Essential Alpine Skills Course - Day 1
At last we are back in North Wales attending a weekend Essential Alpine Skills course at PYB. Breakfast is served in the dining hall and we get chatting to Gerwyn and Ceri Williams, a local couple from a village near Caernarfon. They are booked on a discovering navigation course and since it is their first time at the centre we give them the low down on what to expect.
Following an opening “welcome to PYB” talk in the lecture room we file out to meet our instructor, Simon Hale, and fellow participants for a course specific briefing.
We met Simon last year on an advanced scrambling course at the centre – he spends each summer guiding in the Alps, so we feel in expert hands.
There are two other chaps on the course, Andy Sykes and Lee Melling, both IT professionals from leading merchant banks. Andy has the only alpine experience amongst our group with an ascent of Gran Paradiso last year. Andy and Lee are planning a four day attempt on Mont Blanc in mid June which sounds tough given Lee’s only previous hill experience is the UK three peak challenge. Well he survived that, and the subsequent car crash, and these are not your stereotypical bankers – both keen skiers and used to living life in the fast lane – quite literally as Lee races a Fiat Punto on the track when he isn’t at his keyboard. We bond quickly as a group given our shared goal of climbing Mont Blanc.
Simon gives us an introductory talk on what to expect in the Alps - the longer routes, the night time starts required to summit by early morning to avoid the worst of the snow melt and thunderstorms in the afternoon, mountain hut etiquette etc. Lots of practical information and advice that should ease our transition from UK to European mountaineering.
Today we will focus on alpine rope work and we head off to the grounds to practice safely moving together whilst roped keeping the rope taut to minimise the shock loading if one of us falls into an imaginary crevasse.
Next we look at unassisted crevasse rescue techniques for a party of two using a Z pulley hoist – this is rather complex and not something you would want to figure out from first principles when your mate is down a crevasse with his full weight on your harness! In brief here is what we learnt: (caveat - if you think by reading this you will know how to do it then think again my friend – get some instruction and practice it – the investment may well save your life)
Firstly stop the fall – the most likely scenario is that the leader goes “in the slot” as a snow bridge collapses. The weight will come on the Second almost instantaneously and without warning so get into a sitting position and dig the heels of your crampons into the snow. It is a good idea for the Second to have attached a prusik loop between the rope and harness, in advance, so that the force of the fall is taken on the hips and not the chest coils.
Hopefully the Second has now successfully held the fall and can commence the rescue assuming that the leader is unable to self rescue. Immediately construct a horizontal buried axe belay next to you and by the use of a prusik gently transfer the weight of the fallen climber from your harness to the belay. Clearly you cannot select your spot so you may have to use an ice screw rather than an axe depending on the conditions. Ali and I had a chance to practice buried axe belays in Scotland.
Tie in a backup knot above the prusik in case it fails. The second is now free of the weight of the fallen climber. Remove chest coils and, allowing enough rope to reach the edge of the crevasse, tie yourself into the belay.
Proceed carefully to the edge of the crevasse to assess the leader’s condition – falling in next to him does not help matters! To reduce rope drag kick out snow on the edge and if possible get a rucksack or spare axe under the rope to stop it digging into the snow during the haul.
Attach another prusik and pulley to the rope near the edge of the crevasse and then return to the belay to remove the backup knot and untie yourself. Run the rope through the lower pulley and tie in close to it, thereby forming a Z shape with the rope and giving a 3 to 1 mechanical advantage.
On all fours the second can now haul the climber up until the prusiks meet. At this point the weight can again be gently transferred to the higher prusik and with the lower one reset the haul can continue.
After lunch we looked at self rescue from a crevasse with the leader attaching two prusik loops on the rope in order to climb out himself. For those of you who have read Touching the Void by Joe Simpson you will know how important it is not to drop your prusik loops!
Whilst the other three were soon moving swiftly up their respective vertical ropes I was really struggling because I had a slightly thinner rope and new prusik cord. I was soon sweating profusely even under Simon’s expert guidance. We tried a ropeman device in place of the prusik cord but I messed up and relased it causing me to “crater” fortunately from only a few inches off the ground. Clearly I need more practice at this one!
This perhaps illustrates a point I know already – that my rope work is not what it should be. Ali is a natural and exudes confidence I on the other hand am not. I need to practice, practice and practice some more to become slick and safe – it’s not just my life at stake. But this is why we booked the course and why we have a practice trip to the Alps planned in June.
