Two ways to rig a 2:1 “C” haul

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A 2:1 haul is a fundamental mechanical advantage system for climbing self rescue.

• To move your load 1 meter, you must pull 2 meters of rope through the system.

• In a (theoretically frictionless) world, you could lift a 100 kg load by applying about 50 kg of pulling force.

• It's called a “C” because if you turn your head sideways, it kind of looks like the letter. =^)

It's common to rig this for crevasse rescue by using a progress capture pulley (PCP), such as the Petzl Micro Traxion.

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With a 2:1 haul: the progress capture can go in one of two places:

1. On the load

2. On the anchor

Here are the two different setups.

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1 - Progress capture on the LOAD

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2 - Progress capture on the ANCHOR

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• What are the forces on the anchor for each of these systems?

• If you do have a redirect like in the second photo, what’s something you can do to reduce the load on the anchor?

• For crevasse rescue, what are pros and cons of these two methods? (My opinion: I prefer to keep it on the anchor.)

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How to (safely) clean an overhanging route

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When lowering from an overhanging route, you typically clip a quickdraw between your harness and the rope going to your belayer.

This draw slides down the rope as you're being lowered, keeping you fairly close to the rock and letting you more easily clean the gear.

This is known as tramming, because . . . (it looks something like a tram/gondola at a ski resort, hanging from the cable? That's my best guess.)

Below: nice diagram from VDiff Climbing, showing the “tramming” technique.

image: vdiffclimbing.com, shared with permission

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The potential problem: when you clean the last draw.

After you clean the bottom draw and let go, you have the potential to take a huge swing out into space, because the roof now wants to hang you directly underneath the top anchor.

If you have a clean swing away from anything dangerous, then go ahead and take it, it can be kind of fun!

But that’s not always the case. I’ve heard about several accidents that have happened from this, most recently in California in 2025. The climber took a big swing into another rock which severely broke their leg and required a helicopter rescue, yikes! Don't let this happen to you!

Instagram link to the story

There are various ways to prevent this problem. Let's have a look.

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How to avoid the big swing when cleaning overhanging routes . . .

1. If you can reach the first bolt from the second bolt, try to reach down and unclip the bottom draw. This will still cause a swing, but hopefully not as far.

2. Do you have a fancy stick clip that can unclip draws from bolts? Lower to the ground and use that to remove the bottom quickdraw.

3. Can you climb unprotected to the first bolt, clean the draw, and then safely downclimb? That's an option.

4. Is there a permanent quickdraw on the bottom bolt? Leave it there; it’s for your safety.

5. Finally, if you can't remember the lower out trick I'm gonna explain below, then just leave your bottom quickdraw in place. Yes it's an expensive lesson, but it sure beats you swinging into something and getting hurt.

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Try these two methods of “lowering out”

A lower out is a standard move in big wall climbing. It’s typically done by the second when following a pendulum, or when releasing the haul bag in a (semi) controlled way from the lower anchor.

In this scenario, there are two ways you could do it.

Option 1: Use the tail of the rope

1. The belayer tosses up the end of the rope.

2. Climber catches it, puts the end through the bolt, and pulls through some slack.

3. Climber pulls themselves in close to the bolt with both rope strands, unclips the draw.

4. Climber lowers themself out, hand over hand, until they're in the fall line.

5. Belayer lowers the climber to the ground.

See video below.

Notes . . .

• Be sure and check that there are no rough edges inside the hanger that might damage your rope.

• Are you worried about rope damage, even if the hanger is in good shape? It's not a problem, as you're not putting full body weight on the rope.

• You also need enough remaining rope on the ground to do this. It's gonna be more than double the length of the lower out. 

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Option 2: Use a lower out cord

You need to pre-plan a bit for this, because it's not a standard piece of gear for sport climbing. But if you know you're gonna be climbing overhanging routes, it might be smart to have one.

Bring a 10 meter-ish long piece of 6 mm cord. (Or, you could take two cordelettes that are untied and then tie them together to make one long bit of cord.)

Similar to the “end of the rope” method, pass one end of the cord through the hanger and pull it to the middle, or to the knot connecting the two cords. Pull yourself in, taking the weight off of the quick draw. Clean the quick draw, then and lower yourself out hand over hand. A 30 foot cord gives you a lower of about 15 feet. 

The climber doesn’t have to bring this lower out cord as they climb; the belayer can toss this up to them from the ground.

This can be a good option if you want to avoid any risk of your rope being damaged from running it directly through the hanger, or if the route was a rope stretcher and you don't have enough extra on the ground to use the remainder of the rope as described in option 1.

Here's my more detailed article on lower out cords.

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• Want to see a short video about how to lower out with the rope?

