It seems that the texts and teachings on glacier travel and crevasse rescue assume 3 or 4 people on a rope, and although they work well for 3 or 4 man teams, some things don't work so well for 2 man teams, or in situations where you are switching from glacier travel to pitched climbing and back. So in that vein, here are a few notes on some "tweaks" to standard teachings for 2 person teams, or for double ropes, or for minimizing wasted gear fiddling during the critical first 4-6 minutes of a crevasse rescue.

Glacier Travel Notes for 2 man teams

• Tying in to the very end of the rope (as for pitched climbing) & clip in short (with a biner) for glacier travel makes faster transitions between glacier travel and pitches of rock or ice climbing. You can tie the spare rope to your pack rather than coiling it over the shoulder (kiwi coils) to avoid the problem that either the pack must go over the coils (which is uncomfortable) or the coils must go over the pack, which makes dropping your pack onto the rope difficult during crevasse self-extrication.
• When tying in to a 50m or 60m rope for glacier travel, if a two man team ties in 10m apart, each person will have enough coils to reach the other person and back. This gives you enough spare rope to perform a "drop loop + Z pulley" (also known as a "C x Z") haul system, which is the best method I know of for crevasse rescue for a two man team (see below).

• For glacier travel just carry 1 long prussik on the rope because it will be needed immediately in the event of crevasse fall to transfer the load off the rescuer's harness and onto the anchor.
• Carry 1 short & a second long prussik on your harness because they're constantly needed for rappel backup and as cordelette for rock anchors, bollards, etc., and anyway during crevasse rescue they go onto the rope on different sides of your tie-in knot depending on whether you are the rescuer or the victim.
• Get in the habit of always tieing an overhand knot a couple inches below the prussik knot (regardless of whether the tails are tied into a loop). This gives you a convenient way to clip a 'biner directly to the prussik, which can be used for a mini haul system (block & tackle).
• Clip a biner to your pack's haul loop, so that it can be quickly clipped into the rope when hanging in a crevasse (while wearing the pack) to keep you upright. Drop the pack onto the rope as soon as a loop of slack develops between your prussiks and your harness tie-in. (If you drop it too soon it just gets in the way as you try to set up your ascending system). If you travel with the rope running through a chest harness or coils, the load of the fallen climber will come onto your chest rather than onto your harness, and as a lone rescuer that will make it more difficult to build an anchor and escape the system.
• Each person should carry a minimum of 1 picket that can be reached with one hand, for building a temporary anchor while in the self arrest position. If you tie a piece of elastic shock cord to the bottom of your pack on each side, you can carry pickets horizontally under your pack and slide them out with one hand. You can also carry them vertically on the side of your pack and reach overhead with one hand to pluck them out like arrows from a quiver.

Crevasse Rescue Notes

• If using a prussik or Garda hitch rather than a Reverso as the autoblock at the anchor, attach the prussik or Garda to the anchor using a tied-off Munter hitch (a "Munter-Mule") for a tension release mechanism.
• For 3 man rope teams, if all parties are equally skilled, have the middle man (the man closest to lip) build the anchor while the end man holds the fall. This is contrary to conventional teachings, but this way the man remaining in self arrest to hold the victim is farthest from the crevasse lip (giving him more distance to stop if the self-arrest should start slipping). && Also, if the end man holds the fall and the middle man breaks through the surface while digging the anchor (perhaps you were travelling parallel to the crevasse, and you are all on a snow bridge and didn't know it?), the remaining man still has coils of rope for the rescue and only has one loaded rope (with two men in series) to deal with, rather than two loaded ropes (in different directions!) to arrest, potentially a multidirectional anchor needed, 2 separate hauling systems needed on two different ropes, and no spare rope to work with. If there is only one skilled rescuer on surface, he should obviously build the anchor and the haul system. The unskilled person can remain in self arrest and tend the prussik at the anchor in either the Z system or the C system.
• Favour a drop-loop system (C system) over a Z system if enough rescue rope is available to reach to the lip and down to the victim and back up and if an additional member is available to take in the slack and belay the victim up on the belay rope, because this allows you to haul over a prepared lip rather than up to an overhanging roof, which is the hardest part of getting out. But without an additional member to belay on the belay rope, there will be no autoblock on the hauling system. This makes the C system impractical for 2 person teams. && Adding a Z system to the drop loop ("C x Z") solves the autoblock problem, and is the best haul system I know of for a two man team, provided that you have enough spare rope to reach down to the victim and back up. a drop loop + Z system allows you to prepare the crevasse lip the victim will be raised over, you get 6:1 mechanical advantage (which will be necessary for a single rescuer), and it puts less force on the anchor than a "Z x C".
• Remember that it is possible to lose enough blood from uncontrolled bleeding that the victim faints (loses consciousness) from loss of blood within 4-6 minutes. Without intervention death follows shortly thereafter. Therefore the most time-critical aspect of crevasse rescue (and therefore also in rigging for glacier travel) is not for an uninjured victim to be able to ascend the rope as fast as possible, but for the rescuer to be able to build an anchor, transfer the load, self-belay to the lip, and rappel down to an injured victim within 4-6 minutes if the victim is bleeding severely and it cannot be controlled by the victim.

