Yosemite Frazil Ice

I wish that more National Parks took the time to create videos like the Yosemite Nature Notes Series.  This is a group of videos specifically about the natural beauty and wonder of the park.  Previously, we have featured one of these videos on rockfall in the Valley.

This particular video that we are posting today describes an interesting and beautiful phenomenon that takes place late in the winter and early in the spring every year.  This phenomenon is called frazil ice.



--Jason D. Martin

Regluing Your Skins

Yesterday, we talked about waxing skis and snowboards, which requires messing around with the base of your device of choice. Since we were already in the workbench mode, I thought that we might spend a little more time talking about something that deals with skis and snowboards and also requires some workbench time.

If you've got money to burn, then when the glue on your skins wears out you can just buy a new pair. But if you're like most of us and you don't have money to burn, then you'll probably be willing to spend a few hours trying to reglue your skins. And unlike waxing your skis, because of the fact that you will only have to do this once every few years, the likelihood of developing real proficiency at this task is low.

When searching for information on the internet about this process, I found that there weren't as many resources as you might think. The reality is that a lot of people don't reglue their skins because the process is not terribly fun and can be frustrating. Instead, they end up buying new skins.

With that in mind, you can enter the regluing process with a "what do you have to lose" mindset. If you screw it up, you'll just have to buy new skins anyway. So take your time and as the guy in the video shows, make sure that you have a beer cracked and ready to steady your nerves with another one waiting in the fridge...

To reapply glue to your skins, you will need the following materials:

• Gold Label Glue
• Scissors
• Brown Paper Bags (about 3-4 medium sized bags should be enough)
• Masking Tape
• Old Credit card/Hotel Key
• Iron
• Newspapers
• Old Skins with correlating skis.

In his blog, the individual who made this video has the following additional tips:

Step 1 Preparation

1. Throw some newspapers down to protect against glue damage.
2. Attach skin to ski upside down so the adhesive is facing outwards.
3. Put newspaper between the skin and ski to protect the ski from glue.

Step 2 Cleaning the Skins

1. Cut paper bags into strips just wider than your ski.
2. Place strip on skin and run iron over to soak up old glue.
3. Run credit card over skin for final clean up.
4. Do this for the whole length of the skin, until all the dirty glue is gone.
5. The cleaner the better.

Step 3 Apply the Glue

1. If you have Black Diamond Skins that have a covered center strip, put masking tape over it to protect it from getting glued on.
2. Very thinly apply the glue.
3. Make sure to get the edges and do one thin coat. Go as thin as you can.
4. Let it dry for half an hour and apply a second coat.
5. Let it dry for half an hour and apply a third coat.
6. Let it dry for 12 hours.

Things to remember

1. Put the glue on thin. It is too easy to go too thick and get globs.
2. Make sure you do not bend the skin when it is drying.
3. When feeling frustrated have a sip of beer.
4. Although the glue comes with a brush, and I use the brush in the video, I would recommend applying the glue with an old credit card/hotel key only. It goes on faster and smoother and the brush leaves hair on your skin.

For more information on regluing your skins, check out Skiing the Backcountry and TetonAT.com. In addition to both sites having more information about this process, they both include a number of additional ideas to keep in mind in the comments sections.

--Jason D. Martin

Waxing Skis and Snowboards

Surprisingly, only a small percentage of skiers and snowboarders take the time and energy required to properly wax the base of their equipment. Skis and snowboards simply don't perform as well when they are not maintained.

There are different waxes for the different temperatures. Colder snow with sharper snow crystals need a more robust wax to keep the skis from getting damaged, whereas warmer, wetter snow causes more friction, which can slow you down without the right wax.

For those that are lazy, there are rub on waxes that can easily be applied in a few minutes. But before you get too lazy, you should always remember that the more time you spend putting the wax on, the longer it will last.