• How about a video on general tips for tramming and cleaning overhangs?

• Want to learn out the gear hack (that I invented) that uses some simple aid climbing gear as a great way to clean overhangs?

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Foot haul your pack on a multi-pitch

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This tip was inspired by a YouTube video (link below) by Brent Barghahn, professional climber and founder of Avant Climbing Innovations. Connect with Brent at his website and Instagram, @avant_climbing_innovations

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Hauling isn’t just for big wallers. Even on a modest multi pitch, it might be better to haul your pack than climb with it on your back.

• Need to haul a backpack on a multi pitch (with food, water, headlamp, some extra clothing layers, maybe some approach shoes for the walk off?)

• How about on a big wall, bringing up a tagline to do a “mini haul” with all the stuff you first need at the anchor, before you start the real haul with the heavy bags?

• Setting new routes, and want to haul up your bolting equipment?

The traditional way to bring up a small load is for your suffering second to carry it all in a backpack. Not so fun for them, ‘cause carrying a backpack sucks when the climbing is hard! It also sucks to climb with all that extra stuff (shoes, water, jacket, etc.) jangling off your harness.

Don’t be this guy . . .

With modern gear such as the Petzl Micro Traxion and Petzl PURline (6 mm static rope designed for hauling), it's now a lot more feasible to efficiently haul a moderate (30 lbs. / 15 kg) load.

With a modest load like this, you don't need any fancy mechanical advantage rigging. A 1:1 is going to work fine. With a 1:1:

• To lift a 15 kg load, you need to pull down with that same 15 kg of force (plus a bit more to overcome friction).

• If you pull 1 meter of rope through your haul system, the load moves up 1 meter.

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Progress capture required

If your pack is very light, you might pull it up hand over hand, but this usually isn’t the best choice. For most loads, you'll need some way to grab the rope to hold your bag in place when you want to take a break or adjust your stance. There are various ways to do this, the best being a progress capture pulley such as the Petzl Traxion.

But yeah, those suckers are expensive! Here are some alternatives: the Garda hitch and a Petzl Tibloc.

• Garda hitch: Pros: no extra gear required, just two standard carabiners. Cons: works best with modest loads, because of the BIG evil friction from the hitch. If you do use this, you can minimize friction by pulling up on the load with one arm, and then pulling the slack rope down with your other hand.

• Petzl Tibloc: Pros: lightweight, multipurpose tool you may already have with you. Many folks think of this only as an ascender, but it also works as a progress capture for hauling. Cons: it's easy to set up incorrectly (check my detailed Tibloc article on this for the right way to do it) and it also adds a fair bit of friction because you're pulling the load over a low efficiency carabiner instead of using a pulley.

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Haul from a high point

At a bolted anchor, usually it's best to haul off of the bolt rather than the anchor master point (which you’re probably attached to). There are a few reasons for this.

1. If you're on a ledge, having your hauling point as high as possible can minimize friction of the rope running over rock.

2. A high hauling point can give you a longer “lifting” stroke with your leg, which is more efficient.

3. A well placed bolt is good for 20+ kN, an absolutely strung enough for you to bring up a modest backpack. No need to haul from an equalized masterpoint if you have good bolts.

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Haul with your feet, not your hands

When hauling, it's almost always better to use your feet / body weight to lift the load, rather than your hands and arms, which you're probably trying to preserve for the next lead.

There are MANY ways to rig a 1:1 haul. Here's one that's fairly simple, works great, and uses minimal gear.

Gear you need for a foot haul:

• Two progress capture pulleys (PCP), such as a Petzl Micro Traxion (or a Tibloc)

• A few extra carabiners

• 60 cm (single length) sling

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Rigging the 1:1 foot haul (Climber omitted for clarity)

1) Clip your progress capture pulley (and haul rope) to a high point on the anchor. Directly onto a solid bolt is fine. Pull up all of the slack. Yell down to your partner to release the bag from the lower anchor.

(Note: if you carry your PCP already preloaded with the haul rope, it can speed up setting up your haul, and minimize the chance of you dropping the PCP. I cover that in this article.

2) Install your second PCP (or Tibloc) to the haul strand. Check to see that it’s rigged ”teeth to tail”, so it pulls correctly. (It’s easy to rig this wrong; I seem to do it a lot.)

Clip a 60 cm sling onto this second PCP.

This is the point where most people would start hauling, by stepping down in the sling clipped to the black PCP. This can work, but there's a simple improvement that makes it much more ergonomic and comfortable.

3) Clip a redirect carabiner (purple) to some part of the anchor, and clip the pulling strand of the haul rope through the redirect.

Time to haul! Step down in your foot loop. The load should lift. Unweight your leg, and pull down on the redirected haul strand to take in the slack. The PCP will “climb” the rope and reset up towards the anchor. Repeat. Switch feet if you get tired.

