We spent Saturday learning crevasse rescue techniques near Parkers Ridge. Everyone had the chance to build snow anchors, set up pulley systems, and rescue each other from the bottom of a drop-off. Once everyone had those skills dialed we practiced holding falls on steeper snow, glissading, and self-arresting.
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Crevasse rescue practice at Parkers Ridge. Mt. Athabasca & Mt. Hilda in the background.
For our second day we had good weather so we did a fun tour on the North Glacier below Mt. Athabasca. From near the tongue of the ice we climbed up a snow slope and then roped up and crossed the glacier, finding our way through many crevasses along the way. In the afternoon we rappelled down a steeper section and practiced ice climbing techniques near the base. For a final bit of rescue practice, I climbed down a steep bit of ice and had everyone work together to figure out how to rescue me back up.
Travelling through a crevassed section of the glacier below Mt. Athabasca.
Overall it was a fun & successfull weekend, and everyone seemed to have a good handle on the basics of crevasse rescue and glacier travel by the end. Four of the participants stayed with me for another 5 days of climbing on the Alpine Skills Course. More on that in the next posting...
J. Mills
CRAG Owner & Head Guide
http://www.cdnalpine.com/
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