Once you have determined the temperature of snow that you are likely to encounter, you will need the following items:

• Iron for ironing the wax into the ski base
• Vise for stabilizing skis while waxing
• Scraper for removing extra wax
• Brush for removing extra wax

After you have obtained the proper equipment, you're ready to make a foray into the world of waxing. We have mined the internet for two films on this subject. This first video from REI, provides a solid base of information for those who would like to wax. The second video expands on the information in the first video and provides a few extra tips for snowboarders. If you are going to start waxing your skis or snowboard, it is strongly suggested that you watch both videos to build a solid basis of knowledge. It is possible to damage your equipment without a good understanding of what you're getting into...





For more techniques including some waxing techniques for first time waxers, check out this awesome Spadout article on How to Wax Skis.

--Jason D. Martin

February and March Climbing Events

-- Feb 12-13 -- Alpental, WA -- VertFest sponsored by OR

-- Feb 12 -- Seattle, WA -- Northwest Collegiate Climbing Challenge (UW)

-- Feb 17 -- Seattle, WA -- Steph Abegg Speaker Event

-- Feb 18 - 21-- Cody, WY -- 13th Annual "Waterfall Ice" Fest

-- Feb 26 -- Seattle, WA -- AAC Annual Benefit and Awards Dinner

-- March 12 -- Charleston, SC -- Palmetto Pump and USA Climbing Comp

Red Rock Rendezvous....Don't forget that there is a lot going on in Las Vegas in mid to late March. Following is a quick breakdown of everything that is happening:

• March 12-15 -- Learn to Lead: An Introduction to Traditional Rock Leadership
• March 12-14 -- AMGA Single Pitch Instructor Course
• March 14-17 -- Basic Rock Camp
• March 15-16 -- AMGA Single Pitch Instructor Exam 
• March 17      -- Banff Mountain Film Festival World Tour in Las Vegas
• March 18-20 -- Red Rock Rendezvous
• March 21-24 -- Basic Rock Camp
• March 22-25 -- Learn to Lead: An Introduction to Traditional Rock Leadership

Weekend Warrior - Videos to get you STOKED!!

Well, it looks like it's going to be another rainy weekend in the NW.  That's why when we get a great day, we have to get out!  The guys in the following video took full advantage of a sunny day in January.  Enjoy!


Perfection on Goat Mtn. 1/9/11 from Allen Taylor on Vimeo.

-Katy Pfannenstein
Program Coordinator

Intro to Aid Technique

Free climbing is the technique of ascending a route with equipment and climbing protection, but without directly using that equipment to assist one's ascent. Instead, the equipment is used solely for safety. In direct opposition to this, aid climbing is the direct use of climbing equipment to climb a wall.

A basic aid pitch requires one to place a piece of protection. Once the piece is secure, the climber will clip an etrier or aider to that piece of gear. An etrier (which some people refer to as an aider) is a nylon ladder. The climber will climb up the etrier until she is as high as possible. The climber will then place another piece of gear and clip another etrier to this. An aid pitch requires one to do this repeatedly as he or she works up the route.

A Climber Relaxes on a Portaledge
Photo from Backcountry.com

A big wall climb is a route that is so big, that it generally takes more than a day to complete. Many walls require one to haul bags full of food, water and equipment as well as to use a portable ledge (a portaledge). This type of climbing can be equated to vertical backpacking.

Most big wall climbs require a great deal of aid climbing. Part of the reason that one must sleep on the wall is because aid climbing is incredibly slow. There has to be a piece of gear of some sort every six feet. If a climber is not quick with her system, then the time will add up very quickly and a Grade IV will turn into a Grade VI.

