Ammon McNeely
Ammon McNeely"..it makes you really love life.."
https://www.youtube.com/v/-DtouGJ65W8?hl=en_US&hl=en_US
References
1. Ammon McNeely wikipedia
2. The Rudiments of Alpine. Directory.
3. Top Ten Technical Skills of The Modern Alpine Climber Alex Honnold
Footage from free solo ascent of El Sendero Luminos (5.12d)
https://www.youtube.com/v/wX_rh8Qugt0?hl=en_US&hl=en_US
References
1. Alex Honnold wikipedia
2. The Rudiments of Alpine. Directory.
3. Top Ten Technical Skills of The Modern Alpine Climber
Alpine Tip #8 - Climb well below your actual climbing abilit
Alpine Tip #8 - Climb well below your actual climbing abilityIt may sound obvious, but always be sure your climbing ability is consistent with the route you decide to climb. Practice a lot and know your limits.
Stranded, Exceeding Abilities, Incompatible Partners, Poor Communication (Penn/Hancock)
Washington, Mount Rainier, Liberty Ridge
Bruce Penn and Al Hancock departed White River to climb Liberty Ridge on June 13, 2004. It took them three days to reach the base of Liberty Ridge. On the third day, while looking at Liberty Ridge, Penn voiced concern to Hancock about the steepness of the route and his ability to climb it.
They spent the day talking about descent, but decided to re-evaluate their plan at the base of Liberty Ridge. On the fourth day, June 16th, an apprehensive Penn decided to start up the ridge with Hancock setting anchors and belaying every pitch. It took 14 hours for the pair to reach Thumb Rock; both individuals were exhausted and dehydrated when they finally arrived.
Penn knew that it should only take 4 to 6 hours to reach Thumb Rock from lower Curtis Ridge. He was surprised that other climbing parties were not placing protection and climbing the lower ridge without belay. He then realized that their climbing method was not practical for the route.
On the fifth morning, June 17th, Penn knew that he could not complete the climb and called 911 on his cell phone to ask for assistance. He did not discuss this with Hancock, and only informed him after the call had already occurred. That call reached Supervisory Climbing Ranger Mike Gauthier; during the conversation, Penn stated that his team could not go up or down but added that there were no injuries and they had enough food and fuel for a few days. Since there was no obvious urgency, and because an active SAR was already in progress on Liberty Ridge, Gauthier informed Penn that they would have to wait for a rescue or assistance.
At 12:44 pm, Penn called again stating that he “could not climb up or down from Thumb Rock.” Penn again acknowledged that he and his partner were okay, but that their arms were quite sore, they were dehydrated and that they had “bad vibes” about the route. Hancock felt that their best option was to continue the climb up and over, but refused to go back down. Penn was unwilling to continue up or down even with additional supplies and gear the NPS offered to drop at their location. It was explained to Penn that another more urgent SAR was in progress and that they would need to remain where they were until more personnel and resources were available.
At 7:30 Penn again called the Park requesting a helicopter rescue. When told that their rescue would still require a belayed down-climb, Penn seemed unwilling to cooperate. He said, “I just want to be off the mountain.”
On the sixth day, June 18th, arrangements were made with the Oregon National Guard for a helicopter hoist of the pair as rescue and recovery efforts remained ongoing for Casady and Vizcaya. Rangers made two airdrops for Penn and Hancock at Thumb Rock; those drops contained food, fuel and a cell phone.
On the seventh day, June 19th, an Oregon National Guard Chinook helicopter flew to the scene with three climbing rangers aboard. Ranger David Gottlieb was lowered to Thumb Rock via hoist and assisted both climbers back into the helicopter. The climbers were successfully removed from the mountain that day.
Analysis:
Penn and Hancock met on a guided climb of Mount McKinley the previous year. They had not climbed together before, but did discuss and research Mount Rainier and Liberty Ridge extensively. Some climbers often overlook the important aspect of climbing relationships and partner compatibility. The importance of a skills assessment, common goals and similar abilities are sometimes overshadowed by the excitement of summiting the mountain or “doing a route.”
