Gavin Hess tapping into his free riding soul with air under skis and axe secured under the shoulder strap—ready for quick deployment. Photo: Adam Fabrikant
Make the pucker factor in the steeps less puckery: Here are few easy steps to master the shoulder axe carry.
There are a few ways to carry an axe while descending a steep and potentially icy slope. Often, spltiboarders will descend with a single axe in hand. Whether in the front or back hand seems debatable: riders have their preference.
Some skiers use a BD Whippet; a modular axe head that screws on/off specific BD poles/grips. We won’t go into the merits of a Whippet and its use in the backcountry—some folks swear by them, others don’t. But skiing with a Whippet, for some, is part of the steep-skiing tool kit.
Most often, the axes stay put, secured on, or inside the pack.
There are situations when having quick access to a stowed axe is desirable. Imagine you’re on that big and bad and burly line you’ve eyed all spring. The first few hundred meters of turns are steep, but the snow is forgiving and edgable. Then, a few turns ahead, a slick and shiny patch of blue ice elicits the international distress signal: puckering. This is when quick and easy access to an axe is useful. An axe offers at least an option for security in some firm conditions. You might sideslip with the axe in hand, intermittently setting the pick, and methodically work through a dicey section. You might use the axe to help anchor yourself in place (you may set an ice screw, too) and switch into crampons for a safer, more efficient descent. In either case, grabbing the axe without removing your pack is essential. By grab, we mean in a few motions, lickity split, the axe is in hand.
One kind of lickty split is having a pack offering quick axe access. Conflict of interest alert; my Apocalypse Equipment pack made by THR Gear Editor Gavin Hess, features an external ice tool sleeve. I’ve descended a slope with the axe secured in the sleeve, and mid-slope snagged the axe. I’ve also done this while ascending. It’s a handy feature. (I paid full price for the pack. )
A fine feature on this Apocalypse Equipment pack—an external axe sleeve for quick access/storage.
Sliding the axe into/out of the sleeve is easy while wearing the pack.
If your pack doesn’t feature an axe sleeve, which most packs don’t, there’s an easy option for accessing (or storing an already deployed) axe. Some call it the “shoulder” axe carry.
The How To
With your dominant hand, grab the axe head with the pick facing outward, away from your body. Then, slide the axe shaft under the opposing shoulder strap. I’m right-handed, so I slot the shaft under the left shoulder strap. Take a second, and see the first photo below. Note that the shaft is inserted in the area above the sternum strap (I tend to keep my sternum strap buckled).
Slide the length of the shaft under the shoulder strap until the pick bumps against the strap.
Slot the axe shaft under the shoulder strap (above the sternum strap + keep the pick pointed away from the face).
Here, the axe head is rotated (all the while the pick remains pointed away from the face and neck) to seat the axe properly.
This is key, and we all make mistakes, but ensure the pick faces outward, away from your face, until the axe head abuts the shoulder strap. No one wants to get a pick in the face/neck/or teeth.
Once the pick/head stops the shaft’s progress, rotate the axe head 90°-180°. The pick should be facing towards your rear. Continue to slide/push the axe head along the shoulder strap and just beyond the top of your shoulder.
Feel around and position the axe head in a comfortable spot behind your neck with the shaft pointing downward. (The shaft will likely not be positioned straight up and down, pointing directly towards the snow.) This process shouldn’t be too fiddly once you get the hang of it.
Now, with the axe’s head bumping against the shoulder strap and the shaft set under it, the tool is secure.
The axe seats nicely in place as you skittle down the steeps.
The close up—the pointy parts facing away from the vitlals.
As a precaution, before I make turns, I crane my head back to ensure I don’t feel the axe head or pick bumping against my neck. Now, make turns.
To deploy the axe, grab the head, rotate the head 90° so the pick faces forward, and slide the shaft out from under the shoulder strap. The axe is ready to use.
As they say in Cham, voilà.
If you don’t deploy the axe and continue skiing/riding along the egress, remember it’s still sitting under the shoulder strap and not 100% secured to your pack when you remove it. No one wants to see a pricey axe slip sliding away down the slope.
The idea of skiing/riding with an axe slotted under a pack shoulder strap and in close proximity to your neck and head can be unnerving to the uninitiated. The key here is balancing the potential need for an axe ASAFP and securing it in a way that does not present a safety hazard.
I’ve never seen the pick pointed towards the middle of the neck like that, I’ve more commonly seen this orientation – https://www.instagram.com/davejsearle/reel/C8R-OBptJoU/
What’s the rationale for the pick pointed back towards the body instead of away?
Hey Patrick, thanks for the link. I’d not seen Searle’s tutorial. I rotate the pick/head in an orientation where the pick (at least at slow speeds and fingers crossed) is unlikely to impale me and there’s an unfortunate fall while skiing. In the IG vid, with the pick pointed outwards, I imagine one might be more likely—in the event of a fall—to have the head/neck rotate and come in closer proximity to the pick. I’ve seen a few resources out there. Here’s Petzl’s diagram with the pick inward. Curious to know if Searle orients the pick in the opposite direction for skiing rather than alpine climbing. Thanks for sending that along. Petzl link: https://www.petzl.com/US/en/Sport/Ice-axe-usage-for-skiing?ActivityName=Ski-touring
Second opinion here – I don’t have a hard and fast rule/opinion on which way the axe should go in a shoulder strap. It seems to depend a bit on how many layers/hoods one is wearing, along with geometry of the axe and pack as well. I tend to go for “pick out” orientation with slightly more aggressive tools and a few layers/hoods on as it seems to sit better than stuffing a sharp pick into my hoods. I cant say I put a ton of thought into the risk of poking myself if I crash, as most times I am skiing with an axe in my shoulder strap, there are bigger issues if a blow it. On that note, I try my best to remember to stow the axe more securely before opening it up in an apron, both for poking hazard and loss prevention