Just fixed a broken ice axe handle with duct tape and hope

It was the kind of cold where your breath freezes in your throat before it even leaves your mouth. I was halfway up a frozen waterfall, gloveless, when the handle cracked—just enough to make me question my life choices. Used a roll of duct tape I keep in my pocket for emergencies (mostly snacks). It held. Not pretty, not safe, but functional. Sometimes that’s all you need. The snow didn’t lie this year—it just forgot to fall. And here I am, still climbing.