my favorite state for a number of reasons, one of which is that the people up there are a little… I guess different would be putting it mildly. Anyhow, the Alaskan Alpine Club decided that ice climbing would be more convenient if there was a large ice tower close to Fairbanks, so they are building their own. At last measurement they were at 136 feet, which is taller than the tallest building in Fairbanks. A red strobe was added to the top to alert aircraft, and still it grows.
Two money quotes (and there are many):
- “If I’d ah knowed it were gonna get this high, I would not have been so impressed back when it was not so high.”
- “We found some bones, feathers, a climber’s helmet and part of an airplane wing at the bottom of the ice. Tell no one.”
Photo taken from http://www.alaskaalpineclub.org/.