Washington state contains three-quarters of the glacier area in
the western contiguous U.S., which totals about 200 square miles.
There are nearly 700 glaciers in the Cascades alone and more than
100 square miles of permanent ice north of Snoqualmie Pass. In
the late 19th century, following the peak of the "little ice
age," virtually all glaciers began to recede. Between 1920 and
1950 some observers considered the recession catastrophic. The
period from 1913 to 1943 was relatively warm and dry in western
Washington. The climate shifted around 1943, and glaciers began
to respond by the late 1940s and early 1950s. In Washington,
glacier expansion reached its peak around 1956-57. From that
time until this writing, most of the state's glaciers have
remained in apparent equilibrium. The article includes a fine
aerial photo of the Klawatti Glaciers in the North Cascades by
There are two popular branches of ski touring: cross-country
skiing and ski mountaineering. This article describes the
latter. The author discusses poles and skis. He recommends
leather boots, noting that the currently popular all-plastic
boots for downhill skiing are too rigid for much walking and
don't allow the feet to breathe. Vibram soles are available on
specialized ski mountaineering boots or can be added to
conventional ski boots by a cobbler.
The problem with cable bindings is that when the cable is
removed from the rear cable guides for touring, the boot can
easily twist out of the binding. This shortcoming is handled by
the use of a removable toe-iron, such as those made by Kandahar,
Marker and Attenhofer. The simplest toe irons supplement the toe
piece of a release binding, but this setup tends to chew into the
toe of the boot after extensive touring. More expensive irons
like the Attenhofer lock onto a plate on the ski and retain the
boot, allowing the releaseable toe piece to be turned aside.
A few non-cable bindings have appeared in recent years. Some
use a flexible plastic strap which passes under the boot. These
have been known to fail. Others, like the Gertsch, use a rigid
metal or plastic plate underfoot together with an accessory
uphill hinge. These are heavy and awkward to change modes, but
offer full heel lift for climbing and good release
characteristics for skiing.
Trima and Vinersa are the best climbing skins currently
available. The article includes diagrams of bindings and skins
and photos by the author of ski tourers on the Easton Glacier and
at Schreibers Meadows on Mt Baker.
This short article describes recent ski descents of steep
mountain faces, a new development in the U.S. In February 1971,
Swiss skier Sylvain Saudan skied the headwall above the Newton
Clark Glacier on Mt Hood, between the Wy'east and Cooper Spur
routes. Bill Briggs, a mountain guide, skied from the summit of
the Grand Teton, making one 150-foot rappel with skis on. Fritz
Stammberger of Aspen skied the north face of the North Maroon
Bell in June 1971, following a route flagged during the ascent.
The article mentions a few details of the descents, including
falls by Briggs and Stammberger.
Commenting on Joe Firey's article in the January issue, the
writer argues for winter mountaineering with Nordic ski
equipment--pin-type bindings, lignostone edges and
light-to-medium weight boots. He writes: "I would like to extend
an invitation to Mr. Firey to come to Jackson Hole for a
demonstration of Nordic-style shortswing. [...] I would be most
disappointed if some aspiring winter mountaineers got the idea
that skins and K2's are 'the only way to go.'"
Refusing to take the bait, Joe Firey responds by describing
winter conditions in the Cascades and the obstacles that ski
mountaineers in the range face. He writes: "The relative merits
of the two kinds of equipment can be, and indeed, all too often
are debated at length and at times with some heat. In my opinion
such debate could be more usefully directed to the question of
how best to combine the now separate advantages of these two
kinds of equipment."
Based on an interview with Duke Watson, this article describes
the U.S. Army climbing school at Seneca Rocks, West Virginia in
1943-44. Watson replaced John McCown as commander of the rock
climbing school in January 1944 and was there until June, when
the operation was closed down and troops prepared for deployment
to Europe. Watson's staff included many of the top climbers of
the day. David Brower was second in command. Raffi Bedayn was
supply officer. Instructors included Dick Emerson, Fred Beckey
and Bil Dunaway.
Soldiers were taught the rudiments of rock climbing in two
intensive weeks. They were soon doing aid routes on rock, and
mixing tactical training in with the ascents. They practiced
low-visibility climbing--avoiding ridgelines, silent rope
signals, night ascents--climbing with helmets and weapons. This
training proved invaluable when many of the men from Seneca
stormed Riva Ridge on the Italian front. McCown was a key man in
that action, and lost his life in the battle.
The West Virginia maneuvers area spanned most of two or three
counties, with headquarters at Elkins, WV. In addition to rock
climbing, combat regiments were taught the fundamentals of
military travel in rugged terrain, topography, map work,
bivouacs, stream crossings, and military problems unique to
mountainous areas. The article includes several fine photographs
by Duke Watson of soldiers rock climbing. (See also p. 21.)
