Long line on the glacier

The clouds were hanging low, it was cool. Not exactly the perfect weather to tempt curious or spontaneous people to climb up to over 3,000 metre to the Koednitzkees, a glacier below the summit of Grossglockner, the highest mountain of Austria. On Saturday – as reported here – the “longest rope team of the world” should be formed there. A notary certified the number of participants of the action which in case of success should find its place in the Guinness Book of Records. Despite the bad weather 193 mountain friends roped up to a length of 600 metres. “The exercise has been successful,” said Peter Ladstätter, district head of the mountain rescue in Osttirol (Eastern Tyrol) who had organized the event.

Longer rope team on Tegelberg

It remains to be seen whether that’s enough for an entry in the Guinness Book. Afterwards the organizers were still speaking of the “longest rope team in the world”, but added “on a glacier higher than 3,000 metres”. In October 2012, about 400 employees of a Swiss outdoor company had formed an one kilometre long rope team on the ridge of (the non-glaciated, 1,881 metres high) Tegelberg in Bavaria in occasion of the company’s 150-year-anniversary. A notary was probably not present then.

Always roped up!

Meeting point Stüdlhütte

Record or not, that was not primarily the goal of the action in Osttirol. First and foremost mountain rescuers, mountain guides, the alpine police and the Centre of Alpine Excellence in Osttirol wanted to point out that climbers should always rope up before entering a glacier. In this way many falls into crevasses could end without serious consequences.