UKC

Does any one have any top tips or rope systems for solo glacier travel? I know the risks. I mainly thinking of wet glaciers. Do snow shoes help? I which month is the safest in the winter in the French Alps for this sort of thing?

In reply to captainfire576:

Not really.

I think in an old Mountain Mag article a solo climber in Alaska carried a ladder across his rucksack.
An obvious enhancement of this technique would be two at right angles.

If you don't fancy a trip to B+Q, choose a popular track, if one one else has fallen in you might be lucky as well.


I have used both bits of advice personally but the largest bit of kit I usually carry in the hills is an ice axe.

Trailing a rope would give rescue teams a clue.

In reply to captainfire576: I have seen techniques where you tow your rucksack in a haul bag and tie a line of alpine butterflies in the rope between you and it.

In reply to captainfire576:

Maybe get an airbag from the breakers? Coupled with a rocket carrying a rescue line and grappling to be fired from the bottom of the crevasse and you might have the makings of a marketable solo kit. You'd want to test it first though.

In reply to captainfire576:

I did not want to mention that idea.

If you are going lightweight, the sack not be heavy enough.
Conversely you may not be able to drag it.
If the snow bridges are convoluted you cannot steer it along your track.

After having to organise a rescue of a mate down a crevasse who was not wearing a harness, I always at least put my harness on.

In reply to captainfire576: I've seen this as well. The idea of dragging a sac, heavy enough to arrest a crevasse fall due to friction on a glacier, is such a horrible idea I would rather just throw myself down a slot and hope for the best.

In reply to Bruce Hooker:
Nice idea.
You have probably just lost any right to patent it though.

In reply to captainfire576:

"I'd stopped at a hardware store and purchased a pair of stout aluminium curtain rods, each ten feet long. Upon reaching the snow line, I lashed the rods together at right angles, then strapped the arrangement to the hip belt on my backpack so the poles extended horizontally over the snow."

J Krakauer

In reply to captainfire576:

Is the idea then that the knots cut into the lip to arrest you? That sounds optimistic...

Skis are better than snowshoes at not punching through. You posthole far less and if you are perpendicular to the hole they provide a partial bridging effect. The descent is WAY faster so you spend less time in the wrong places, and if something does collapse your momentum can be enough to carry you across rather than down. A lot of suspicious depressions are crossed on skis by picking the right angle and unweighting the feet at the right moment. The downside is that moving fast can make it harder to judge the terrain.

Heck, some proper nordic jumping skis would bridge just about everything.... Might need 4 pairs of skins to cover the bases though

In reply to captainfire576: It did look quite sketchy. I suppose route choice season/weather and topography are the main things that can be assessed to make the route safer. If push came to shove, the sack dragging technique may be better than nothing. What about snow shoes? Ski mountaineers are often unroped. I know they move faster but do the skis spread the weight more than snowshoes?

In reply to LJC:
The knot idea is in the Petzl techniques.

I remember going on a glacier for the first time in about ten years and being highly amused by the rigmarole of gearing up for it. Would probably take it more seriously if I had ever fallen down one.

In reply to Rick Graham: do u have a link?

In reply to captainfire576: spent years persevering with my skiing. have finally come to the conclusion that I will not be good enough till I move to Chamonix.

In reply to captainfire576:

Google petzl glacier techniques.

They seem to recommend green knots.

In reply to captainfire576:


Yes, they spread the weight but also the ski-mountaineering season is winter or spring when there's more snow cover and it's harder. The worst of crossing glaciers alone is coming down in the afternoon when it's all mushy... something to be avoided, really! Especially if you are not too sure of yourself, and even then, everyone knows of good mountaineers who have had either near misses, going half way in and managing to prevent falling right in by outstretched arms, or actually going in... alone that's not good

In reply to Rick Graham: I totally see the use of knots (wasn't me who questioned it ), it's the whole dragging a rucksack suggestion which seems madness.

In reply to captainfire576:

Don't fall in a crevasse.

(that has to be the TOP tip)

In reply to captainfire576:

Yes, much more than snowshoes. I'd rarely (if ever) rope up on skis in normal circumstances, but if I'm with someone on snowshoes then they have to go on a lead (I've had a couple of near misses with them!)
You can also move faster and 'shoot' snow bridges.

With regards to general advice: learn to ski, wear a harness, stick to tracks, avoid travelling in the afternoon if possible and try to get a look at the terrain before hand (so you know roughly where the crevassed areas are when travelling in the dark etc.).

It's also sensible to keep the other ski on when fitting/removing skins so you're never stood on the glacier in just boots.

In reply to Bruce Hooker: I was thinking about the winter. Which months are safest in the French alps then?

In reply to Rick Graham: Green knots?

In reply to captainfire576: Carry two ice axes and several ice screws so you stand a better chance of climbing out.

In reply to captainfire576:

I would have said which month is less of the issue. If there's been recent snowfall then crevasses are more likely to be hidden. Alternatively warm temps are going to reduce the snow pack stability. I would feel safest on glaciers after a brief warm dry spell to strip any fresh snow followed by cold temps to stabilise.

Personally, I feel a little bit nervous about solo'ing on glaciers if there's a possibility of crevasses. I think I'm as competant as anyone at navigating through crevasses but there's always the occasional one that is totally concealed with no clue of it's presence.

In reply to captainfire576:

You obviously have not googled the petzl site yet.

In reply to captainfire576:

Back in 1993 I was in Alaska, and after attempting the N.E. ridge of Mount Hunter and failing high up, I decided on a solo retreat and return to our base (at the landing strip above the Kahiltna glacier). After a long and fraught descent down off the ridge I began the solo ski descent to the Kahiltna glacier, with a very large load on my back. I got the point where I was straddling a crevace with my tips and tails of the skis preventing me falling into the very large hole beneath my skis! To this day I don't know how I survived, but I am convinced that skis saved my life. So, for me there is only one choice!