A commendable aspect of this incident was that the team realized things were not going well and pulled back before getting injured. The NPS recognizes that people commit errors in judgment and make mistakes, but suggests that climbers not proceed when originally presented with questionable situations.
As a reminder, Liberty Ridge requires a substantial amount of physical strength, technical skill, effective communication and comfort with a heavy pack on steep ice for 6,000 feet of climbing.
References
1. Search and Rescue Reports by National Parks Service
2. The Rudiments of Alpine. Directory.
3. Top Ten Technical Skills of The Modern Alpine Climber
Climbing Tools: The Piton
Climbing Tools: The PitonA piton is a metal spike (usually steel) that is driven into a crack or seam in the rock with a hammer, and which acts as an anchor to protect the climber against the consequences of a fall, or to assist progress in aid climbing.
https://www.youtube.com/v/xLz6fgzHp1c?hl=en_US&hl=en_US
References
1. Piton wikipedia
2. The Rudiments of Alpine. Directory.
3. Top Ten Technical Skills of The Modern Alpine Climber
Alpine Tip #9: Carry spare sunglasses
Alpine Tip #9: Carry spare sunglassesAlways carry spare sunglasses or one day you will learn the lesson hard way. Despite it is an obvious advise, every now and then I meet such people in dare situation, with original sunglasses either dropped, broken or misplaced. Of course, this happens in the worst possible place such as on the glacier on a sunny day with at least one day travel each way. And of course, none of the rest of the friends brought spare. ( Visit to the nearest dollar store to pick up plastic backup pair would have saved the trouble. ) 8)
https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-zFl0xGtkLZ4/U6GOym9uEvI/AAAAAAAAUpI/xHNfnSp169M/s800/A1Y01o00%255B1%255D.JPG
References
1. Sunglasseswikipedia
2. The Rudiments of Alpine. Directory.
3. Top Ten Technical Skills of The Modern Alpine Climber
Re: Alpine Tip #9: Carry spare sunglasses
PanShiBoAlpine Tip #9: Carry spare sunglasses
Always carry spare sunglasses or one day you will learn the lesson hard way. Despite it is an obvious advise, every now and then I meet such people in dare situation, with original sunglasses either dropped, broken or misplaced. Of course, this happens in the worst possible place such as on the glacier on a sunny day with at least one day travel each way. And of course, none of the rest of the friends brought spare. ( Visit to the nearest dollar store to pick up plastic backup pair would have saved the trouble. ) 8)
https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-zFl0xGtkLZ4/U6GOym9uEvI/AAAAAAAAUpI/xHNfnSp169M/s800/A1Y01o00%255B1%255D.JPG
References
1. Sunglasseswikipedia
2. The Rudiments of Alpine. Directory.
3. Top Ten Technical Skills of The Modern Alpine Climber
good tip!it happened several times in the past during our hiking trips, remember dada, 00 and Rick always has spare sunglasses....
Re: Alpine Tip #9: Carry spare sunglasses
lulululu..remember dada, 00 and Rick always has spare sunglasses....
尊重！ 8) Alpine Tip #14: Always gear on level up.
If it is expected to be as cold as -10C, but not colder, it is wise to bring a few items, "just in case" (extra gloves, hat)to deal short-term with -15C.
