Crack rescue is one of the topics that most tourers, ski mountaineers and freeriders find complex. However, the basic principles are actually quite simple and the tools are not rocket science either. Once you have understood both, you are actually equipped for all situations on the glacier. Today we would like to introduce you to the knots and equipment you need.
Equipment
The equipment required for crevasse rescue is not overly complex, but varies depending on the situation, group size, crevasse rescue techniques and strategies to be covered and, last but not least, the conditions to be expected. Not only that, but how the equipment is distributed in the group, what everyone carries or how much redundancy you plan for is also a matter of taste.
In the equipment section, we will give you a comprehensive introduction to the equipment - even if you will hardly need all of it together and some of it can clearly be categorized as "dying in luxury" - and then in the later section Example applications and types we will show you a few possibilities of what the required equipment could look like depending on the circumstances.
Harness Everyone in the group needs a climbing harness that is worn over their clothing. As it is not planned to hang in it for long and often and it will be worn over winter clothing anyway, a simple, unpadded harness with few or no gear loops is sufficient - also depending on whether there are gear loops on the waist belt of the backpack. Special alpine harnesses that you can put on without having to climb through them are best.
Rope A half rope is sufficient for roping up on glaciers and crevasse rescue (as well as any planned abseiling). Twin ropes are rarely used anymore and are not recommended everywhere according to the doctrine, but are sufficient for pure securing on the glacier. Of course, a single rope can also be used. Apart from the additional weight, there are no disadvantages. For many applications, 30 m rope length is sufficient, except for large groups (however, it is more advisable to divide large groups into two ropes). Also, the rope reserve at 30 m is often too short to use the recovery technique of the loose pulley (see Part IV). If we need a longer rope, e.g. for abseiling, two 30 m half ropes (one stays in the backpack) are better than one 60 m rope. However, if you already have a rope, it is generally not worth buying another rope for occasional tours on glaciers.
CARABINERS Carabiners and carabiner shapes are available in a variety of designs. Two types are particularly recommended for crevasse rescue: Large, pear-shaped, so-called HMS carabiners, which are excellent for use in anchor construction for the central point; and oval or D-shaped, symmetrical carabiners, which are easy to handle. Asymmetrical carabiners are particularly suitable for fixed points in rock, which are not found on glaciers. A distinction is made between locking carabiners, where the gate can be secured against unintentional opening, and normal carabiners without this locking option.
In order to have self-ascent as an option, you need at least two locking carabiners on your harness. To be prepared for any form of crevasse rescue, you need at least three locking carabiners and one normal carabiner in your group equipment. If ice screws are used as anchors, an additional locking carabiner is required for each screw.
A 120 cm webbing sling (better: a sling made of dynamic rope specifically for this purpose) is tied into the anchor eyelet using an anchor stitch and tied off in the middle with a figure-of-eight knot or sack stitch in two segments. Everyone carries this with them, attached to the rope eyelet of the harness, even when walking unroped on the glacier, so that they can quickly set up a self-belay at any time. The end is attached to the backpack with a locking carabiner over or around the shoulder (shoulder strap, lashing strap or carrying eyelet). This makes it easier for rescuers to reach from above in the event of an unroped crevasse fall with loss of consciousness than the rope loop.
HAND LOOP With a cord sling made from approx. 1.5 m of 6 mm cord, a sling can be tied to the rope as a hand loop using a prusik or cross-clamp knot if you are roped up. The hand loop not only makes it easy to handle the rope, but is also used to create temporary anchors, fix objects (very practical in exposed terrain) or ascend on the rope.
LONG ROPE CORD At least one 6 mm thick rope of approx. 5 m length is required in the group equipment for crevasse rescue. If a self-rescue from the crevasse is an option and you want to climb up independently, you need one available on your climbing harness. As cordage is compact when coiled, weighs little and can be helpful in many situations, there is no reason why everyone should not take one with them.
TAPE SNAKE At least one 120 cm sling is needed to build a snow anchor. It is better to carry two distributed in the group, which can include any umbilical cords. Instead of a sling, you can of course also use a cord to build an anchor.
PICKEL A standard pick for classic mountaineering with a straight or slightly curved shaft is best suited for alpine use. A shovel on the head helps to remove snow and superficial frost and when building anchors. As a rule, it is sufficient for such an ice axe to meet the B standard for basic equipment. An ice axe is the right length if it reaches approximately down to the ankle when gripped around the head with a loose arm.
