January 17, 2019, 3:00 P.M.

Gdebanen Clarke ’19 took this celebratory summit photo on Slide Peak, N.H. (elevation: 4,807 feet) during Ice Trek, the annual winter training exercise of Mountain Cold Weather Company. Colin Johnson ’19 and Alex Gonzalez ’19 led two groups of cadets as they ice-climbed and traversed active avalanche terrain to reach the summit. Temps dipped as low as –15°F, with 40 m.p.h. winds and 100 m.p.h. gusts, during the summit push.

Established in 1948 shortly after WWII by former members of the U.S. Army’s 10th Mountain Division, Mountain Cold Weather Company was formed to teach alpine mountaineering and mountain and cold-weather warfare skills. Today, the student-led company is “like a family,” Clarke says. It continues to thrive thanks to alumni support.

Among the highlights from this year’s Ice Trek: cadets received avalanche and avalanche-rescue training from American Mountain Guide Association-certified instructors on Tuckerman Ravine, a glacial cirque on Mount Washington.