Note that zero load is going onto your tired arms! Your legs are doing the work, as they should. Work smart, not hard!

(For clarity, I clipped the redirect carabiner to a second bolt for this photo. But it can be on the same bolt as your primary progress capture. Photo of that is below.)

Instead of the purple carabiner, if you have a DMM Revolver carabiner with a small pulley in it, that can make your system a bit more efficient.

Variation: Same system, except now we have the redirect (purple) on the same bolt as the primary progress capture.

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• How do you manage the extra haul rope?

• How can you set this up with Tibloc instead of a second PCP?

• Want to to see a video of how to set it up from start to finish?

• How about a video of a way to 1:1 haul a load that weighs more than you do?

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Find free camping on public lands with these mapping tools

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This is an updated version of an article I published 5-ish years ago.

There are lots of reasons why you may want to see public lands on a map (along with your position). Here are a few.

Personally, I use public lands overlays mostly to find free camping, so that's going to be the main focus of this article. Car camping can be great. Secluded car camping for FREE on public lands that allow it is even better!

• You’re headed out for a dawn start for a hike or climb, and want to find a good spot near the trailhead to sleep for the night.  

• You want to visit a popular national park, but of course all the campsites in the park are booked. Where could you camp for free just outside the park and visit for day use? 

• You’ve embraced some version of “van life”, and never want to pay if it all possible when you're sleeping in your rig.

• You're planning a hunting or fishing trip and want to be sure you don't trespass.

On main roads, you might see a nice welcome sign like this. But on many smaller roads, you won't.

For the most part, land managed by the Bureau of Land Management (BLM), and the US Forest Service, (USFS), allow free camping pretty much anywhere unless posted otherwise.

This applies if you don't need amenities like a gravel parking pad, running water, picnic table and a toilet. (The government-speak term for this is “dispersed camping”. RV folks might call it “boondocking”. )

This policy also mostly applies to state owned forest land in Oregon, owned by the Oregon Department of Forestry, or ODF, and in Washington, on land owned by Washington Department of Natural Resources, or DNR. Other USA states may have a similar system.

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But, sometimes it’s hard to know whether you’re actually on public land that allows free camping, or not.

Good news is, there’s some good desktop mapping software and phone apps that can answer the question, hopefully leading you to a secluded, free overnight spot with no hassles. 

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Notes . . .

• As cartographers like to say, ”the map is not the territory.” Meaning, what’s really on the ground is the truth, not the printed map or phone app in your hand. If the map says you’re on public land, but the sign on the tree says “area closed” no trespassing, or there are some grumpy locals who are giving you bad vibes, use your common sense and move on. 

• Leave No Trace principles of course apply. Is this obvious? I sure hope so. Don’t camp in meadows, near waterways or other fragile areas, leave zero garbage, toilet paper or fire rings behind, be VERY careful with campfires (if you even choose to have one) and observe all rules regarding fire closures, which are common in the summer. Have a walk around and pick up somebody else's trash before you leave.

• When using a phone app, be sure and download your area of interest when you have Wi-Fi or cell coverage before you get out of cell coverage.

• Rural gas station attendants are often great sources for good free campsites. A small tip offered for your gas before asking can work wonders.  =^)

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Desktop: Caltopo

For this example, let's look for possible camping spots near the Crater Lake National Park in southern Oregon.

Go to CalTopo.com, my favorite backcountry mapping software, and zoom into your area of interest; here’s Crater Lake NP. Choose a map layer. I like “Mapbuilder Topo”, the default.

Then, mouse over the map layer menu in the top right corner, and check the box next to “Land Management”, under the “Map Overlays” section.

Now, your map should look something like this. Note the clear boundary between the National Park land around the lake, and the green tinted National Forest lands around the park.

Now we’re talking! Look at all those logging roads (in the red box) just outside the main road that leads into the park from the west, all on National Forest land. Most of these should offer some decent, free dispersed camping options, just a few minutes away from the park boundary.

Here’s one more. This is just outside the main entrance station at the southwest corner of Mt. Rainier National Park. Check out those roads on the green Forest Service land; looks like a good place to camp for free and then go into the park the next day.

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Phone apps - Gaia GPS “Public Lands” overlay

Phone based apps of course have the big advantage of showing your real time location AND the land ownership around you. Here are two that I like. 

On the “professional version” of the app, which is $40 a year, Gaia GPS has a map overlay option called “Public Land US”. With the “pro” version, Gaia has an advantage of being able to adjust the opacity of the map layers with a slider bar, which can be a big help in seeing smaller roads and pull outs.

