Ben Markhart Mountain Guiding

05/16/2026

Using the climbing rope to sling a boulder can be a great way to improve anchor building efficiency. But it’s about security too.

Geologically speaking ridge lines do not form gear protectable cracks as readily as faces. They tend to weather into boulders than can be dubious when acted on by force multiplying cams.

I wouldn’t want to put a cam that could pop loose if a boulder shifts. But I’m not worried about being able to pull something this big off the mountains.

Having some good solutions to involve loose terrain that doesn’t take gear well is an essential skill as a trad climber.

This is why we designed the trad climbing for mountain athletes series. To service climbers who find themselves on exposed ridges often. We focus on terrain based solutions to manage exposure in more moderate terrain.

05/16/2026

Hot take: equalization is a myth. No really, this isn’t rage bait. It’s nearly impossible to actually create “equalization” in real work loading applications.

Getting the legs perfectly in line with the loading vector and making sure they all have the same elongation is not realistically possible.

In many American professional circles the concept of equalization is no longer even taught. Our anchors are more practically thought of as prioritizing non-extending backups of each piece as apposed to a “equalized” anchor.

This approach gives you much more flexibility in your anchor building approach. Increasing efficiency without compromising security.

Well maybe it does compromise the “perceived security” of those on the internet you love to scream EQUALIZATION!! !

05/11/2026

05/11/2026

When you have bedrock splitting cracks that let you place your gear close together stacking cams is one of the best ways improve anchor building efficiency. It quickly lets you turn two points you would equalize into one. The main benefit from this is it lets you add in a third piece with a double length sling. This means a tight, high tidy anchor speeding up the building and cleaning process. I try to avoid pulling out big bundles of equalization material like long cords or slings if possible.

05/06/2026

If you want to operate on glaciers safely, the most important thing is understanding how not to fall into a hole. That being said if you want to practice crevasse rescue, the most important thing, is to do it in an actual crevasse. The rigging is the easy part, the management of the objective concerns around the crevasse are the tricky part. Practicing in a park or on a snowbank is a great start but don’t think it really prepares you to manage the real environment. Millage on and in real glaciers on a nice day is what you need to be prepared for a real unexpected fall. I still have a spot open for this seasons glaicer climbing seminar on Mt Rainier. Shoot me a message for more info.

05/06/2026

New blog post about glaicer safety for all ya folks heading up for the summer climbing and skiing season check the link in bio.

04/30/2026

Grilling freshly caught crevasse badger. maestro.

04/30/2026

I hope they survived. Thankfully snow is mostly air and I don’t think it’s possible to suffocate. At least I’ve never heard of it happening 😂. The main issue is the weight crushing the tent. The single pole tipi tent is the most common culprit. They break pretty often from snow weight. Lots of snow this year in the Alaska Range, not a small amount of tent time either. But with new snow comes… new snow! And the storms always finish off wit the coldest of the cold for some great ski conditions.

04/28/2026

Challenging conditions this year in the Alaska range. But I was thankful to have such an all star team. We couldn’t ski the things we came for but we still made the most of it. Such a fun trip guys. If you want to join these kinds of programs get in touch early. Space is limited and often not open to first time customers. Thanks for collaborating again this year.

04/13/2026

This tool allows you to retrieve a single strand rappel. While it can work with long stretches of dynamic climbing rope it’s hard to feel the action of the escaper. I prefer to use it with shorter rappels on more static ropes. The exact kinda thing you do skiing often. The escaper is an amazing addition to the ski mountaineering kit. Remember the most important job of ski mountaineering gear is: to be light in your pack… and do everything else just adequately.

04/12/2026

I find that I use different strategy’s to help an injured climbing partner descend depending—primary—on how steep the terrain is. The length of the legs of the “rescue spider” as well as the patient positioning are dictated by the terrain. If you want these techniques to work when you need them you need to make sure to practice them in several contexts. Climbing season is ramping up, get in touch about our high angle self rescue training modules for rock climbers and alpine climbers.