Crevasse Rescue for 2 man teams: Step by step

1. Stop The Fall. (if you're still moving, you're still falling!)
   1. All persons on rope team dive into self arrest immediately.
      (for 3 man teams, the man closest to the lip calls "TENSION!" to have the 3rd man take the load, so the man closest to the lip can more easily build the anchor).

2. Build the Anchor
   1. Build SARENE anchor while remaining in arrest position. Avoid burying your axe or pack if possible. This anchor may have to hold both the victim and you (as you rappel down to the victim to provide first aid) so make it fast, but make it bomber.
   2. Attach the victim to the anchor with the (long & only) prussik on the rope, using a tied-off Munter hitch to attach the prussik to the anchor as a tension release mechanism. We'll call this prussik the "autoblock" (because you can substitute other things to do the job of the prussik). We'll call the rope the victim is hanging on the "belay rope".
   3. Transfer the victim's weight onto the autoblock. Stay ready to arrest the fall if the anchor fails while you test it.
      (for 3 man teams, the man at the anchor calls "SLACK!" to have the 3rd man slowly release the weight, while the man at the anchor monitors it).
   4. Clip your personal daisy chain into the anchor for a full strength backup tie-in from the rescuer to the anchor. (consider any tension knot to be a "half-strength" system, not to be relied upon without a backup).
   5. Remove the coiled rope from your pack (we'll call this your "rescue rope") & immediately tie a figure 8 on a bight, leaving 1m of slack between loaded autoblock & the figure 8, as a full strength backup tie-in from the victim to the anchor.
   6. Unclip the belay rope from your harness.
      (for 3 man teams, the man at the anchor calls "SECURE!" to let the 3rd man know he can now rise from self arrest and self-belay himself to the anchor).

      You should now have both victim and rescuer attached to the anchor with a full strength tie-in, and at no time were either of you attached only by a 1/2 strength system.

3. Check the Victim
   1. Attach a short prussik onto the rescue rope (anticipate the need to rappel to victim & ascend back up the rope, so make the prussik an appropriate length to serve as a rappel backup above your belay device for the descent & as the waist prussik for your ascent). Self-belay yourself out to the lip to check the victim. As you unclip your personal daisy chain from the anchor, clip it loosely around the belay rope as a full strength backup & to ensure the rescuer remains aligned with the directional anchor. Take your pack & axe with you to the lip.
   2. Make visual and verbal contact with the victim and assess injuries. The one question "are you bleeding?" will tell you (if he can indeed respond) that his airway is clear, he is breathing, he has a pulse, (all of these becasue he answered you) and depending on his answer, whether he's bleeding profusely.
   3. Rappel down to victim & render first aid if necessary: Drop your pack & secure with your planted axe to pad the lip but take your first aid kit with you (run the rescue rope over your pack & clip the rope through the haul loop of your pack to keep the rope from slipping off pack and dihgging further into the lip of the crevasse). Stay out of the fall line of the victim but not out of reach (and stay in line with the directional anchor to keep it equalized).
      You must be able to do ALL the preceding steps and reach the victim within 4-6 minutes if the victim's airway, breathing, or circulation is compromised or if deadly bleeding cannot be controlled by the victim.
   4. After ABCD's have been attended to, insulate the victim & rig him for early prevention of shock (rig slings to support head, torso, and knees). To avoid suspension trauma or rescue death from blood pooling in the legs, the victim will benefit from being suspended with knees elevated & torso supported, or for an unconscious victim, rigged horizontally with the airway protected as best as you can.
   5. If you have enough spare rope (hanging below your rappel) to reach back up to the surface, clip the rope through a 'biner to the victim's harness, and clip the end of the rescue rope to yourself so that you bring it back to the surface with you (leaving the rescue rope running in a loop through the victim's harness).
   6. Ascend the rescue rope to the surface (using the same prussik used for self-belay, plus a 2nd long prussik).

      You should now have the victim stabilized, insulated & rigged for hauling, and connected to a drop-loop system if possible. At no time were either of you attached only by a 1/2 strength system.