Same applies to technical gear - bring everything required for the chosen route.Add 10% (but no more than that) in terms of equipment weight andbring a few extra pieces meant for one level up. If the route is F, bring gear for PD. If it is scrambling, be ready to protect short moves.
https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-rYn9v_xu1yA/U6Rbgv4coUI/AAAAAAAAUvg/NWKNJNe-pgI/s800/IMG_1106.jpg
References:
1. International French Adjectival System (IFAS) @ wikipedia
2. The Rudiments of Alpine. Directory.
3. Top Ten Technical Skills of The Modern Alpine Climber
Alpine Tip #20: Eat before you get hungry
Alpine Tip #20: Eat before you get hungryTo get top performance in the alpine never wait until your body demands food. Do not overeat either.Consuming ~100 calories every 1/2 hr, no more no less right from the start, over 10-hours climb will make you function the best. Do your homework, ration your portions. Of course, you do carry modern camel water bag with enough liquid, don't you? 8)
https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-mZsodIlL9TA/U68KvNw21jI/AAAAAAAAU3Y/WpweZVWVZu4/s800/protein-bar%255B1%255D.jpg
References:
1. The Rudiments of Alpine. Directory.
2. Top Ten Technical Skills of The Modern Alpine Climber PARADOX DOWN JACKET @ COSTCO
http://www.paradoxoutdoor.com/ca/en/mum0031-2775.html
Price - $45 !
http://media.paradoxoutdoor.com/2012/products/448x510/MUM0031.jpg
1) For outdoors men's version is way better than women's
2) Get two jackets - one your size and one size bigger, so you can have extra layer in case super cold
8) very good one, I got a similar one in Sam's club in NC 3 years ago, it was only US$19.99 then How to Tie the Most Useful Knot in the World (Bowline)
https://www.youtube.com/v/Q9NqGd7464U?version=3&hl=en_US
References
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bowline Alpine Tip #26
Stay away from Scrambling
scram·ble
ˈskrambəl/
verb
gerund or present participle: scrambling
make one's way quickly or awkwardly up a steep slope or over rough ground by using one's hands as well as one's feet.
"we scrambled over the wet boulders"
Yet, better and simpler definition of scrambling is : "Wandering around technical terrain with zero protection, experience and training".
According to statistics of hospitals Emergency Rooms, the most outdoor recreational sports injuries and deaths come from scrambling, being surpassed by only one type of sport (guess, what it is!?).
Books are written about known scramble routes, which, despite legal disclaimer, give false impression that it is all simple (almost equals to "just" steep hiking), provided there are no mistakes made. If so, all alpine, rock and ice climbing can be conducted is such manner (just make no mistakes, huh?), but it is not. Such books are catalogs of trouble ready to happen. One can be pretty sure that every single listed scramble routehas seen a disaster some time in the past or will definitely have it in the future. So either you go train yourself first, practice a lot on a safe ground and come prepared for real alpine type climbing (=protect, protect, protect) or just stay away. Be safe, don't become statistics.
P.S. Local scramble routes such as to Sky Pilot, Crown, Hanover and West Lion and more are described in popular book "Scrambles in Southwest BC Guidebook" which promises
..access to incredible wilderness summits without using ropes or advanced climbing techniques..
All mentioned above routes had serious and even fatal accidents in the past. Some fatalities happened this year (2014), and some routes had more than one fatality within a single season! All caused from a fall when climbing "..without using ropes or advanced climbing techniques.." - exactly what the book suggested! There are no tourist routes to the top.
https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-Zza4Tr3ZtjA/Uw42PdWjD9I/AAAAAAAARlo/X3Wky9mrtoU/s800/IMG-20120617-00304-1024x768.jpg
References:
1. Scrambling - wikipedia
2. The Rudiments of Alpine. Directory.
3. Top Ten Technical Skills of The Modern Alpine Climber Passing the Knot on Rappel
The instructor is using backup prusik below belay device, normal technique for straight vertical rock. In alpine we attach prusik above belay device (for a few important reasons explained in details at Alpine Workshops), and you can easily figure it out that it would be a lot easier to do Passing the Knot. So, one more reason to use prusik above device, next Alpine Practice will prove it. 8)
P.S. This video shows tragic death of a climber who failed to pass the rappel knot, within just few meters above safe ground: The Beckoning Silence
https://www.youtube.com/v/cTmAd9he_Ys?version=3&hl=en_US
References
1. The Rudiments of Alpine. Directory.
2. Top Ten Technical Skills of The Modern Alpine Climber 谢谢潘博士精彩的视频分享！ :favor::cb:
[闲聊]
棉花糖谢谢潘博士精彩的视频分享！
Want to come to Alpine workshop? Lots of fun. You will enjoy it while learning. Also it planted concept of safety gradually into my mind and then became my own. I feel so lucky to have these opportunities.
