"Going against the grain is not much fun". While not exactly standard glacier terminology, standing there with my friends, they know exactly what I'm talking about. In this photo the crevasses are running mostly right to left. To travel mostly right or left is fairly easy. But to go straight ahead is to travel counter to the prevalent direction of the crevasses, and that, is what I call 'against the grain'. It involves a lot of zigzagging. You walk left or right until you find a place to cross from the ridge you are on across the crevasse to the adjacent ridge. Then you must go left or right to another place to cross to the next ridge. It becomes rather tedious. And there's a tendency to push your limits, jump or climb in places that are a little riskier than is perhaps prudent. My preference now is to look at aerial photos before the trip and plan routes that minimize travel against the grain. Photographer: Bill Eichenlaub