Ice Climbing (Winter) - Equipment Information

ISM has a large stock of mountaineering equipment which is lent to clients at no extra charge. Experienced climbers will find it best to bring their own tried and tested personal equipment.

Your Guide / ISM will supply all ropes and climbing hardware.

Technical Equipment which ISM can provide (free of charge)

• Rucksack
• Ice axe
• Ice hammer
• Crampons
• Helmet
• Harness
• Belay device and karabiner
• Ropes and technical hardware (the rack / ice screws)

Personal Clothing

Dressing properly for the mountains can make the difference between an enjoyable trip and an uncomfortable one. Clothing should give the right degree of warmth for the activity, wick perspiration and be easy to ventilate. You should avoid clothes made from cotton as they become cold and clammy when wet.

ISM guides use clothing and equipment supplied by Marmot ® and Zero-G. We field-test their full range of products and give feedback to the company. Originating in the US, Marmot is a major supplier of mountaineering clothing, rucksacks, tents and sleeping bags. They can supply most of the specialist items needed for our courses - to view their product range please click their logo. Examples of suitable Marmot and Zero-G products are given in italics in the list below.

Equipment List

Waterproof, breathable jacket (Goretex or similar) Nano Jacket or Exum Jacket
Waterproof trousers (Gore-tex Pro. Full length zips are extremely useful) Exum Pant
Rigid mountaineering boots (please see Boots section for further details.)
Gaiters (in breathable fabric).
Warm Gloves Alpinist Glove or Work Glove (but carrying a spare pair of warm gloves is an advantage on wet cold ice)
Inner gloves - great for walking in, so as not to sweat in your warm climbing gloves and climb with cold hands. XT glove.
Thermal Top (a wicking base layer, long sleeves). Midweight Zip Long Sleeve
Mid layer thermal Top (layers are much more versatile at regulating your body temperature). Reactor Half zip jacket and Powerstretch Half zip jacket.
Soft Shell or Fleece Jacket. Genesis Softshell jacket or Torrid fleece jacket
Insulated Jacket (an optional extra to wear when belaying & keeping warm in the valley. Ellsworth jacket
Mountain trousers combination - tough, allowing free movement and giving some warmth & wind resistance. Not cotton. Scree Pant or Murallon Pant with thermal leggings underneath
Waterproof and fleece trouser combination - Exum Pant with Powerstretch fleece tights
Warm hat to fit under a helmet. Fleece-lined woollen hat
Loop stitch socks, and spares.
Map Not essential. The guide will have the correct map. May be purchased during the course or in advance form Stanfords: www.stanfords.co.uk
Compass and whistle (optional).
Head torch and batteries
Rucksack 45 to 55 litres A simple design works best for climbing, i.e. with no side pockets or frame. Eiger 45
Small personal first aid kit (‘Compeed’ and tape for blisters and pain killers such as aspirin or ibuprofen).
Water Bottle or flask - hot drinks are great when out on the hill in winter. NB. No Camelbacks - external tubes freeze in cold conditions.
Pen Knife (to use for packed lunches)
Sunglasses (‘glacier’ quality, CE rated 3 or 4)
Sun cream (factor 25+, total block) and lip block
Trekking Poles - very effective in deep snow or on icy paths
Money (for drinks & sundries), Passport (and Alpine Club or BMC card if you are a member)
Camera - compact recommended
Training/Approach shoes (for travelling and evening wear)
Spare clothes for wearing in the valley. Marmot casual range of T-shirts, tops & trousers

Technical Equipment

Ice axe and Ice hammer (i.e., a pair of technical ice tools. Fully curved axes such as the Quark by Petzl Charlet or the Matrix Tech by Grivel or the Viper by Black Diamond are ideal for icefall climbing).
Crampons with anti balling plates, e.g. the Dart Twin by Petzl Charlet or the G14 by Grivel.
Helmet - polycarbonate/plastic helmets seems to be hardest wearing, e.g. Zero-G's The Lid
Harness - with adjustable leg loops, and gear loops either side. Zero-G Custom Adjustable
Belay plate with large (HMS, pear shaped) locking karabiner. Wedge-G belay plate + Atom HMS
Large locking karabiner (HMS, pear shaped) for belays etc. Atom HMS Karabiner
Prusik loops (x2) with snap karabiner. These are a loop of 5 or 6mm climbing cord about 120 to 130cm long which is knotted using a double fishermans knot. (Some climbers use one longer prussic needing about 230cm of cord.) They are used in crevasse rescue and to ascend a rope.
Long tape sling (120cm. Spectra tape is the best as it is light supple and strong). Zero-G 120cm Dyneema open sling

To help you make the right clothing choices please go to www.marmot.com. Stephanie and Martin at Marmot UK will be happy to answer any enquiries - tel. 015395 63616 or email: outdoors@k2-uk.co.uk

For climbing hardware needs take a look at www.zerogclimbing.co.uk . Cathy and Paul at Mountain Works are happy to help you: tel. 017683 62782 or email: info@mountain-works.co.uk. Please tell them that you are an ISM client and which course you have booked on.

PLEASE NOTE that Sleeping Bags are NOT required as we spend every night at a valley base.

BUYING EQUIPMENT For a list of recommended retailers in the UK and discount arrangements please go to our Links page by CLICKING HERE.

For Boots and Crampons - Guidance notes, please click here