So do I need to get an axe or what? Should
I wait until I’m on the trail if I do? How early would I need one? What’s a good one to buy? Can I rent one?
THA WOOKIE
ICE AXE - Pacific Crest Trail
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#1
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#2
Wookie, I may be able to loan you my black diamond whippet which is just a self-arrest pick attached to the end of a hiking pole (it’s detachable too). Are you coming to trail days?
Sweeper
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#3
you should check out the whippet from black diamond. it’s an attachment that fits onto your trekking pole. unfortunately it’s a little pricey ($75) and it only fits on black diamond poles, (but if you’re handy you can convert almost any set of poles to a flick-lock design, as long as the pole diameters work together) and works identical to a normal mountaineering axe as far as self-arresting goes, however i would not count on it as a reliable aid in making upward progress or supporting a load.
the advantage of the whippet is that it’s definately lighter than an axe (bd claims it’s 2.2 oz, but that’s hard to believe), and you don’t have to carry the extra weight having it strapped to your pack. you can leave it attached to your pole, or you can remove it from the handle if you want to. check it out:
http://www.bdel.com/backcountry/poles_whippet_selt.html
also grivel makes some really nice light weight axes, but again they’re going to be pricey. they make one axe called the nepal light (9.3oz.) and the air tech racing (14.1oz.)
here is a chart for their tools:
http://grivel.com/products/pi.php?ope=list&lang=en&cat=PI
stubai makes a titanium axe but it’s a few hundred bucks so i won’t even talk about that one.
as far as renting goes, it probably wouldn’t be practical because you would probably end up paying more to rent the axe than it would cost to buy. most shops will probably have an axe called a grivel pamir as their rental axe. it’s an awesome tool, weighs 18oz, and cost $75.00new. at a rental price of around $10/day it’s better to just buy one.
unfortunately, like i mentioned before i can’t tell you if you will need one or not, but hopefully this info helps if you end up having to get one.
i know a lot of backcountry skiiers that swear by the whippet, and remember reading in sweeper’s journal entries that he actually used one on the colorado trail last year, so you might want to ask him what he thought of it.
good luck!
soctt
scott
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#4
sweeper, you beat me to it! i guess you posted while i was writing my long-winded response!
scott
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#5
I may sound old fashioned, but I use a wooden stick as my pole and I ain’t giving it up. I looked on the link Scott gave, but don’t see the Whippet. Maybe I could carry two poles, or maybe my partner could use it, but I think she prefers wood also. Sweeper that is very generous of you and that I’d like to keep that option open while I explore the possibilities. I’m still wondering if I need it at all. I know, it depends on the conditions. Maybe I could switch poles or carry two during the stretches where I’ll need it. The black diamond folds up, right? But I still need to figure something out for Island Mama also. Thanks for the help guys.
THA WOOKIE
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#6
There are different schools of thought about whether or not to carry an ice axe.
(1) If you carry one and you don’t know how to use it, you will rely on it to save you, and then when you fall you’ll end up flailing down the mountain and not be able to catch yourself. Or you’ll stab yourself.
(2) You should always carry one, cause if you do slip, you want every possible method of stopping.
(3) Only carry one if you know how to use it. If you don’t know how, take a class.
I’ve been through the Sierras twice. In 2001, I carried an axe and left Kennedy Meadows on June 16 and walked on snow for maybe one hour TOTAL in the next 200 miles. In 2002, I did not carry an axe and left Kennedy Meadows on June 4, and walked on/in/through snow for at least half of the next 200 miles. The passes in 2002 were really tough. My friends that ski compared the passes to black diamond ski slopes. Really steep, and you’re walking across them. It’s scary to look down.
My advice would be to learn how to use an axe, and take it with you. It only weighs a pound. Carry it from Kennedy Meadows to Echo Lake. I also highly recommend carrying poles through the sierras. You know Leki’s motto: “four legs good, two legs bad”, and I agree. My poles really helped maintain balance on the snowy passes, and they especially helped when fording. There are a few deep, fast fords.
I also recommend taking the Tom Harrison Map Pack for the JMT. These maps are multi-colored and really helped us figure out where the trail was supposed to be when it was burried in snow. The Map Pack is sold on the PCTA website.
One last thing about fording: the weight of your pack helps to hold you down when the water is flowing deep and fast. Some of the couples I knew would have the man ford with his pack, then go back and carry the woman’s pack across. The woman would then have a really hard time walking across the creek, cause she didn’t have enough weight to hold her down. I would suggest that your friend Island Mama ford with her pack on. Just a thought.
good luck!
yogi
yogi
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#8
The best and only site I know of that reports the Sierra snow levels almost daily is accessed at this URL;
http://cdec.water.ca.gov/cgi-progs/current/PLOT_SWC
As of today, the current snow level is just about average according to the graphics on the site.
