[pct-l] Alpenstocks and Self-Arrest Poles

[Stephen Adams]

A few years back I found a nice icy slope with safe run out up in the San Gorgonio Wilderness.  I practiced with and without a pack, on my back, head first, head first on my back, and every other thing I could think of.  I was pretty banged up after a bunch of these, and not without a little road rash.  No wood stick, aluminum pole, or other straight devise would have stopped me.  But getting rolled, turned or whatever and planting that axe brought me to an immediate screeching halt of a self arrest, and I also noted a few times that the leash kept the axe with me a couple times where I think perhaps it might well have been ripped out of my hands.  At another time I glissaded down Cinder cone in Lassen Park using one of my hiking poles.  This had a safe run out, and not so icy or steep, but I understood at this time that the pole would be used for directional trajectory and would not suffice to stop me should speeds get into the red.  Anyway, my experience suggests just carry a light weight axe.  And don't boot ski or glissade if you have hundreds of miles and most of the summer left to hike.  Not good to hurt your back or twist an ankle.       
On Nov 19, 2009, at 6:58 PM, Denis Stanton wrote:

> The words "stout stick" are important here.  I can report from experience acquired while descending the north side of Forester in 2008 in an out-of-control glissade that planting a lightweight hike pole firmly into the snow between my knees had no effect at all on my speed of descent.  The lower third of the pole simply vanished and I continued downhill at the same speed as before clutching the shortened pole.
> Fortunately he large rocks further down the slope were much more effective at slowing me down.
> 
> Denis Stanton
> 
> On 20/11/2009, at 3:39 PM, ned at pacificcrestcustombuilders.com wrote:
> 
>> I'm not quite sure what AsABat was using, but he said it was an Alpenstaff, 
>> which was a stout stick with an iron point at the end. If you have nothing 
>> else, to jamb the point into the snow/ice to affect a self-arrest is the 
>> right thing to do, but because of the leverage on the shaft while doing so, 
>> the stick is likely to break.
> 
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