Below is a map legend for Gaia GPS that shows the different public lands layers.

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Here we have the map layers “USFS 2016” and “Public Land (US)”. We see a brownish tint for the National Park, and a green tint for the surrounding Forest Service land.

Zooming into the same area where the main western access road enters the park, we see all of the forest service roads, many of which should offer some good camping options.

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Phone apps - Gaia GPS “Gaia Topo” free map layer

Recently, a GaiaGPS made some significant upgrades to their primary map layer, called “Gaia Topo”. (One great thing about this layer, it's free, both on the desktop and on your phone.) One of these improvements is showing public lands right on the map. Here's an example around Mt Rainier. (Please ignore the waypoints and climbing routes on the map.)

The subtle shading on this map shows different types of public lands.

• Along the main road Hwy 706 coming into the park, you pass through State Forest lands, shown in light purple.

• South of the park is light green, which is National Forest.

• Slightly darker green is a designated wilderness area (no roads or car camping there).

• Finally, the light brownish orange is the National Park itself. Note, there is no dispersed camping allowed in national parks, but the State Forest and US Forest land should be fair game. Note there are lots of roads in both these areas; you need to zoom in more on the map to see them.

Gaia GPS Public lands example using Gaia GPS topo

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• Want to see my suggestion for an up-and-coming phone app with a great public lands layer?

• How about the GPS coordinates for my go-to free camping area right outside Yosemite National Park?

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Hauling systems: boost your 3:1 to a 5:1

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If you have a basic 3:1 mechanical advantage “Z drag” set up, and need some extra pulling power, here’s a slick way to convert it into a 5:1 system.

Advantages:

• Easy to convert from an existing 3:1 system

• May allow a small person to haul up a relatively large / heavy person

• Requires minimal extra equipment (only 2 spare carabiners and a cordelette)

• There's no change of direction at the anchor, so your pulling efficiency is increased

• Easy reset

• Because there are two different lines in the system, you could distribute this load across two different anchors.

• Don’t have a long sling or a cordelette? You could also use the other end of the climbing rope.

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Here’s how to convert a 3:1 to a 5:1.

Start with a standard 3:1 “Z” haul.

Clip a sling to the anchor. Clip a carabiner into the other end of the sling.

(If you're doing a crevasse rescue, using an untied (aka “open”) cordelette works better. Photo of that rigging is below.)

Unclip the rope from the carabiner on the friction hitch.

Clip your sling to the friction hitch.

Clip the rope to the carabiner on the end of the sling.

Start hauling!

You made a 5:1 system. Schweeeet, give yourself a high five!

• For every 5 meters of rope you pull through the system, your load moves 1 meter.

• In a theoretical frictionless world, you could move a 100 kg load with about 20 kg of pulling power. In the real world, your actual efficiency is probably about 3.5 to 1, but that should be enough to pull your buddy out of the crevasse.

• You can increase your efficiency a bunch by having a pulley at each change of direction rather than a carabiner.

• Both carabiners/pulleys are moving the same direction (toward the anchor) when you're pulling, so you don't need to reset the tractor as often.

• Definitely practice with this a few times in a controlled environment. It may look simple when you're reading it here, but it can cause some brain lock when you're trying to do it under some real world pressure.

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• Want to see an photo and video of how to set this up with a cordelette for crevasse rescue?

• How can you apply the “T method” to show that this actually is a 5:1?

• How about another way to set up a 5:1: with a distinct disadvantage to the method shown here?

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Climbing Tips: Do This, Not That (Part 6)

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In this article:

1. Boost that low anchor with a pack

2. Traversing rappel? Pull to that side

3. Redirects increase anchor load when hauling

4. Tied webbing on a tree - skip the overhand knot

5. Grigri lower: Redirect the brake strand

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1 - Got a low anchor? “Boost” it with a backpack

Got an anchor that’s pretty much flat on the ground? Ugh, that's not a very ergonomic position to belay from.

(A preposition is a bad thing to end a sentence with. =^)

Quick way to improve it: take a backpack and put it under the master point. This can add a bit of “lift” so you can more comfortably manage the belay.

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2 - Traversing rappel? Pull to that side

If the anchor below you is off to one side, say the right, try to rig your rope so the “pull” strand is in that direction.

If you don't, the ropes can cross at the anchor and create a lot of extra friction.

image: From the book “down”, by Andy Kirkpatrick. Used with permission. andy-kirkpatrick.com

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3 - Hauling systems: Redirects increase load on the anchor

Sometimes, redirecting your pull through the anchor with a hauling system can be convenient or ergonomic.

However, keep in mind that a redirect increases the force applied to the anchor.

If you have an anchor that you're not very thrilled about, like maybe a vertical picket in snow, this could be important.