4. Assemble the Haul System
   2. For Z system:
      1. Push your pack under the belay rope as far as possible to pad the lip, & secure with your planted axe. Clip the belay rope through the haul loop of your pack to keep rope from slipping off the pack.
      2. Tie & clip into a quick figure 8 in the rescue rope as a temporary full strength backup (you are still tied in full strength to the end of the rope and have your daisy chain clipped around the belay rope, but you are close to the lip of the snow bridge that just collapsed and a fall onto either of those would shock load the anchor) & then untie your self-belay prussik from rescue rope & tie it & as the "Z block" on the belay rope, & clip the rescue rope through the Z block with a biner (or pulley), creating the "Z".
      3. Untie your temporary figure 8 backup & return to the anchor, dragging the tail end of the rescue rope behind you as far as it will reach, thus laying out a Z in the snow. Untie from the end of the rescue rope if it doesn’t reach to the anchor, but keep your daisy chain clipped around the belay rope as a safety line.
      4. If the end of the rescue rope reaches the anchor, you can leave the load-bearing prussik on the belay rope as the autoblock (because you can tend it at the anchor and haul using a ZxC), untie the figure 8 at the anchor and use the 1m of slack you left in the system to thread the rope around a biner (or pulley) at the anchor. If you cannot tend the prussik manually, you can make the prussik self tending by inserting your belay device on the rope between the prussik and the pulley. Alternatively, you can use the 1m of slack you left in the system above the autoblock to thread the belay rope from anchor through your Reverso in autoblock mode, or through a Garda hitch (both require no tending, no prussik, and no pulley, and can be converted into lowering systems if necessary).
      5. Take in slack through the autoblock & Z system, & if using a Reverso or Garda, haul on the rescue rope (3:1) until the load is transferred from the prussik to the Reverso or Garda & remove the prussik so it doesn't jam in the Reverso (or Garda).
   3. For drop-loop + Z pulley (C x Z) system:
      1. Clear a separate lip for the rescue rope out of the fall line from the victim, but still within reach of the victim (and in line with the directional anchor to keep it equalized).
      2. Ensure the end of the rescue rope is still tied to your harness, & drop a biner (or pulley) on a loop of rescue rope to the victim (if you didn't rappel down and do it while providing first aid). Have the victim clip the biner (or pulley) into his harness.
      3. Pad the prepared lip with your pack secured with planted axe, & clip both lines of the rescue loop (the one going down and the one coming up) through the haul loop biner to keep the rope from slipping off the pack.

      You should now have a Z system or CxZ system fully rigged and ready for hauling and at no time were either of you attached only by a 1/2 strength system.

5. Raise the Victim
   1. For Z system:
      1. Haul on the rescue rope (3:1) ("Z") or if necessary double your mechanical advantage by clipping a biner (or pulley) to the end of the rescue rope & hauling 2:1 on that using a cordelette or sling ("ZxC").
      2. When the Z block gets close to the autoblock, move the Z block back down toward the lip of the crevasse (keeping your personal daisy chain around belay rope as a safety backup).
      3. Diligently watch for changes in resistance as you haul, and take care that you do not haul the victim tightly into the overhanging lip. Stop when the victim is within reach of the overhang, and clear away snow to allow the victim to pass the lip (careful not to cut the rope if using an implement!). Lower an improvised etrier tied to the rescue rope to assist the victim over the lip. If the victim is unconscious, you will have to clear away a great deal of the overhanging lip until the victim can be raised unobstructed.
   2. For CxZ system:
      1. Self belay yourself on the belay rope back toward the anchor almost as far as the rescue rope will reach (save 4-5m). Extend the anchor toward the crevasse lip by tieing a figure-8 on a bight of the rescue rope leading from the anchor down to the victim, so that you can build a Z system off the extended anchor point using the 4-5m of remaining rescue rope.
      2. Raise the victim over the prepared lip by hauling on the Z system attached to the drop loop (6:1 mechanical advantage). Raising the victim over the lip will be much easier than for a Z system since the lip has been prepared beforehand to eliminate any overhang, and because the victim is attached to a belay rope which is separate from the rescue rope, so you can manipulate the ropes individually for controlled side to side movement of the victim.

      You should now have the victim on the surface and should further treat injuries and arrange evacuation if necessary.
      At no time were either of you attached only by a 1/2 strength system.
      Beware of rescue death if the victim was hanging immobile with legs below the heart for more than a few minutes!

Lowering the Victim

• If using a tended prussik at the anchor, the load can be released from the loaded prussik by untying the tied-off Munter hitch and slowly lengthening the prussik cord through the Munter. The amount of lowering is limited by the length of the tails on the "brake" side of the Munter hitch.

• If using a Garda hitch as the autoblock, the load can be released by attaching the Garda hitch to the anchor with a tied-off Munter hitch, in which case releasing the tension is the same as for the prussik. Alternatively, you can also rig a block & tackle from the anchor to a prussik placed below the Garda hitch. Haul on the block & tackle to load the prussik, pull slack through the Garda hitch, & slowly lengthen the block & tackle to unweight the prussik. This can be repeated indefinitely.

• If using a Reverso as the autoblock, the load can be released by rotating the Reverso until the loaded rope no longer clamps the brake rope. Sling a cord or webbing through the Reverso & through the anchor & haul on the Reverso 2:1 if necessary to rotate it. This can be repeated indefinitely. See diagram at Petzl's web site.