Use of Ice Axes
Ice climbing mainly consumes upper body strength, so climbers need to have certain arm and grip strength. If your ice axe comes with a wrist strap, before climbing, first adjust the length of the wrist strap, put it on, hold the handle, and lift the ice axe vertically. The appropriate fit is when the wrist strap just supports your wrist.
The motion of swinging the axe is as follows:Lift the ice axe, slightly draw back the upper arm, bend the elbow joint slightly, and use the chest and shoulder muscles to swing the upper arm. At the same time, straighten the elbow joint to bring the pick of the axe closer to the ice wall in an arc trajectory. Just before the pick hits the ice wall, rotate your wrist forward and downward while applying slight downward and forward pulling force, enabling the ice axe to strike into the ice wall at a faster speed and better angle. For ice axes with more curved shafts, the wrist rotation can be slightly smaller.
When the pick is driven too deeply into the ice wall, removing it can become difficult. In this case, never twist the ice axe sideways, as this may deform or even break the pick. To remove the axe, repeatedly lift it vertically away from the ice wall, or push upward on the hammer or adze head, using the blade edge of the pick to cut into the ice, thereby loosening and extracting the pick.
If your ice axe is equipped with a wrist strap, learn to use it to rest during climbing. When the pick is well secured in the ice wall, you can relax your grip hand, straighten your arm, and let the wrist strap support your arm, giving it a rest and reducing fatigue.
Different striking methods should be used according to different ice conditions. For softer, thicker ice, one accurate and forceful swing can secure a solid hold. If the ice wall is thick and hard, choose a flat spot for a heavy strike—typically, the first swing should be lighter to clear any loose surface ice, and the second should be heavier to drive the pick deeper into the ice. If the ice is thin or if you’re dealing with an overhanging icicle, strikes should be light to prevent large-scale collapse. For hollow icicles, gently tap out a small hole and then use the hanging technique to climb. When chopping ice, alert others if large chunks are dislodged to avoid injury.
Maintenance of Ice Axes
Most new axes require slight filing for refinement before use. However, after climbing mixed ice-rock routes or thin ice routes, you’ll need to reshape the pick. Below are instructions on how to file the pick.
Ice axe picks are usually made of steel, which should be kept clean to prevent rusting and protected from hard impacts. Maintain the sharpness of the pick. Once you’ve gained some climbing experience, you can modify the shape of the pick to suit your preferences. Be sure to use a file, not an electric grinding wheel, to avoid annealing and softening the metal.
The pick should be filed to a sharper point, with the upper edge shaped into a sharp cutting edge. If the angle is too blunt, it will affect both penetration into the ice and removal of the axe; if the angle is too acute, it’s more prone to damage upon hitting rock. To make the pick easier to pull out, you can shorten and sharpen the front teeth of the pick. Repeated filing will gradually shorten the pick, and when it becomes excessively worn, it will need to be replaced.