ICE SCREWS An ice screw is attached to the harness. Ice screws with an integrated crank and freely rotating eyelet are best. This allows you to clip yourself into the ice screw with the "umbilical cord" while screwing it in and immediately have a fixed point for securing yourself. A quick and therefore good solution!
If there is no surface ice to be expected in winter, you don't need an ice screw on your harness and at most one or two in your group equipment, just in case.
ABALAKOV THREADLOCK If it is possible to build an anchor in solid ice using ice anchors, you will need an Abalakov thread and, of course, a suitable cord.
TIBLOC This small, lightweight rope clamp that works in conjunction with a carabiner is very useful when setting up a pulley and you should therefore carry at least one in your group equipment. A Tibloc can also be very helpful when ascending a rope, but can always be replaced by a Prusik or Prohaska knot tied with a hand loop.
ROPE CROL WITH RETURN LOCK Regardless of whether Ropeman, Mini or Micro-Traxion or other devices are used, these small devices are extremely helpful. They significantly minimize rope friction at the deflection point and also have an integrated backstop. You should therefore carry at least one in your group equipment. As it can also be useful when ascending on the rope, the first rope team member can consider carrying an additional one on the harness.
PULLE A simple pulley can also be useful for some applications. Particularly simple plastic pulleys that are used with a carabiner as a pulley axle (e.g. Petzl Ultralegere) are easy to carry without any problems.
RESCYOU The RescYou from Mammut is a device that makes almost all of the above-mentioned equipment superfluous and equips you for all rescue situations on the glacier.
TUBER Not only needed for abseiling, a tuber can also be used for self-ascent or as a backstop, even if the friction in the device makes the system relatively ineffective.
KNIFE A good, small folding knife, preferably with a serrated edge in at least part of the blade, helps to shorten rope cords to the correct size if necessary.
Knots
Basic: A distinction is always made between simple knots with one rope strand and knots with two rope strands. A tied knot is tied by first tying the knot in one rope strand and then tying the second rope strand (either the same end after an obstacle, such as the climbing harness rope loop, or another rope) in parallel through the first knot in the same way. Placed knots are tied like simple knots in a rope loop by tying both rope strands of the loop simultaneously to form a common knot. A rope loop is an open loop in which both ends do not cross after the bend, just like the letter omega. A rope eye, on the other hand, is a loop whose rope ends cross over each other, similar to the letter Q.
Anchor stitch Actually just a loop in the middle of the rope and not a "real" knot, the anchor stitch is used to, for example to tie the umbilical cord into the rope eye of the harness or to tie into the middle of the rope.
SACKSTICH This simple knot, often known as an overhand, housewife or pretzel knot (also known as a guide knot in Swiss mountaineering), can be used for many things. The sack knot can also be tied with two ropes in parallel or with a rope sling. However, the strong reduction in rope load capacity and the fact that it is very difficult to untie after being loaded mean that there are often more suitable knots for the application in question.
EIGHT KNOTS A versatile knot with several applications. It is easy to recognize, has good strength and is quite voluminous. Tucked at the end of the rope or placed in the middle of the rope, it is used to tie into the rope. Tucked or laid with two rope ends, it is ideal for connecting two ropes together If you are connecting two ropes of very different diameters, you should also secure the free ends with a further sack stitch laid together as a backup knot.
DOUBLE SPIKE STITCH This knot, which is not recommended as a simple spike stitch with one less turn in alpine climbing, is ideal for connecting two rope or cord ends together and is used, for example, for tying hand or prusik loops. The big advantage is that you can connect two ropes together in such a way that the rope ends leave the knot in exactly opposite directions. It also handles different rope diameters well. Unfortunately, it is difficult to undo and is therefore particularly suitable for permanently planned connections. The rope ends coming out of the knot should be at least 10 times the rope diameter in length.
MASTWURF This knot is extremely useful for attaching the rope to fixed points in carabiners, as it is very easy to open even after loading and can be moved very easily on the rope by pushing on one end and pulling on the other, so that the rope length can be easily adjusted to requirements. With a little practice, it can also be easily tied into a carabiner with one hand.
