Best Spyderco for Mountain Climbing?

[nicked.onaut]

A friend of mine *did* use a knife to salvage one of his Everest summit attempts, for a peculiar and unanticipated application. (more below)

First, though, to answer your question within the Spyderco realm, you'd do fine with any number of spydie models--Salt, Delica, Native, Stretch. On the mountains I've used and carried many others as well as these, but more from decades of "knife habit" than mountaineering essential.

Probably the knife most often recommended by experienced mountaineers would be some SAK iteration, but where's the fun in that for our discussion? (and don't nudge the PCT/AT/UL zealots--Xactoly!) . "Take care of the ounces, and the pounds will take care of themselves." A SAK may be scorned as *too heavy* (!!) (Note the major exception among knife aficianado climbers such as "The Machete Bros" of So Cal. 8-D)

Carry method and location are likewise a matter of personal preference, and you'll find your own choice. I keep the SAK stashed in a pack pocket, vs. ready access for Spydie. (knife exception: i usually carry a Skyline on Skyline/Cactus2Clouds. humor me.)

Everest knife anecdote from amigo Kurt Wedberg, (who has summited Everest three times, including North and South rtes, comped Seven Summits, and has been a professional guide and expedition leader all over the world for 25 years, and is a most humble, knowledgeable, and kind gentleman).

This excerpt is from Kurt's letter on MWSNB forum and on Cy Kaicener's site (linked here)
Cy is another oldtimer friend, well-known in the community, whose mountain mobility is no longer as strong as his spirit. .

http://www.hiking4health.com/?page_id=22" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Kurt:
"On May 21 I woke early and began climbing at 6 AM headed for the South Col. I started using oxygen from here. As I climbed I found myself getting increasingly tired. As I got over 25,000 feet my pace slowed considerably and I had trouble getting enough air to breath with my oxygen mask on. I would take it off to catch my breath then put it back on to walk. This was counterproductive to what should be happening. I shouldn’t have needed to take my mask off to breathe. When I reached the bottom of the Geneva Spur I took a break and called on the radio to Base Camp to let them know where I was. I told them I was dragging *** and was having trouble catching my breath with the oxygen system. A team member responded and said the new masks we were using by Top Out (w.topout.co.uk/) were fitted with an o-ring on the ventilator to help prevent icing and this was limiting the flow of air. I knew about this and for that reason had grabbed a mask from last year to avoid this problem. Another team member chimed in and said the older masks had been retrofitted with this o-ring. Yikes! I took off the mask and looked and sure enough there it was. They told me to take a KNIFE and cut out that o-ring and I would probably be able to breathe better. I did as they instructed and voila I was able to breathe. With my new found free air flow I was able to move much better and reached the South Col 45 minutes later."

Now for the last eight years or so, I get to hike/climb with Kurt once or twice a year (yay for 2X!); somewhere I have incidental pics of him using a SAK, lunch-cutting apple and cheese I think.

Fun topic of discussion, and thanks for taking me down memory lane (and saluting lost friends)

kind regards,
nicked.onaut

[vlawson]

Maybe I'll "knife check" Kurt the next time I see him and see what he carries in town! Ha.

[Joris Mo]

Sounds like a SE Pacific Salt to me. :)
Great user, I like something with a plain edge on the side, currently an ARK both being used hard, but for your trip the Pacific sounds ideal.
SAK on the side sounds like a great combi too, currently without serious weight restrictions so I just carry a Victorinox multitool as well.

[JD Spydo]

I think that another consideration for cutting chores involved in mountain climbing and rappelling is a classic Spyderco blade I could recommend. I remember what Surfingringo mentioned a few months back about using Reverse S blades in another thread >> Specifically I'm speaking of either the Matriarch or Lil Matriarch in both SE & PE. I do believe serrated edges come in extremely handy when using rope in any endeavor and not just climbing mountains or any other activities associated with those type of outdoor sports. I've actually contemplated using a set of PE & SE Matriarch blades as an EDC pair of blades to see how it would fare in day to day cutting chores.

I do carry my old VG-10, first generation Matriarch from time to time ( SE of course) and I've been amazed at how many cutting chores you can do with Reverse S blades. The little Spyderco Cricket model that many seem to love is actually nothing more than a minature Reverse S blade. Now I do think the Civilian would be a bit big for regular cutting chores which is why I've always personally liked the Matriarch much better. I do also like the recommendations of the Assist and Assist Salt models>> that model has a nice bulky handle which would provide good leverage for certain types of cutting chores.

[wrdwrght]

I did Class-5 climbing in the Sierra Nevada long ago.

The need to cut line in an emergency was always one slip away. I would have liked an aggressive Spyderedge blade back then. And what with all the nylon (tents, down bags and parkas) we used on our siege climbs, I would have liked a blunted sheepsfoot blade. And had I cooked other-than freeze-dried, a spatula-wide blade would have come in handy.

Heading to the mountains today for climbing and camping with just one knife to choose, I'd take my SE Atlantic Salt and feel well-prepared.