Posts by ShemSeger
I have a pair of Charlet Moser walking crampons, and just for fun, I fit them onto my 3 year old's size 25 winter boots (US/CAN size 9C): I had to cheat of course, I removed the bar that attache...
I've imagined this scenario many times: you break through a snow bridge and fall into a hidden crevasse, how should you react? The fear is, if you're wearing crampons, your foot may snag the ice du...
The answers to this question may differ based on location, but I can tell you that in my part of the world there is legislation in place for controlling populations of certain birds (as well as oth...
Longer, narrower kayaks out perform shorter, wider kayaks in speed and long distance performance. One of the reasons being is that a longer kayak has more volume, ergo more buoyancy and floats high...
It's not unsafe; really. Gyms will enforce the most foolproof techniques they can, because they can't afford to have some idiot hurt themselves in their gym. Gyms see a lot of casual climbers, an...
Climbing ropes are UIAA rated for so many falls of an 80kg weight. After that number of falls–or a specific period of time based on amount of use–you are supposed to retire the rope. But what if ...
Neither. It's important to pack your bag so that it is balanced. If you pack it too tall, you're going to be top heavy and using your core a lot to keep you balance. If you pack it low and fat, the...
Percussion Drums have been used historically to communicate over long distances in forested areas, so you could send messages simply by knocking on wood. Pick up a couple of hard sticks, and knock...
Avoiding Pump: Warm up, warm up, warm up. To avoid serious arm pump you need to do at least 15 minutes of EASY climbing. That's 15 minutes of you doing what you feel is exceptionally easy, even if...
I've shared this knot with a few members of the Alpine Climbing Club of Canada. The national representative for my section liked it a lot. I told him I was planning on naming it the 'abseil bend', ...
You do not want a 6-7mm wetsuit for spring canoeing, you'd have trouble moving freely in it, and you would overheat very easily. They use 7mm wetsuits for arctic diving. I surf and swim in glacier ...
Think of a shovel, you use the sharp edge to cut into the snow, and the flat blade to pack it down. When you're climbing soft ice, you don't want to cut through it, you want it to support your foot...
For any type of cold you want wool socks. I wear one type of socks all year-round: They are 74% merino wool, 20% nylon, and 6% Lycra Spandex. They breath very well, and keep you feet warm even ...
For the same reason carrion birds circle over fresh kills: They're waiting for an opportunity to swoop in and get some food. All the gulls see is a large gathering of humans, which typically means ...
I've seen ice do a lot of strange things, but I've never seen it do this before: Ice Circle spinning on Middle Fork Snoqualmie River (Vimeo). What causes ice circles to form?
Aside from what is mentioned in the answers to this question (How to light a fire with wet firewood?) the things you need to be concerned about in winter are the cold, frozen wood, and your fire be...
First of all, next time I'm in India I'm gunna give you a call so you can show me where that tunnel is. Second, the only real precaution you need to take is to ensure that in the event of a train e...
Fishing in the rivers around here is catch and release only on barbless hooks. The trick is to not get over excited when you get a bite, let the fish take the lure, when he runs it'll set it itself...
The real question is what won't ravens or crows eat. Ravens hang out at the garbage dumps and perch on dumpsters, the easiest way to get them to visit your yard would be to leave garbage spread out...
Birds do not typically reuse nests, as pests and parasites typically move in and use it as a habitat after the birds are done with it. Those birds who do reuse nests often don't have much success r...
The disciplines are very similar, and it is very easy for a climber to make the transition because they already have experience with ropes, but there are a lot of canyoneering specific skills and g...
Spade Hook That is very simply called an eyeless hook or a spade hook. Spade hooks are old school, but there are enough people that still say they're preferable to eyed hooks, in fly fishing at ...
So 1/4" bolts, although not suitable for free climbing protection, are apparently still used for aid climbing to hold body weight, and for alpine rappels. What I want to know is, what do you use ...
First of all, there's no such thing being too safe, do whatever you feel makes you more secure as long as you can do it safely. As long as you place all of your pro properly, then you're unlikely ...
Although always recommended, crampons and axes are only necessary for hiking on steep or slippery ice where there is fall potential or danger of sliding to the bottom of a slope and seriously injur...
