A thick spring snowpack is making for excellent alpine climbing conditions. Went were able to sneak out of the office the other day to climb a steep coulior. Moving fast in the mountains is always the name of the game, and sometimes one piece anchors are just what is needed to provide security to partners while also keeping things efficient.
In rock climbing we always build bomber 3 (or more) piece anchors, but in the alpine, we build them to be “strong enough.” That is, we think about the likelihood of a fall and how hard that fall might be. In many cases where the likelihood of a fall is low and /or will be relatively low impact due to friction of the person’s body with snow, relatively low angels, rope friction and other factors – it is often quick to find a single bomber piece to back up a strong stance with your body and belay directly off of your harness. Take a look at the short video and see if this might help you move faster in the mountains.