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northcave
Feb 1, 2010, 2:51 PM
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I ski tour and winter climb but never combined the two. We're planning on reaching a climb by touring this March and wondered if anyone had advice?
I mean it'll be a bit of pain in the sense that we'll need to carry out mountain boots in our packs and then swap when it gets to the climbing bit.
Any advice anyone can offer regarding climbing this way would be appreciated.
Cheers
Tim
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hafilax
Feb 1, 2010, 4:58 PM
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What kind of climb and what kind of approach?
You can do a lot in AT boots if they're comfortable.
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northcave
Feb 1, 2010, 6:42 PM
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hafilax wrote: What kind of climb and what kind of approach? You can do a lot in AT boots if they're comfortable.
We'll go up to do this primarily and then also some hard routes we find when we're there:
http://www.summitpost.org/...2/la-dent-jaune.html
The ski down is off the other side but you can see some of the couloirs here:
(This post was edited by northcave on Feb 1, 2010, 6:43 PM)
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brokesomeribs
Feb 1, 2010, 8:03 PM
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Many people will skin up Rt 108 when it's closed in winter to get to the ice climbs inside Smuggler's Notch. Makes the long descent at the end of the day go by nice and quick :)
There are a number of different AT ski bindings that will accept a climbing boot. As long as the skiing isn't particularly difficult, they work fine.
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northcave
Feb 1, 2010, 9:31 PM
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brokesomeribs wrote: Many people will skin up Rt 108 when it's closed in winter to get to the ice climbs inside Smuggler's Notch. Makes the long descent at the end of the day go by nice and quick :) There are a number of different AT ski bindings that will accept a climbing boot. As long as the skiing isn't particularly difficult, they work fine.
Hmm interesting. Will try my boots in them next time i;m in the alps and see.
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brokesomeribs
Feb 1, 2010, 9:38 PM
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You will want to do a visual check that the boot welts have enough length to lock in to the ski bindings. Also keep in mind that the release mechanism will not function the same with a soft leather boot (or even a plastic climbing boot). The smartest thing to do is to check with the binding manufacturer. Just always be aware that you are risking injury to knees/ankles - never get on any very difficult skiing.
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hafilax
Feb 1, 2010, 9:41 PM
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There's only one AT binding that I know of that works properly with mountaineering boots and that is the Silvretta 500 and its variants. They have a wire toe bail like a crampon and a heel piece that works with a crampon welt.
How demanding is the skiing and how demanding is the climbing? I couldn't get a feel for it from that link other than that it looks like a scramble with some pro as a back up. Mostly simulclimbing and one rap.
Day trip or 2 day?
If the skiing is flat then XC, backcountry XC or even firngliders might be the best options. If you're using a full AT rig then you could probably use a kicker skin instead of the full skin.
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FabienenCordoba
Feb 4, 2010, 2:39 PM
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You can climb pretty steep stuff in your AT boots too. You might want to practice first but using the AT boots will make the descent quicker, safer and a whole lot more enjoyable.
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