On the Rock, On the Ice

[John Ippolito]

On the rock, on the ice
lit by headlamps not so bright

on the rock, on the ice
there was no sleep on this ledge last night

inching upward toward the light
the heavens call us to the heights

chimneys, ledges, slabs, and cracks
fingers frozen, don't look back

wind is cold, dawn is bright
we marvel at the alpine firelight

ice axe, crampons, rope in hand
icy couloirs do demand

burning calves,our spirits buoyed
we climb our way above the void

on the rock, on the ice
the summit icefield now in sight

[denise ippolito]

Wow! The image is awesome!!! The words fit perfectly and they are so descriptive. I get the feeling you've done this before;) Very nicely done and this should be in print.:)

[Fabs Forns]

John, I felt every minute of the adventure. Image speaks wonders on how small we are in the big picture and words are very well written.

[Julie Kenward]

Anybody who can rhyme 'void' with 'buoyed' is a great writer in my book! Wonderful image and the words carried it even further in my mind.

[John Ippolito]

Denise, Fabs, and Jules, I really appreciate your very kind comments and encouragement!

[Lance Warley]

Good one John. Like the others mentioned above, I felt I was with you every step of the way.

I went to your site - beautiful stuff. I was in Alaska for a trip in September. What an incredible place. And it looks like you're taking full advantage of it. That's for sure.

[John Ippolito]

Lance, thanks for the nice comments! Also thanks for taking the time to look in at the website!

I just checked out your website. In your Alaska gallery, you have some beautiful iceberg images, and I particularly like the brown bear and cubs photographed at Chatham Strait. Also, I found some of your Canadian Rockies images stunning(an old climbing stomping ground for me). Very nice.

[nzmacro]

Magic, shot and words. Impressive take on scale in the image. High impact with the scale.

Danny.