Alpine climbing is a type of mountaineering that uses any of a broad range of advanced climbing techniques, including rock climbing, ice climbing, and/or mixed climbing, to summit typically large rock, ice, or snow-covered climbing routes in mountainous environments. Alpine climbing began in the European Alps, but is now performed in any remote mountainous area, including in the Himalayas and Patagonia. To climb alpine style is to do so in small lightly-equipped teams who carry all their equipment and do all of the climbing themselves.