A famed arena for ice climbing has opened for the season in southwest Colorado — the start of an annual winter tradition that also represents the beginning of a bright, new future for access.

Ouray’s City Council recently approved the transfer of a private parcel in Ouray Ice Park to city government. The agreement regarded 7½ acres long owned by Eric Jacobson, who had grown worried about liability over climbers scaling ice in the Uncompahgre Gorge. Private landowners of trails and mountains around the state have shared the concern amid a perceived lack of protection by the Colorado Recreational Use Statute following a lawsuit out of the Air Force Academy.

Jacobson’s transfer is a “game-changer,” said Peter O’Neil, executive director of nonprofit Ouray Ice Park Inc.

“Not a lot of private landowners can do or want to do what he did,” O’Neil said. “Eric’s generosity basically protects the park for the foreseeable future.”

In a previous Gazette interview, Jacobson recognized Ouray Ice Park’s importance to the local community. A study found it generated nearly $18 million in spending around Ouray every year. It’s thanks to a deal struck three decades ago: Jacobson drank a beer and shook hands with an enthusiast who pitched an idea to spray water and create an ice climbing park.

Before Christmas, Jacobson and city officials gathered for margaritas at a local restaurant to sign the transfer agreement.

“That’s the way things are done in Ouray. It isn’t all the attorneys getting around a big table in a meeting room,” O’Neil said. “It was great to celebrate and kick off the season that way.”

Climbers have returned to the park spanning 150-plus routes. They’ll return for the 29th annual Ouray Ice Festival, the three-day competition and celebration starting Jan. 18.

It’ll be the second year the event is sanctioned by Union internationale des associations d’alpinisme, or UIAA, the sport’s international governing body. “It further puts Ouray on the world stage,” O’Neil said.