WELTbewegend Foundation Alpine Skills Course

by Leanne and Andrew Mills

Aware that it may take several years of experience-building to be able to travel confidently through glacial terrain in winter or summer, the Foundation Alpine Skills Course in the Ötztaler Alpen seemed a good place for us to start. This was held July 4 - 10 2021, based at the Braunschweiger Hütte, Ötztaler Alpen, Tirol, Austria. As with all WELTbewegend courses, grants were available from AAC(UK) for eligible participants.

As trained AAC(UK) Übungsleiter (Skitouren), we’re confident when tackling rolling mountainous terrain in winter conditions. But when attempting to travel hut-to-hut in the Tirolean winter, we’ve had to plan to avoid steep faces, small ridges and imposing glaciers because we’ve not had the skills to cross these safely alone. We expected this course would provide a good introduction to the essential skills for mountaineering, and we weren’t disappointed.

There were five course participants, the other three being Rasmus from Copenhagen, Keith from New Jersey and Kevin from Australia. Our ages ranged from 30 to 74, which meant the instructor, Raphael Eiter, was required to balance our different needs, energy levels and abilities. Rafa mastered this immediately on the ascent to the Braunschweiger Hütte (2759m), in persistent drizzle and dropping temperatures. From the start, Rafa gave us deep confidence. His knowledge of the terrain and explanations of emergencies he’d attended as mountain rescue propelled us to assess the risks and potential hazards around us at important intervals.

The course began outside the hut where we checked our equipment, tied-in, relearned important knots, and familiarised ourselves with crampons and belays. We later descended onto and then back up along the snow-covered Karlesferner which, together with the Mittelbergferner, became our classrooms for much of the week. Basic use of crampons – foot balance and placement with walking techniques – included a couple of slips and some ripped trousers, but we soon each adopted a little bit of a John Wayne swagger. Roped up, we plodded upwards on the glacier with Rafa handing out beer fines for treading on ropes with crampons. Regular breaks gave us a chance to sip Marschtee and pore over maps which showed us the alarming rate at which all the glaciers in this region are retreating. Map work was also covered at our after-dinner sessions. We paired up and planned routes. We were each given the chance to demonstrate our awareness of map features and navigational ability.

Crevasse rescue techniques learned whilst hanging, undignified and sweaty, from the hut balcony were then put into practice on the precipitous snout of the Mittelbergferner for a full day of ice-climbing and crevasse rescue. This was interspersed with exploring glistening ice-caves pounded by roaring rivers of meltwater. We spent another whole day on a rock face high above the glaciers, bouldering, climbing and abseiling with increasing confidence, then tucking into homemade packed lunches picked up at breakfast for an extra €2 per person.

With the weather potentially closing in later in the week, we elected to do a summit tour on day three, usually planned for the last full day of the course. This saw a long walk up the Karlesferner to the Linker Fernerkogel (3278m) for a windy sandwich and photos at the summit. On the way down we practised using ice axes to self-arrest on snow and ice. The exercise began with an earnest Rafa correcting our technique, but soon resembled a kids’ play park with whooping and hollering as we launched ourselves head-first down a steep snowy slope to learn how quickly one can stop by clawing with just your hands, digging in your toes and sticking your backside up in the air. Such fun!

It was difficult to hold an internet connection unless standing on the terrace outside the hut. However, our Danish colleague, Rasmus, was not prepared to miss the Euro ‘21 semi-final match between Denmark and England, so he set off straight after dessert was served mid-week and ran down to the bar in Mandarfen to support his national team. He slept in his car overnight and sprinted back up to the hut before breakfast the next day. We found him forlornly staring into his bircher muesli and tried to be tactful when asking about the score.

We did not expect to experience fresh snow in July, but 3-5cm fell overnight on our penultimate day. So, the last day of the course began with us wearing all our layers for final crevasse rescue drills and experimenting with our etzl Micro Traxion. The course and the day ended with clear blue sky and hot sunshine; perfectly timed for a large cold beer on the terrace!

In summary, Rafa proved to be a knowledgeable and sensitive instructor, with a mischievous glint in his eye and a beautiful balance of humility and self-assurance. The course covered all the basics that we hoped to learn and the generous grant from the AAC(UK) meant the cost was not as high as it would otherwise have been. Our plan is to use our training to apply confidently to join more advanced summer and winter tours organised by the AAC(UK).

Hanging on a rope waiting to be rescued, practice untill techniques are right
Photo Kevin Crawshaw

Map work covered on the hills and at evening sessions
Photo Rasmus Schmidt

Course participants with Rafa
Photo Kevin Crawshaw

Rafa demonstrating rope options for bouldering
Photo Rasmus Schmidt

Kevin & Leanne learning crevasse rescue techniques in a safe environment
Photo Andrew Mills

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