On a more cheerful note we end the day’s instruction recapping what we have learnt and reviewing maps and guidebooks for the Alps. Simon closes by setting us some route finding homework.
Following an opening “welcome to PYB” talk in the lecture room we file out to meet our instructor, Simon Hale, and fellow participants for a course specific briefing.
We met Simon last year on an advanced scrambling course at the centre – he spends each summer guiding in the Alps, so we feel in expert hands.
There are two other chaps on the course, Andy Sykes and Lee Melling, both IT professionals from leading merchant banks. Andy has the only alpine experience amongst our group with an ascent of Gran Paradiso last year. Andy and Lee are planning a four day attempt on Mont Blanc in mid June which sounds tough given Lee’s only previous hill experience is the UK three peak challenge. Well he survived that, and the subsequent car crash, and these are not your stereotypical bankers – both keen skiers and used to living life in the fast lane – quite literally as Lee races a Fiat Punto on the track when he isn’t at his keyboard. We bond quickly as a group given our shared goal of climbing Mont Blanc.
Simon gives us an introductory talk on what to expect in the Alps - the longer routes, the night time starts required to summit by early morning to avoid the worst of the snow melt and thunderstorms in the afternoon, mountain hut etiquette etc. Lots of practical information and advice that should ease our transition from UK to European mountaineering.
Today we will focus on alpine rope work and we head off to the grounds to practice safely moving together whilst roped keeping the rope taut to minimise the shock loading if one of us falls into an imaginary crevasse.
Next we look at unassisted crevasse rescue techniques for a party of two using a Z pulley hoist – this is rather complex and not something you would want to figure out from first principles when your mate is down a crevasse with his full weight on your harness! In brief here is what we learnt: (caveat - if you think by reading this you will know how to do it then think again my friend – get some instruction and practice it – the investment may well save your life)
Firstly stop the fall – the most likely scenario is that the leader goes “in the slot” as a snow bridge collapses. The weight will come on the Second almost instantaneously and without warning so get into a sitting position and dig the heels of your crampons into the snow. It is a good idea for the Second to have attached a prusik loop between the rope and harness, in advance, so that the force of the fall is taken on the hips and not the chest coils.
Hopefully the Second has now successfully held the fall and can commence the rescue assuming that the leader is unable to self rescue. Immediately construct a horizontal buried axe belay next to you and by the use of a prusik gently transfer the weight of the fallen climber from your harness to the belay. Clearly you cannot select your spot so you may have to use an ice screw rather than an axe depending on the conditions. Ali and I had a chance to practice buried axe belays in Scotland.
Tie in a backup knot above the prusik in case it fails. The second is now free of the weight of the fallen climber. Remove chest coils and, allowing enough rope to reach the edge of the crevasse, tie yourself into the belay.
Proceed carefully to the edge of the crevasse to assess the leader’s condition – falling in next to him does not help matters! To reduce rope drag kick out snow on the edge and if possible get a rucksack or spare axe under the rope to stop it digging into the snow during the haul.
Attach another prusik and pulley to the rope near the edge of the crevasse and then return to the belay to remove the backup knot and untie yourself. Run the rope through the lower pulley and tie in close to it, thereby forming a Z shape with the rope and giving a 3 to 1 mechanical advantage.
On all fours the second can now haul the climber up until the prusiks meet. At this point the weight can again be gently transferred to the higher prusik and with the lower one reset the haul can continue.
After lunch we looked at self rescue from a crevasse with the leader attaching two prusik loops on the rope in order to climb out himself. For those of you who have read Touching the Void by Joe Simpson you will know how important it is not to drop your prusik loops!
Whilst the other three were soon moving swiftly up their respective vertical ropes I was really struggling because I had a slightly thinner rope and new prusik cord. I was soon sweating profusely even under Simon’s expert guidance. We tried a ropeman device in place of the prusik cord but I messed up and relased it causing me to “crater” fortunately from only a few inches off the ground. Clearly I need more practice at this one!
This perhaps illustrates a point I know already – that my rope work is not what it should be. Ali is a natural and exudes confidence I on the other hand am not. I need to practice, practice and practice some more to become slick and safe – it’s not just my life at stake. But this is why we booked the course and why we have a practice trip to the Alps planned in June.
On a more cheerful note we end the day’s instruction recapping what we have learnt and reviewing maps and guidebooks for the Alps. Simon closes by setting us some route finding homework.
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