Climber conquers iced cliffs of Niagara Falls

World-renowned ice climber Will Gadd is making history by taking on Niagara Falls. The Canadian climbed the frozen ice of a 180-foot high gorge, just feet away from the raging Horseshoe Falls of Niagara. The area has such heavy icing in the winter months that it is closed off to tourists.

Bob Koshinski, who runs a media and events company, caught a glimpse of Gadd's climb around Terrapin Point, when he decided to document the spectacle on video.

Koshinski told CBS News he had never seen anything like it.

"I grew up in Niagara Falls and I've seen Wallenda and I've seen some of the great stunts and I have been down here for many functions," he said. "I have never seen anybody, certainly in the wintertime, scaling the gorge so close to the cascades of the Horseshoe Falls that he could have reached out and touched it. It was pretty dramatic footage."

Gadd's climb was also filmed by Red Bull, and initially caused some confusion. While the New York State Parks Office approved the stunt, The Niagara Falls Review, a Canadian publication, reported Monday that "U .S. law enforcement conducted training exercises."

Parks police had no comment but a spokeswoman for the State Parks office told CBS News' Rich Newburg that "no park staff was told to lie." She said the staff was not looped in as filming is typically kept quiet.