Aid climbing requires a lot of unusual gear. Following is a quick glossary of simple aid terms. There is a lot more to this aspect of climbing and this should simply be thought of as a quick intro:

1. Hook -- This is literally a hook that one might use as a piece of protection. A climber will put a small metal hook over a rock lip and then clip the etrier to it in order to move up.
2. Jumar -- The second (the follower) on an aid pitch is required to climb the rope instead of the rock. The second will usually do this with mechanical ascenders called jumars. The act of climbing up the rope with these is called jugging.
3. A1-A5 -- The aid grade system. An A1 placement is perfect and could hold a bus. An A5 placement is really bad and will only hold bodyweight.
4. Daisy Chain -- This is a personal anchor system with a series of loops sewn into it. A climber can place a hook (called a fifi hook) on her harness an hook the loops of the daisy to shorten it.
5. Hauling -- The act of dragging a bag up the wall. This is the most miserable part of an aid climb.
6. Copperhead -- A wire with a maleable copper top. These can be pounded into a crack and will usually hold bodyweight on high end aid climbs.
7. Nailing -- A pitch that requires the use of pitons.

The following videos provide an introduction to aid technique with a focus on the methods required to climb a big wall.





At AAI we currently teach aid climbing in our Aid and Big Wall Seminar.  Additionally, we teach it in one of the Alpine Mountaineering and Technical Leadership Part III options.

--Jason D. Martin

Harness Alternatives

A few years ago, I was running a trip up on Mount Shuksan. One of the climbers on the trip had a problem with her harness. The end of the waist belt strap was slightly damaged and the belt simply wouldn't double back.

I decided that the best alternative was to give her my harness. I then proceeded to guide the route wearing a bowline-on-a-coil. I descended the rock portion of the route by rappelling in a diaper harness made out of a double shoulder-length sling...and everything worked out fine.

While that experience wasn't the most comfortable of my life, I definitely drew on my knowledge of harness alternatives to make it happen the trip happen. It's important for every climber to have a small bag of tricks to reach into when something weird goes down.

In this Blog, I have assembled a couple of short articles on harness alternatives and have found a nice video that will help you develop your own bag of tricks.

The following demonstration of how to tie a bowline on a coil is from the website for the Blue Ridge Mountain Rescue Group.

Bowline on a Coil

Start with 15 or so feet of the belay line wrapped around your torso with about 3 feet left over

Create a loop in the long end of the line, just like you would for the regular bowline.

Use the short piece on the other side of the wraps to finish off the bowline

The finished knot.

This was often used long ago as an impromptu harness. this is not recommended today because of the availability of pre-fabricated harnesses and the ability to tie a much better harness from 1 inch tubular webbing. If none of those are available, however, this method is preferable to a single loop around the body because it distributes the weight much more across all those wraps.

There are two options when it comes to creating a harness out of webbing. The first option is to use a long sling or runner and to wear it like a diaper. The second option is to create a hasty harness, also known as a swiss seat harness. Naomi Judd wrote the following breakdown of how to do this for trails.com:

Step 1

Find a piece of webbing that is 7 to 9 feet long, depending on how large the person using the harness will be.

Step 2

Tie a water knot with the ends of the webbing so that it creates one big loop. Do this by making a loose overhand knot with one end of the webbing, then take the other end of the webbing and insert it into the loose overhand following the curves of the knot. Pull tight so that the knot has the two ends coming out on opposite sides.

Step 3

Wrap the webbing around the back of the person with one strand above the hips and one below.

Step 4

Reach for the lower strand, and bring it between the legs and to the front of the body.

Step 5

Attach a locking carabiner to the three strands meeting in the front of the body, near the navel. You now have your makeshift harness.

Following is a nice video that demonstrates how to build a hasty or Swiss harness out of webbing. Clearly a harness made out of webbing -- as well as a harness made out of a long sling -- would be very uncomfortable to hang in...not to mention the fact that it would be far easier to fall out of such a harness. But occasionally you need something on the fly.

In the video you are about to watch, the climber says that you should get instruction at a climbing gym. I would argue that one should never go to a local indoor climbing gym to learn about anything funky at all. Climbing gyms do a good job at teaching the basics of belaying and tying in. But you should never turn to a climbing gym person for instruction beyond that.



Obviously these techniques are unusual. As Scott in the video says, practice them, but then get checked out by a guide. A mistake in any of these harness alternatives could put your life in danger.

--Jason D. Martin