[pct-l] Ice Ax

[Daniel Bailey]

I've got to agree with what Steel-Eye wrote about using a leash.  His post
seems well though-out and very well spoken.

First things first, I highly advocate using a leash.  If you know how to
properly use your leash, switching it to your uphill hand won't be too
difficult.  Chances are that you won't be wearing a climbing harness in the
Sierra, so you'll either have your leash attached directly to your wrist or
possibly to your waist belt.  Switching the leash from one wrist to another
is fairly straight forward and will only take a few seconds at most,
especially once you get the hang of it.

If I happen to fall and don't properly self arrest, I want to rely on the
fact that my ice axe is not going to go careening down the hill.  I've spent
quite a bit of time on high angle snow and have been very thankful for my
ice axe when a step didn't hold (even after being reinforced).  I would have
hated down climbing to fetch my ice axe because it wasn't properly leashed.

I'd also hate to see my ice axe go speeding down the hill only to strike an
unsuspecting climber.  I'd have a difficult time forgiving myself for my
negligence.  With very little friction on a steep snowfield, a runaway ice
axe carries a high risk of killing a climber down below.

If you don't already know how to use an ice axe, I strongly suggest taking a
training course and practice, practice, practice (in actual snow, if
possible).  If snow is unavailable, find a dirt hill in your neighborhood.
I don't advocate chopping up the soil and grass, but you can go through the
motions of dropping into a proper self arrest position.  When properly
trained in using an ice axe, the odds of a successful arrest will increase
substantially.  Similarly, the odds of dropping your ice axe will reduce
substantially.

I noticed a post or two where people talked about fitting a piece of foam
insulation over the head of their ice axe.  I can't recommend putting more
than a few inches of insulation at the top.  I've seen many people up at Mt.
Hood with the majority of their pick covered with the insulation, which
(IMHO) is bad, bad, bad.  You really don't want the insulation to interfere
with the function of the pick.  If I fall, I want to rest comfortably
(relatively speaking) with the knowledge that the entire length of the pick
is going to be driven into the snowpack, not just the couple inches that
have been left exposed.  I don't want to worry about having the compress the
foam laterally to get more of the pick into the snowpack.

One of the arguments that I've heard in the past is that an ice axe is like
a huge heat sink and that they're uncomfortable to carry without the foam.
My suggestion is to get some better gloves.  I'd rather have cold hands than
a quick, unexpected trip down the hillside.

Be well,

Senator

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Steel-Eye wrote:
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Good evening, David,



It's too early to know what residual snowpack you may encounter approaching
Kearsarge Pass, but you probably won't need an axe around mid-July.
However, if you plan on eventually buying an axe anyway you could have it
available at home for some pre-trip practice and for a last-minute decision.



As you may have noted from AsABat's reply, opinions vary about leashes.
I'll take the other side of the issue.  I use a leash on my ice axe for
several reasons:  If I were to loose grasp of an axe that was not tethered,
it would be gone, with essentially no chance of regaining it during a fall.
If I survived the fall there's a high probably it would be gone for good, or
as a minimum, extremely difficult to retrieve for the climb out.
Fortunately I haven't had to try to arrest from a real fall, but I have had
to "let myself down" a few times, and I've lost my grip on the axe .... much
to my embarrassment .... only to see it skitter off down the hill.  That was
when chopping steps while wearing fleece gloves over a smooth-shafted axe.
Subsequently, I added a leash and provided a highly slip-resistant grip
surface to the shaft.



If I were to fall with a loose tethered axe, maybe I won't be able to regain
control of it .. maybe .. but there's zero chance if it isn't tethered.
There's a moderate chance of my being struck by a loose, tethered axe.  If
the axe were to strike me, there's a good chance I would be hit by part of
the axe that is not damaging, meaning any part except the pick and the
spike.  If the pick or spike did strike me, there is only a small chance
that it would hit my body somewhere that would cause significant damage.  I
would worry most about my eyes, however I wear full wrap-around, tethered
safety sunglasses to obviate all but the slimmest chance of that happening.
If I survived the fall the tool would still be with me to assist in climbing
back up to the trail.



An arrest is best performed when grasping the axe head in one hand and the
shaft with the other.  Setting the pick into snow crust during a slide can
result in abrupt force acting to pull the axe out of one's grip.  It seems
to me that the shaft hand takes most of that retarding force, and if that
hand slips the arrest will fail.  A properly used leash will not let the
hand slip off the shaft.



I can't think of a snowpack traverse that required me to change hands with
the axe.  There may have been some, but what I remember of areas where I
used .. or wished I had had .. the axe, is that they were all on the
same-side hill orientation, however, changing may be necessary when
switch-backing.



Enjoy your trip,



Steel-Eye
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