Re: [闲聊]
vera..Want to come to Alpine workshop? Lots of fun. You will enjoy it while learning...
我从中华回家以后，肯定会重新开始！期待！ 8)
ARCHIVE PHOTO: Alpine Practice: Avalanche Rescue Response drill.
https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-4swC-MW4-38/UrHhfeDOOEI/AAAAAAAAQBs/N5D_ms0MNCI/s400/IMG_4425.JPG Tracker DTS
Avalanche transceivers or avalanche beacon are a class of active radio beacon transceivers operating at 457 kHz and specialized for the purpose of finding people or equipment buried under snow.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Avalanche_transceiver
https://www.youtube.com/v/j_FXpx2eIXU?version=3&hl=en_US
References
1. Avalanche transceiver - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Avalanche_transceiver
2. Tracker DTS - http://www.backcountryaccess.com/product/tracker-dts/
3. The Rudiments of Alpine. Directory.
4. Top Ten Technical Skills of The Modern Alpine Climber
How to start
Alpine Tip #28 - Start from the beginning.https://farm6.staticflickr.com/5561/14967569109_a6f0213edd.jpg
Sometimes people ask "I want to start climbing alpine, but how should I begin?". Ironically I hear it from seasoned rock climbers who have found that climbing gym or outdoors crags (e.g. Squamish) doesn't automatically prepare one for real mountains. Surprising fact - the more a rock climber is advanced the less chances he will qualify for a beginner alpine trip (e.g. on Mt. Rainier). Often a solid 5.11+ rock lead has no clue about what snow pickets are for or crevasse rescue response protocol.
But you probably already know the answer: "You begin from the beginning, start asking questions that is."
Next step I would recommend is to learn Alpine Belay and spend one summer training yourself climbing alpine style in local crags. Please note that Alpine Belay is different from what they teach in climbing gyms (top-rope belay). The proper Alpine Belay technique is described in the book "Freedom of the Hills". Obviously, you will need a climbing partner to go training with. This mandatory need signifies the very foundation of climbing and that's what essentially makes alpine different from hiking - you do need a reliable partner.
Climb alpine style - in boots, with a pack and what is more important, downclimb too. Train yourself endurance too. Typically you would go practice climbing alpine rock in Squamish and then hike BCMC trail right after. After one training season you will probably know if the thing is for you. Majority of people by this time will realize that alpine is not what they have imagined, that it is actually "too much hard work", and will give up - these will go back rock climbing (or Grouse Grind hiking). But if your heart demands more action, teach yourself how to rappel (alpine style is again different from rock-climbing style) and then you will be ready for seconding some local low-level alpine rock: Skypilot, West Lion, Hanover, Tricouni, etc.. After seeing some sustained air (and the ground well below your feet) decide if this is what you like. Understandably, after such trip ("too much suffer") even more people will go back rock climbing or Grouse Grind hiking.
If your heart is still pumping excited and wants more, you proceed to the next step and learn snow/ice travel - dealing with crevasses and climbing steep snow. This will prepare you for "real" alpine world and you will be ready to climb beginner routes on Mt. Baker WA, self-supported and unguided.
Like climbing tall mountains, do not speed in learning, go slowly, one step at a time. And remember, only hard (and frequent) practice will take you there, there are no shortcuts, unless hiring a guide (but that's not called alpine when you are being served hot coffee in the morning without getting out of tent or even out of your sleeping bag). If you persevere, you will surely succeed touching that hard summit and many many more. 8) 谢谢分享 :gd: