PETZL SPATHA
– OUR SHARPEST CLIMBING BUDDY Text: Jenny Wikman / Photo: Emelie Voltaire
"We should pay tribute to one of our favourite products in the magazine," I said out loud, and suddenly all we could talk about was the Petzl Spatha. Mentioning this knife in the Addnature office is like opening Pandora's box. And if the ice climbers and kayakers among us needed a common Mecca to turn to, it would be south-south-west down to Crolles, where the legendary brand's headquarters have been for 45 years. The brain behind the company was Fernand Petzl, who did cave research – an activity that’s pretty closely related to rock climbing. After inventing the first nylon rope in the 40s, he produced his own rope clamps and an alpinist's headlamp in the 60s and 70s. The rest is, as they say, history. Among climbing ropes, GriGris and other safety equipment, a knife probably doesn't seem to be the most obvious lifesaver. But while others might head home if they lose their passport, my climbing colleague Lotta would probably cancel her trip if she left her beloved Spatha at home. – If something happens, you really don't want to be without your knife! I've had it on every single climbing trip I’ve done. Its design means you can hang it on a carabiner on your harness and wear it whenever you climb. As well as cutting rope strings into abalakovs, or cutting climbing ropes that have been frayed by crampons, she uses it to open snack packs too,
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when the temperatures at the ice wall make taking off warm gloves unappealing. And over the years, it may be this party trick that’s picked up the most Spatha fans in her circle of acquaintances. "After having been involved in ice climbing recently, of course my friend bought his own Petzl Spatha before our climbing trip to Chamonix." The genius of this knife actually lies in two features: Its carabiner hole makes it incredibly easy to attach to a climbing harness or hiking backpack. And, weighing just 43 g, it’s popular with those looking to save weight. Even our most nerdy colleague and gram hunter Olof (boring holes in toothbrushes? Check!) admits that while he sometimes has to travel without his partner and children, he’d never ever travel without his Spatha. – For paddling, it's the first tool on the vest. Speed kayakers have special knives and mounts on their vests, but if you don’t have space for
all that special equipment, a Spatha goes a long way. They’re great for for cutting a tow line or something that’s got stuck in an emergency. Once on dry land, you could help a desperate boat owner whose nets are wrapped around a propeller. Of course, the most important thing is to salvage invaluable wreckage that’s wedged itself between the rocks on the outer side of the island! Of course, the Petzl stays with Olof even when he puts down his paddles to go hiking or skiing. Olof reluctantly admits that even though he bought the knife because it was a cool gadget for climbing, over time it’s come to have a different main purpose. – I’ve never had to use it in ’sharp mode’, but the design with the hole for the carabiner is simply unbeatable! So it’s mostly a knife I keep ready ’just in case’. If we're talking about use, it’s probably spent most of its life in the backcountry, and mostly to cut apples!