This review of the successor to the Manual of Ski
Mountaineering reveals the Fireys' preferences for bindings,
poles, stoves, food planning, clothing, navigation, ski
technique, and glacier skiing.
This article explains how to add a sheet metal plate with cable
guides under the foot on a Silvretta Saas-Fee binding. The plate
stabilizes the boot laterally helping the skis track straight
when climbing. Without the plate the boots have a tendancy to
twist out of the bindings on traverses. The author extolls the
virtues of using climbing boots with these bindings. (Photos.)
A skier pauses in upper Boston Basin with Forbidden Peak in the
A man on foot carrying skis climbs the Sulphide Glacier toward the
summit pyramid of Mt Shuksan.
A skier descends with Mt Johannesburg in the background.
The National Park Service is planning to remove forty shelters in
the Olympic Mountains because they are no longer necessary, too
expensive to maintain, not in keeping with wilderness, and
concentrate impact. The author argues against this plan.
In the April 1977 issue (p.21), John R. Douglass, Chief
Naturalist of Olympic National Park, responds to Pargeter's
concerns. He discusses the Park Service reasoning and notes that
the Wilderness Act prohibits structures except as necessary to
meet the minimum requirements for administration of the area.
Interior Department policy dictates that facilities not be
provided in the wilderness for the "comfort and convenience" of
the traveler. Since November 1976 a moritorium on shelter
removal has been in effect while the policy is reviewed.
Van Brinkerhoff, Joe Firey, Ted Reyhner, Gary Rose and Ray Smutek
participate in a panel discussion on alpine ski mountaineering
equipment. Not too many years ago, ski touring meant fitting
your old downhill skis with a toe iron and climbing skins and
taking off for the wilderness. Nordic style touring with skinny
skis was little known. In the past half-dozen years, these roles
have been reversed. Ski touring has become synonymous with
Nordic style touring and alpine touring is little known. The
article contains an excellent summary of the state of alpine ski
mountaineering equipment (with photographs of current boots and
bindings) the late 1970s.
Ten years ago there was no real choice in a ski
mountaineering binding. Everyone used cable bindings, because
that's all there was. The cable system had two sets of cable
guides. The rear guides held the heel in place for downhill
skiing. For climbing, only the front guides were used, allowing
the heel to lift. The key to the system was a device called a
touring plate or toe iron. It kept the boot from twisting off
the ski when the cables were in the uphill position. Toe irons
are now virtually unavailable. The article discusses the
following bindings and includes photos of each:
Regarding boots, the panel discusses four options: conventional
plastic alpine ski boots, specially designed ski mountaineering
boots, conventional mountaineering boots, and old-fashioned lace
ski boots. Photographs depict ski mountaineering boots from
Hanwag, Meindl and Iser. All are leather buckle boots with
lugged soles. Lugged sole boots often do not work well with
releasable toe pieces because of the rocker in the sole and
release friction from the lugs. For mountaineering boots, the
Galibier Spoiler, a plastic cuff that buckles around the ankle,
adds support for downhill skiing.
- Emery - A cable binding with a 3/4-length plate and a hinged,
probably releasable toe piece.
- Gertsch - A plate binding with a hinged touring accessory that
enables the binding to be converted to touring mode. When touring the
hinge point is two inches ahead of the boot toe resulting in an
- Iser - An integrated hinged plate touring binding with releasable
toe and heel units.
- Marker TRS - A heel piece with a wishbone-shaped plastic bracket
that allows limited heel lift in touring mode, probably the most
widely used binding in Europe.
- Ramer - A hinged plate touring binding with release function
built into the ball-and-socket hinge and a heel elevator for steep
- Silvretta - A cable binding with a 1/2-length plate and a hinged,
non-releasable toe iron.
- SU-matic - A step-in heel piece, hard to find, with only limited
The group discusses skis, waxes, no-wax bases and climbing
skins. Vinersa skins are the most popular and adhesive-backed
skins are a relatively new development.
Two skiers pause on the Quien Sabe Glacier below Sahale Peak.
Winter climbers and tourers can get the latest information on
avalanche conditions in the Snoqualmie Pass area plus free
lessons in avalanche awareness and survival through two programs
offered by Ken White, recreational assistant for the North Bend
ranger district. 442-SNOW will offer a recorded telephone
message about avalanche conditions updated at 7 a.m. daily.
Free avalanche awareness clinics will be offered on Saturdays at
2 p.m. in the upper parking lot of the Alpental ski area.