In the diagram below, we have a 100 kg load with a 2:1 mechanical advantage haul system.

• On the left: no redirect. When hauling, about 0.5x the pulling force goes onto the anchor.

• On the right, redirect. When hauling, about 1.5x the pulling force goes onto the anchor. That’s a big difference!

This diagram was made with some cool software called vRigger. Learn more about it at this article.

(In the diagram on the right, you can ignore the green prusik that's randomly attached to the rope. That should be clipped to the red carabiner at the top, sorry about that.)

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• If you tie a strand of cord or webbing around a tree for an anchor, why can you skip a masterpoint knot?

• Why is redirecting the brake strand a critical step if you're lowering someone with a Grigri?

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What's in my pack: Gear obsession by Colin Haley

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I have another “What's in my pack” article featuring Colin, about his clothing systems. You can check that out here.

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image: https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=78366966

Check out this great interview with American alpinist Colin Haley, as he takes a deep dive into his obsession with climbing gear.

The link to the YouTube video is below.

Here are a few quotes and highlights I thought were especially interesting.

I added a time stamp for the video so you can find that part fast.

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• “I personally tweak out about climbing gear to a very small level of detail."  =^)

• “There are trade-offs to everything. Every gear choice is maximizing some quality at the expense of some other quality.”

• What piece of alpine climbing clothing did Colin have a big role in designing for Patagonia? (M10 pant, 18:00)

• Colin often wears a hard shell pant and a soft shell jacket on his climbs, which is the exact opposite of most people. Why is that? (Because it's more common for your butt to be in the snow than your torso. 19:50)

• What’s the small Slovenian company that makes some of Colin's favorite functional and low-cost pitons? (climbready.eu, 20:15)

• What's Colin's favorite old-school bit of tech for listening to “mountain motivator” music on a route? (Ipod Shuffle, 23:50)

• Why is a top quality headlamp such a crucial piece of gear? (Colin calls is the “1 essential,” because it lets you keep pushing on when it gets dark, to maybe find a much better place to bivy. If you don't have a good headlamp, you’re stuck as soon as it gets dark. 51:30)

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The complete article has answers and time stamps to these questions:

• What are the pros and cons of internal tent sleeves versus external?

• What are some considerations for choosing the correct crampons?

• What’s a simple way you can keep your tent from blowing away when you're out climbing?

• What's the one type of climbing gear that Colin thinks has the most potential for improvement?

• What’s a clever modification Colin did to his helmet to make it more suitable for cold weather climbing?

• What modification did Colin make to his crampons that he really likes?

• What's Colin's favorite water bottle?

• Which climb did Colin learn the most from?

  Get the answers to all these, and the time stamps to the video for each one . . . and the link to the video itself at the Premium Member article.

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How strong is it? ANCHORS (Part 1)

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This section of my website is where I satisfy some of my curiosities (and hopefully some of yours) about the actual breaking strength of anchors, gear, and knots.

If you're new to this part of my website , I suggest you start at the overview page, and then bounce back here.

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What's on this page?

1. What are the forces on the anchor when rappelling?

2. How strong is an overhand knot anchor in a nylon sling?

3. How strong is an overhand knot anchor in a Dyneema sling?

4. How strong is a girth hitch master point anchor with Dyneema?

5. How strong is a girth hitch master point anchor with Dyneema, if one strand gets cut?

6. How strong is a girth hitching a Dyneema sling to a carabiner?

7. How strong is a girth hitching a Dyneema sling to a bolt hanger?

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1 - What are the forces on the anchor when rappelling?

• If you bounce around on the rappel rope like a special forces cowboy, you can generate between 2 and 3 kN as a temporary peak load.

• When you rappel smoothly, the load to the anchor is pretty much your body weight.

• Source / testing: Youtube: What can go wrong when connecting two ropes? [dubbed]

Something we've all wondered when leaning back on a rappel anchor that’s Less Than Ideal . . . How strong does this thing really need to be? The gear experts at Edelrid did some testing, here's the answer.

Takeaway: rappel smoothly without bouncing to minimize force on the anchor.

image: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A7rKGDxrdTA

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2 - How strong is an overhand knot anchor in a nylon sling?

About 26 kN.

• Source / testing: YouTube, You aren't supposed to tie a knot in this, Start around 15:50

One of the most common ways to make an anchor. Simple, easy to check, fast, redundant, and probably hard to untie.

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3 - How strong is an overhand knot anchor in a Dyneema sling?

About 21 kN.

• Source / testing: YouTube, You aren't supposed to tie a knot in this, Start around 11:00

While many people prefer to avoid tying knots in Dyneema, many folks think it's no problem. Again, this is a common and simple way to make an anchor.

