This past Sunday I had a bit of a scare. Fortunately, the incident wasn’t anything too terrible, but the fact that it occurred really shook some sense into me. It served as a blunt reminder of just how quickly – and easily – things can go wrong in the mountains.
I was in the midst of descending the South Peak of Mt. Hancock. After a fairly easy, though cautious, ascent of the North Peak, my confidence had gotten the better of me, and I foolishly convinced myself that both an ice axe and crampons were simply not necessary. The Hancock Loop trail is extremely steep – losing about 1,000 feet of elevation over the course of half a mile – and therefore is often “butt slid” by many hikers during the winter months. The constant repetition of this action eventually transforms the trail into a hard-packed, icy chute. Nothing I can’t handle. Hopping down the trail in microspikes, grasping a stray tree branch on occasion for balance, I was feeling great and absolutely certain that nothing could go wrong… that is, until I fell.
Instantly, I started sliding down the trail, my momentum increasing with frightening rapidity. Reaching to my right, I attempted to grab hold of a tree. No luck. I tried again, my second effort even feebler because I’d gained such a substantial amount of speed. At that moment, the reality of my situation really started to kick in. I’m out of control, sliding down a steep trail, alone on a mountain that’s not exactly the most popular of peaks. How am I going to stop? What will I do if I break my leg, or hit my head? What the hell is going on? Amazingly, my third attempt at tree-grabbing was a success. The forcefulness of the stop was so sudden that it caused my body to bend awkardly around the trunk. Stunned and upset, I sat there bewildered in the snow for a good five minutes or so. The entire incident – from fall to self-arrest – happened so suddenly that I couldn’t quite wrap my mind around what had just happened.
What did I learn from this event? It doesn’t pay to be reckless. There were a handful of instances this past winter where an ice axe would have come in handy, yet I opted not to use one because of convenience and/or overconfidence. It’s just not worth it. Whilst strapped to my pack, the tool is useless.
…and it’s safety that takes utmost precedence when exploring the mountains.
