At 7:30 a.m. on a Monday in January, the sun has yet to climb over the snowy San Juan mountains that stand sentinel around the tiny town of Ouray, Colorado. In the twilight, a pair of climbers bundled in layers, a thermos of hot coffee or tea in their backpacks, make their way to the cold, shady canyon of the so-called Swiss Alps of America, ice tools, ropes and wrenches in hand. These are the ice farmers of the Ouray Ice Park, and they’re checking on the mid-season crop. ‘Ice…