Frederick
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#9
The best use of an ice axe is to keep from falling in the first place. If you are walking on sidehill that does not yet have a path worn into it, you plant your ice axe, then take a step, then plant your axe and take a step. Carry it always on your uphill side. I agree, learn how to use it before you go, if at all possible. But it can help even if you don’t know how to self-arrest. When you will need it depends on the year. We could have used an axe on Fuller Ridge, but didn’t have ours yet. We got ours in Lone Pine and carried it until Sierra City. In a high snow year, you may need it from the beginning, as there can be snow in the Lagunas, about 30 miles up the trail. We have had friends who hiked in high snow years who carried their axes the entire trail, and needed them. Last year I gather that Goat Rocks was still icy in mid-August. Pay attention before you go. PCT-L tends to get a lot of discussion about snow levels in the spring (www.backcountry.net) so you can find out whether you are hiking in a high snow year or a low snow year, and where the snow is. (In 2000, when we hiked, southern California was low, the central Sierras were normal, the northern Sierras were high and Washington was still holding snow from the previous extremely high year, plus the current year’s snowfall.) We started early, and ran into serious snow from Forester to Sonora Pass.
Spirit Walker
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#10
buy the lightest one out there, the cassin ghost:
http://www.bittersweetgear.com/casghosmouna.html
it is only $80 and weighs approx. 1/2 lb.
d-low
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#12
If you don’t have much experience using an ice axe, or just want to brush up on your mountaineering skills pick up a copy of Freedom of the Hills 6th ed. its the best mountaineering book out there a great resource for anyone no matter what skill level.
its tempting to get a short ice axe to save weight or cut it down, but in order to self arrest the axe needs to be longer, also a longer axe when you are walking with it ends up feeling lighter because you can use it like a walking stick on the higher slope side…
rough rule of thub for sizing
5’8" and shorter go with a 65 cm (or whatever is closest of the axe you choose) axe.
5’ 8" to about 6’ 2" go with a 70 cm axe
Taller than that go with a 75 cm.
be sure to get a non technical ice axe not a short ice climbing axe… straight shaft is what you need for the pct
-mat
mat
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#13
Hey mat, Just curious, but what makes you say that you need an iceaxe for the pct. I’m almost certain I won’t bring one next year on my thru-hike. Iv’e been anxious to hear anybody’s experience with an iceaxe on the pct. I do agree that freedom of the hills is a great resource IF it is used in conjunction with a mountaineering course and hands on experience. Anyway it would be great if you could let me know what you experienced while on the pct as far as an iceaxe goes. Thanks very much!
JJ
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#14
It really depends on when you are hiking and what kind of a snow year you have. Some years, hikers start with snow on the 2nd day out and have it continuously into northern California or later. Fuller Ridge in Southern California is a notorious place for needing an axe, and that’s only 188 miles up the trail. (We had icy snow, but were able to get by without axes at that point.) We got our axes at Kennedy Meadows. We have had friends who carried (and needed) their axes the entire way. Other years there is no real snow until the Sierras, and if you don’t go through until the end of June, you might not need an axe at all. Or you might need it in Washington, if they have a high snow year. We were in the Sierras in early June and needed an axe from Forester through Sonora Pass. We had several friends who had to self-arrest, and it was a medium to low snow year in the Sierras. I just use mine to keep from falling in the first place. I’m slow, but safe. The year before we hiked, a hiker who didn’t have an axe decided to bail before Forester Pass, and ended up falling to his death on Army Pass on his bail out route. Hikers who started the trail a week or two after we did (we started about April 20, before ADZPCTKO) had much less snow, but still carried axes through the Sierras. In June, you will likely have snow at the high passes, the main difference is how long it lasts. Is it only for a mile or two at each pass, or is it 20 miles on each side of the pass, or is it continuous? Depends on the year. Most hikers try to set up their schedule so they camp below the snowy passes, then climb over the pass late morning when it is soft enough to kick steps but not yet at postholing depths, then descend the other side and start partway up the next pass. Unless you’re on a short schedule, doing one pass a day works best for this. If you do two, you either go over a pass early, when it’s icy, or you go over the second one late, when the snow is so soft you are postholing every step. But bottom line, unless you don’t start your hike until late, you will probably run into enough snow that an axe is a necessity.
Spirit Walker
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#15
JJ, ill be doing my first pct thru hike this year as well. see you out there! i was just throwing out what i know about ice axes from mountaineering… like spirit walker pointed out it depends on the year… i think that an ice axe will give me more freedom to head over a pass anytime of day ( when snow is frozen ) and to not have to move around exposed snow slopes along the trail.
:cheers
mat