Alpine Practice - Climbing Steep Snow
Due to certain factors beyond organizer's control such as alpine conditions and unpredictable professional commitments,  the date of this session is subject to change, not unlikely on a very short note. If "confirmed" list is empty, consider this trip as standing-by.

NOT A COURSE
For active alpine climbers only.  Assuming one has already received a solid formal alpine training elsewhere, the goal of this session is only to review (and not to learn) fundamental mountaineering skills.

Practice Location: Mt. Seymour

Skills Required

• Solid Top Ten Technical Skills of The Modern Alpine Climber.
• Proven basic formal mountaineering course.
• In the last 12 months have completed at least one PD grade snow/ice route from the Alpine Select List .

AGENDA
General considerations.
Climbing equipment review: gloves, pants, boots, crampons, ropes, snow pickets, runners, backpack slings, mechanical ascenders, ice tools, ice axes, leashes, nylon cords, sewn slings, prusiks, shock absorbing slings.
Snow: how steep is steep? Slope Meter.
Snow temperature: warm, cold, isothermic. Freezing levels. Snow thermometer.
Snow: hard, compact, soft.

Moving on soft snow
Alpine walk.
How to carry and grasp an ice-ax. Gloves. Leash.
Ascending: direct, diagonal.
Traversing.
Descending: facing out, facing in. About glissading.
Self-belay. Dagger modes (upper, lower).
Self-arrest. Four base types of falls.

Low fall factor belays
Boot-ax belay.
Heap belay.
Sitting belay.
Running belay.

Moving on hard snow
About crampons.
French / American / German techniques.

Roped Climbing
Roping up. Partner check.
Shortening/extending the rope.
Snow pickets: carrying and placement. 1,2 - point anchors.
Climbing in rope teams of two: climbing voice commands. Belaying the leader, belaying the second, pitching, cleaning,
End of the pitch protocol.
Short roping
Climbing in rope teams of three. Passing an anchor.
Downclimbing. Traversing. Aretes.
Rappelling: off a snow picket, off a snow bollard.

Personal Gear
30-70 m 8-mm half rope (or else)
helmet
harness + belay device (Reverso type)
crampons
ice ax with a (accordion) leash on a locker (plus hammer ice tool  if you have)
carabiners: 5 lockers + 1 large pear shape
shock absorbing sling (optional)
anchor material: cords and slings (Nylon, Dyneema, Spectra)
2 5-mm prusiks + 1 short
mechanical ascender (e.g. Tiblock, Ropeman)
two 61-cm snow pickets with runners attached
personal emergency kit incl. medical
headlamp with spare fresh batteries

Extra Gear (optional)
Snow thermometer
Slope meter
Shoulder gear sling w plastic biner
GPS
PLB

IMPORTANT

• if you have "bailed" less than a day before the start of, or been a "no show" for any club’s trips in the past 12 months, you need not apply to join this one - you will not get a response.
• if minimum safety levels are not met (because of the bad weather, conditions, etc.) this trip will be canceled, last minute cancellations do occur.
• if you want to receive a response you must clearly answer  ALL "Trip Planning Questions"
• if you haven't received response, check your email in Spam folder (some eager service providers mark club's messages as such )