Dyneema is less strong than nylon, but it's still #SuperGoodEnough for climbing. (Just don't expect to ever untie it . . .)

Takeaway:

• If you double a sling like with the basket hitch, you get double the strength.

• When you tie a knot in the doubled sling, you reduce the doubled strength by about half. So in the end, that leaves you with something close to the MBS for the original material.

• We see this in both the nylon and Dyneema sling in the last two examples.

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4 - How strong is a girth hitch master point anchor with Dyneema?

About 27 kN.

• Source / testing: YouTube, Are climbing master points made with a girth hitch or clove hitch REDUNDANT??? Start around 7:00

The girth hitch master point is a modern standard for many climbers. Good to know it's super strong! And yes, it's redundant if one strand gets cut. Read my whole article on it here.

image: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-MmX8h4F0po

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• How strong is a girth hitch master point anchor with a cut strand?

• How strong is a girth hitching a sling to a carabiner?

• What about girth hitching a sling to a bolt hanger?!

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How strong is it? OVERVIEW

Most climbing gear is tested and rated by Official Entities such as the CE and the UIAA. This is great! It gives us confidence that gear from brand-name manufacturers is made to the highest standards.

But not everything climbers use is covered by these ratings.

• What about anchor rigging and knots?

• What about rated gear that's old, a bit worn, a bit abused, but still hopefully serviceable?

• What about gear that may be appropriate for climbing, but may not be officially rated by these agencies?

These are important questions.

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My friend Ryan Jenks from HowNOT2.com has made an entire YouTube channel and brand based on breaking and testing climbing gear. (Give his YouTube a follow if you’re not already.)

The thing is, he's almost too successful. He's done so much testing that sometimes it's difficult to find the exact topic you’re interested in.

(To be fair, YouTube does a pretty good job of indexing his articles. If you go there and search for the term you want, you might find a video that covers it.)

• So, I took some select tests (mostly from Ryan) and made a series of articles covering anchors, gear, and knots.

• It's nowhere close to an exhaustive summary of all possible gear and rigging. It's more of a collection of Ryan's test results about which I was personally curious.

• To keep things manageable, I have about 7 results on each article. As my curiosity continues (or I get submissions from Alpinesavvy fans like you) to add to this page, I will add part 2, part 3, etc…

• I have links to sources and test results where appropriate.

• If you have a new break test question / idea (and hopefully have a source for test results), please let me know about it and I might include it.

• If you join Alpinesavvy as a Premium Member, you’re entered into monthly gear giveaways and regular discounts from Ryan’s store, hint hint.

Disclaimer: Yes, some of these test results are limited by the number of tests, to a specific manufacturer, they might be a static pull and maybe not drop tower, or vice versa, your mileage may vary, and blah-blah-blah. It's designed to give you a data point, not to apply universally to every situation. And as Ryan likes to say, this is entertainment, not science.

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Basic premise #1 - What’s a kilonewton (kN?)

Let's start with the basics. A kilonewton is a metric unit of force, equal to the weight of about 100 kg or 225 pounds.

The way I like to think of it: one kN is the average weight of one NFL football player, more or less.

So, imagine this: A skinny 8 mm dynamic sling that's rated to 22 kN can hold about 22 football players all hanging off of it at the same time!

Yes, that is kind of crazy to think about! Yes, most all of the gear we use is impressively strong!

Fun facts . . .

• the “N” is capitalized in “kN” because it refers to the last name of Sir Isaac Newton.

• There are only three countries in the world that don’t use the metric system. Myanmar, Liberia, and ‘Merica. Metric measurements are the international standard of pretty much everything, especially climbing, and that's what this ‘Merican is using.

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Basic premise #2 - What's the maximum force possible in recreational climbing?

About 9 kN.

• Source: Engineer and climbing book author Craig Connally, from his book, The Mountaineering Handbook.

This is a somewhat challenging question to answer, but arguably the most important when it comes to talking about the strength of our gear and systems.

If the maximum possible force that you can ever create outside is around 9 kN, to me it seems kind of silly to argue about things like, “you shouldn’t girth hitch a Dyneema sling to a carabiner, it makes it weak!”, when it turns out it actually holds about 18 kN. (Which is stronger than your rope . . . )

A few things to keep in mind . . .

• This maximum force can only happen in the very rare case of a factor 2 fall onto the anchor, which 99% of climbers will never experience.

• There are various ways to avoid a factor 2 fall. Probably the best one is to place solid gear as soon after the anchor as possible on a multipitch climb.

• This number will probably always remain somewhat theoretical, because you can't test factor 2 falls with a real humans, because they’ll get injured.

• Testing in a drop tower with a concrete weight creates forces much higher than can happen in the real world . That's largely because of the squishy human body. Learn more about that here.