This short article is from the New Zealand A.C. Bulletin. It
notes, "The increasing craze for ski descents on high mountains
is reaching a peak in Europe. A change in attitudes and
developments in technique and equipment have led to ski descents
of some of the classic mountaineering routes." Sylvain Saudan
took over from Terray and Lachenal with ski descents in the late
1960s of the Whymper Couloir on the Aiguille Verte and the
Gervasutti Couloir on Mont Blanc. More recently the Couturier
Couloir has been skied. During the 1977 winter, twelve
outstanding descents were completed in the Mont Blanc massif,
The article includes more detail about some of these routes,
including length, pitch, and the amount of abseiling.
Traveling on Nordic skis, Ned Gillette, Galen Rowell, Allan Bard
and Doug Weins completed the first circumnavigation of Mt
McKinley on its glacier system [presumedly in 1978]. The team
crossed four major passes and covered 90 miles over a period of
This article describes how to mount a metal plate on the sole of
a heavy cross-country ski boot so it can be used with lightweight,
three-pin, cross-country bindings without ripping out the holes
on the boot sole. Heavier boots were intended by the
manufacturers to be used with cable bindings but many skiers have
been using them with the lighter Nordic Norm pin bindings.
A skier descends an open basin below a ridge with a small cornice.
Two skiers reach a corniced saddle with Sahale Peak in the background.
The author of the book Cross Country Downhill describes
the suitability of Nordic gear for ski mountaineering. He argues
that the lack of progress in ski mountaineering has been due to
the continued use of Alpine gear. While Alpine gear has improved
continuously for piste skiing, it is poorly suited for horizontal
travel, thus limiting the horizons of today's ski mountaineers.
He includes a 1912 quote from Arnold Fanck about touring in the
Alps suggesting that the methods of the pioneers were more
similar to Nordic style ski mountaineering than today's Alpine
- Jaegar Couloir by Jacky Bassat.
- Aiguille Verte, north face, Cordier Couloir, by Yves Detry.
- Aiguille du Midi, north face, by Yves Detry, Daniel
Chauchefoin and Anselme Baud.
- Aiguille du Peuterey, north face, and Mont Blanc, Peuterey
Ridge, by Baud and Vallencant.
- Aiguille du Midi, Frendo Spure, by Boivin, Detry and
- Les Courtes, north face, Austrian route, by Daniel
Chauchefoin (described as the "most dramatic" descent).
The author discusses how Nordic gear satisfies his
requirements for ski mountaineering: mobility, durability,
safety, comfort and downhill capability. For mobility, Nordic
gear is superior because it allows the skier to walk on the balls
of the feet. Durability is achieved using fiberglass skis with
heel locators to reduce stress on boots in three-pin bindings.
Nordic gear is inherently safer than Alpine gear because the
boots can twist so much in freeheel bindings that it's difficult
to build up dangerous forces. Downhill capability is achieved
using the telemark turn and auxiliary techniques like stepping
and the open turn. The author briefly discusses current skis and
boots suitable for Nordic ski mountaineering.
The Northwest Avalanche Forecasting Center will provide an
improved avalanche advisory service this season using information
gathered from Forest Service, State Department of Transportation,
and National Park Service reporting stations in both the Cascades
and Olympics. Advisories will be issued before noon Fridays and
anytime during the week when the hazard is rated high or extreme.
Forecasts will be available by telephone and National Weather
service weather radio. Four standarized hazard classifications
will be used: low, moderate, high and extreme.
"X-C ski the high Cascades. Miles of groomed roads and wild
trails. Gourmet meals, lodging in wilderness shelters. X-C
A skier descends the Sahale Glacier with the summit of Sahale above,
very rime encrusted.
In his letter, William Quirk of Anchorage, AK, argues that Steve
Barnett's February article overemphasized the use of pin
bindings, fiberglass skis, and telemark turns. Cable bindings
are preferred in Alaska because they are more durable, provide
greater support, and accept a greater variety of boots. Use of
laminated wood skis is also widespread. While the telemark turn
is useful, the "bread and butter" technique for descending
mountain slopes is traversing and step turning.
The author discusses the desirable characteristics of Nordic
mountaineering boots and includes pictures of current models from
Kastinger, Track, Vasque, Galibier, Norrona and Haugen.
Referring to the recent circumnavigation of Mt McKinley on 50mm
boots, the author notes that one of the participants said that
"while they were able to use the narrower, lighter boots for
promotional purposes, if he had it to do over again, he would use
more conventional equipment, [...] cable bindings, skins, and
short alpine skis."
A man on foot carries skis up a slope with Johannesburg Mountain in