UKH

A friend and I are heading to the Alps for the first time in a few weeks. We've been doing weekends in Scotland for 10 years, walking and basic winter climbing only to grade II. In the Alps we're going to do a three-day trip, just going over the passes (Tour, Saleina, Chardonnet), and walking between and staying in a couple of huts.

From reading, we need to pick up and practice some extra skills - glacier traverse and crevasse rescue. I wondered if anyone could advise on that a little.

Would it be advisable for us to book a guide for the first day to teach us some of that?
Is crevasse rescue with just 2 difficult to learn?
Does crevasse rescue require any extra gear we should be picking up?

Any thoughts greatly appreciated.

In reply to nicnic:

Hi,
Before my first trip to the Alps (and as revision before later ones at that) I did three things:

Bought this book:
https://wordery.com/alpine-mountaineering-bruce-goodlad-9781906095307?curre...

Got some instruction from experienced friends and professionals. Practised crevasse rescue and prussiking a lot.

The book contains the most concise easy to follow instructions on glacier travel and crevasse rescue I've come across. The only extra gear I needed over and above what I used in Scottish winter was a locking DMM Revolver, which is probably a good thing to have anyway!

Cheers,
Dave

+1 for the Bruce Goodlad book - highly recommended.

In reply to nicnic:


Yes.


It's not any harder to learn but it is much easier to carry out with three people.


Crabs and slings, prussic loops and if you have one a pulley or revolver crab along with ice axe and maybe an ice screw is all you need.

In reply to nicnic:

Have a look round here
https://www.petzl.com/INT/en/Sport/News/2015-12-1/Tips-and-techniques-for-g...
It's not only about skiing and contains links to detailed explanations of techniques

Of course , it assumes you have lots of Petzl gear

In reply to nicnic:

Hi. Your planned trip/adventure sounds great. So refreshing to hear about people coming to the range to do a cool alpine traverse, rather than one of the classics (Cosmique arete, Chere, Tre Monts, and so on).

One of the best book I have read about glacier travel and crevasse rescue, and alpine climbing in general, is Mark Houston and Kathy Cosley's "Alpine Climbing: Techniques Take You Higher."

https://www.amazon.com/Kathy-Cosley-Houston-Alpine-Climbing/dp/B004WNB6OA/1...

In can't recommend it highly enough. In particular, their emphasis on placing stopper knots on the main rope, and hauling on a separate strand, make very good sense for a party of two on a glacier, especially for a year like this year, without substantial snow cover.

In terms of hiring a guide, I once hired Kathy Cosley for just that--to work on rope skills and crevasse rescue. It was well worth it, and my time with her changed the way that I navigate glaciers.

If you decide to hire a guide--great--but I would say, perhaps even more important, is that you and your partner devote some time to talk through different scenarios, and practice your systems, on your own. You don't even need to be on snow or ice at first--just a grassy field or slope works fine. You can rope up like you would on a glacier, self arrest, flake out your coils, set up your hauling system, and so on. You should know what you will do, or try to do, if you or your partner fall into a crevasse. Discuss, practice, train. Have a plan. That will go a long way toward making your traverse as safe as possible.

Regarding gear, I would wait before buying lots of stuff (pulleys, rope capture device, and so on) until you practice some of the systems, and decide what works for you.

And again--it sounds great. Go for it!

In reply to MrRiley:

Thank you for this. Bruce Goodly book arrived this morning.

In reply to OwenM:

Thank you for the advice. We've booked a guide and have arranged to meet a couple of more experienced mates beforehand to go through the few basics

In reply to brunoschull:

Thanks for the advice and enthusiasm!

In reply to nicnic:

I've just run another Alpine Preparation Course in the Peak District. Can run more if people are interested.