• Here are some realistic scenarios involving real people, tested by Petzl and HowNOT2. Spoiler: Factor one fall, maximum force about 6 kN on the top piece of gear. Here's my article on that.

Climbing Tips: Do This, Not That (Part 5)

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In this article:

1. First rappeller to the ground - untie the stopper knots

2. Grigri direct belay from anchor - handle away from the rock

3. Carry your satcom device securely stowed away, not on your pack strap

4. Shorten your sewn pocket daisy chain the correct way

5. Tree anchors - Keep the slings low

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1 - First rappeller to the ground - untie the stopper knots

Once you’re on the ground, there’s no reason to have a stopper knots in the rope.

So here's a task for the first person down: untie them!

This completely eliminates the very common problem of the final person reaching the ground, with some relief and maybe distraction, somebody starts pulling the rope, and . . . you see the knot rising above you, maybe out of reach, and you instantly have a Big Problem.

(Ask me how I know about this, I've done it a couple of times!)

If the first person down removes the knots, this will never happen.

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2 -Grigri direct belay from anchor - handle away from the rock

When belaying up your partner directly off the anchor with a Grigri, try to rig it so the Grigri handle is away from the rock.

If the Grigri handle is against the rock, it might prevent the cam from properly engaging. It also might be harder to grab the handle if you need to lower your partner.

(Most of the time your Grigri will probably be free-hanging in space and not rubbing against the rock, but this is still something to watch for.)

You may need to add an extra short sling or locking carabiner to do this, depending on the anchor configuration.

Here's an attention-grabbing caution from the Petzl website.

image: petzl.com

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3 - Carry your satcom device securely stowed away, not on your pack strap

If you carry a satellite communication device, put it securely in your backpack or maybe a well zippered pocket.

Don't carry it jangling around on your packstrap.

You wouldn't carry your phone bouncing around on your backpack strap attached with only a carabiner. Why would you do it with your satcom device?

Security is more important than accessibility.

I have a detailed article that talks about the pros and cons of different ways to carry your satcom, device; check the link above.

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• Wanna learn the correct way to shorten your daisy chain?

• What are the pros and cons of having an anchor down low near the ground when you're using a tree?

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The “fish eye” anchor

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This article was written with advice and peer review from IFMGA Guide Joshua Jarrin. Connect with Joshua on Instagram, @Joshua Jarrin

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Check out this photo.

It's from a 2022 training manual published by ENSA (École Nationale de Ski et d'Alpinisme) or French National Mountain Guide School.

IFMGA Guide Joshua Jarrin Joshua sent it to me.

I already knew about the rigging on the left, a bowline on a bight for a two piece vertical anchor.

But what about that diagram on the right, for three placements? That got my wheels turning, and I started experimenting . . .

Image: ENSA

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A double loop bowline on a bight (aka “BoB”) tied in a 120 cm sling can be a great starting point to build a solid anchor.

That nice round bowline loop? Looks something like a fisheye, I suppose, hence the name as explained by Joshua.

image: By Lowe - Naturalis Biodiversity Center, Public Domain, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=41730469

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It's especially useful when you have vertically offset anchors. Clip the fisheye loop to the bottom anchor, and clove hitch the sling to the top anchor. Typically, this is used with two offset bolts or maybe two ice screws.

This is known as a series anchor. All of the load goes onto the bottom placement, and the top placement is for a backup. Equalization, no, redundancy, yes.

Here's a series anchor on two vertical bolts.

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What’s cool about the fisheye anchor?

• Tie the double loop bowline on the ground. Keep it place and use it all day.

• Uses a standard piece of gear (120 or 60 cm sling) that most everybody carries, as opposed to a 180 /240 cm sling or cordelette. 

• If using bolts that are close together, you can probably use a 60 cm sling. 

• Efficient use of materials. You can make a solid 3 piece anchor with a 120 cm sling, which normally is kind of tricky.

• Unlike a pre-tied quad, this has zero welded knots to untie either on your climb or at the end of the day. Bowlines are easy to untie, even after a bog load.

• Unlike a pre-tied quad, this adjusts easily just for anchors that are vertically offset (like the photo above.)

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How about a fisheye with three anchor points instead of two?

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Let's break this down, step by step.

Step 1: Get out your pre-tied fisheye loop in a 120 cm sling. Place three pieces of gear, ideally fairly close together.

Step 2: Clip the fisheye loop to the bottom piece of gear, which is hopefully the strongest.

Step 3: Girth (or clove) hitch one strand of the sling to the middle and top pieces of protection. Adjust the hitches as needed to minimize slack between placements.

Step 4: Clip master point carabiner into the fisheye loop.