SCHMETTERLINGSKNOTEN This knot is tied into the rope to create braking knots on the rope. In the event of a crevasse fall, the knots eat into the snow and jam in the crevasse lip. In this way, they can greatly reduce the force of a crevasse fall or hold a fall completely, which both helps to reduce the danger for the person falling and makes the work of the rope team members holding the fall easier. On the other hand, knots in the rope make the rescue considerably more difficult and are therefore usually only used in rope teams of 2-3 people. The advantage of the butterfly knot is that it does not have a flat side and therefore causes a lot of friction in the snow, but it does require quite a lot of rope. You can also tie in the middle of the rope with this type of knot.
CLAMPING KNOTS Sometimes also referred to as braking knots, this category of knots has one common feature: all of these knots tighten under load and can be easily opened again when the load is released and are tied around a rope to slow it down or even hold it. In addition, the clamping effect can be easily regulated with the number of wraps; for a higher clamping effect, simply tie the knot with 1-2 more wraps. Four of these knots are interesting for crevasse rescue, whereby all variants are redundant and a question of taste - you can only get by with one of these knots for the rest of your life as an alpinist. The PRUSIKKNOTEN is the simplest and most versatile of the clamping knots. It clamps very well, so that even wet and icy ropes can be held and its clamping effect is independent of the direction of travel. Unfortunately, it slides poorly along the rope and must therefore be carried by hand and kept open, and it does not clamp with slings and thick cords. A separate loop is usually used for the prusik, but it can also be used plugged into the end of a rope. In contrast to the Prusik, the CROSS CLAMPING KNOT - also known as a clamping heist - only clamps in one direction and can therefore be used as a backstop. It also clamps with webbing slings and thick rope cords, but does not move as easily. The FRANSÖSISCHE PRUSIK is created using a carabiner, in contrast to the two previous hitch knots. It is a simple wrap knot and can be tied very quickly. It also clamps in both directions and can be opened easily under load. However, it can also become tangled and undone under load if it is not used correctly. It should therefore be used with care. The PROHASKA is another slip knot that is tied with a carabiner and is easy to move. It also clamps with webbing slings and thick rope cords and on icy ropes. However, it has a preferred clamping direction and the cord must not run over the carabiner gate.
GARDAKNOTES The Garda knot is not actually a knot at all, but just two wrapped carabiners, but it is an effective backstop. It is created using two carabiners of the same type (!), which are hung in parallel at a common point. The rope is clipped into both carabiners coming from the load direction, clipped back over both carabiners at the top and then clipped again from the same side only into the first carabiner pointing in the load direction, so that it runs out between the carabiners and is jammed there as soon as tension comes from the load direction. However, the Garda knot produces a lot of rope friction and often makes a pulley inefficient, for example. However, it is particularly suitable for improvising a backstop.
Tying into the rope
The rope team ties into the rope in such a way that the first rope member has slightly more distance than the other rope team members. Ideally, both the first and the last member have ~5 m of rope reserve, as this gives you the greatest room for maneuver. In a two-rope team, it is essential to tie brake knots in the rope, otherwise the risk of the second person being pulled into the crevasse is too high.
If the first or last person in the rope team ties in, it's relatively easy. A pinned figure of eight or sack stitch is simply threaded through the harness. If the rope is too long, the last person on the rope can simply stuff the rest of the rope into the backpack. As you never actually have to change the rope length on the glacier, this is more convenient than carrying the rope in slings around your upper body and is still quickly and easily available in the event of a rescue.
There are several ways to tie into the middle of the rope. The easiest way is usually to clip into a knot tied in the middle of the rope using a locking carabiner attached to the rope eye. Knots that can be used include the figure of eight, the sac knot or the butterfly knot. Instead of a locking carabiner, you can also use two normal carabiners clipped in opposite directions.
If you don't want to use a carabiner, you can tie into the middle of the rope using a double-placed sack stitch. To do this, tie a laid sack stitch into the rope, pass the resulting loop through the climbing harness and tie it back through the knot. Now four rope strands run parallel through the knot, which of course makes the whole thing quite bulky. If you want to be absolutely sure, secure the loop of the knot with a carabiner.
Tying in with an anchor stitch in the middle of the rope is not recommended for glacier tours, as you cannot get out of the rope under load.
You can increase your range of movement by tying a rope switch. To do this, a sack stitch with a long loop is placed in the rope and another knot is tied at the end of the loop, into the loop of which you hook yourself using a locking carabiner. However, as the rope switch causes problems during crevasse rescue and the movement on tours over glaciated terrain is usually very even, you should avoid using the rope switch if you are only planning glacier tours.
The next episode in this series will be about building anchors...