Optional bonus: the extra slack in your sling makes a clip in point for hanging a backpack, rope coils, etc. Tie an overhand in the extra as shown in the photo, if you want to keep everything redundant.

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• How does the fisheye anchor work in two horizontal placements?

• What are some handy things you can do with the extra bit of sling?

• What are the pros and cons of a girth hitch versus clove hitch?

• How does this compare to the girth hitch master point?

• How about a video on how to actually tie it?

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Using the “T method” to calculate mechanical advantage

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For climbers, mechanical advantage (MA) systems are used in self rescue, and in big wall climbing to lift heavy haul bags. They're also helpful for getting your truck out of the ditch, pullings stumps in your garden, hoisting sails on a boat, building pyramids, and other useful life applications.

Even if you have a basic understanding of how they work, some of the more esoteric ones make most folks (like me) get cross-eyed counting all the strands and trying to figure out the MA!

Fortunately, there is a pretty straightforward way to figure out the theoretical MA of any system, using math that you learned in the third grade: The T method.

The method assigns a T (Tension) value to each rope segment. You add up the tensions at various points in the system to determine the overall mechanical advantage. 

It's particularly useful for more complicated systems beyond a basic 2:1 and 3:1.

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Here’s how the T method works.

1. Start with “1”. Begin with a value of 1 “tension” at the point where you pull on the rope. Think of tension as how much force you (and maybe your pals) are pulling on the haul strand.

2. Follow the tension. Trace the tension through each pulley and other components of the system. 

3. Adding the tensions:

   • At each pulley (aka change of direction), the tension on the rope entering and exiting the pulley is EQUAL. 

   • At the pulley “eye” (aka, the thing the pulley is clipped to) the tension is the SUM of the tension on the rope entering and exiting the pulley. For example, if 1 tension enters the pulley, then 2 tensions are applied to whatever the pulley is clipped to. If 2 tensions enter the pulley, then 4 tensions get applied to the pulley clipping point.

   • When tensions join (e.g., at a prusik hitch), you ADD the values. 

4. Mechanical advantage:

   The final tension value at the load is the mechanical advantage of the system. 

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Does this sound a bit dry and complicated? That's how I felt when I first heard of it.

But, after you try it a few times, it's quite simple. If you're even slightly a mechanical advantage nerd like I am, it's actually kind of fun!

Let's look at some examples of a 2:1, 3:1, and a 6:1.

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Let's start with the easiest system, a 2:1 (aka the “C pull”)

To move the load 1 meter, you need to pull 2 meters of rope through the system.

In a theoretical frictionless world, you could lift a 100 kg load by pulling with about 50 kg of force.

(Note: in this example, the progress capture pulley is attached to the load, not the anchor.)

• Begin with an input of 1, you pulling on the rope.

• That input force of 1 is doubled to 2 when it changes direction at the red progress capture pulley. That gets applied to the load.

• The input force of 1 comes out the other side of the red pulley, remaining at 1, and then goes onto the anchor.

• Summary of a 2:1 MA system:

  • 2 units of tension go to the load.

  • When you’re pulling, 1 unit of tension goes to the anchor.

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Got that? Good, let’s look at a 3:1 system (aka the “Z pull”)

To move the load 1 meter, you need to pull 3 meters of rope through the system.

In a theoretical frictionless world, you could lift a 100 kg load by pulling with about 33 kg of force.

• Begin with an input of 1, you pulling on the rope.

• That input force of 1 is doubled to 2 when it changes direction at the blue pulley. That gets applied to the prusik that the pulley is clipped to.

• The input force of 1 comes out the other side of the blue pulley remaining at 1. That travels to the red progress capture pulley on the anchor, where it's doubled to 2.

• The input force of 1 continues at the left side of the red pulley down toward the load. Here it says “hello!” to the yellow prusik, which has a force of 2.

• We add these together to get 3, the force applied to the load.

• Summary of a 3:1:

  • 3 units of tension go to the load.

  • When you’re pulling, 2 units of tension go to the anchor.

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OK, you got all that? Sweet! Let's step it up to a 6:1.

In this example, we’ll start with a 3:1 Z drag, and then make a 2:1 C pull (with a separate cord) on top of it. This rigging is also known as a “C on a Z”.

To move the load 1 meter, you need to pull 6 meters of rope through the system.

In a theoretical frictionless world, you could lift a 100 kg load by pulling with about 17 kg of force.

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• How want to learn how to apply the T method to figure out a 6:1?

• What's the difference between theoretical and real world MA?

• How can real world MA improve by using pulleys in different places?

• How about a link to a great YouTube video that describes the T method in even more detail than this?

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Rappelling into the unknown

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Some tips in this article came from collaboration with Adam Fleming. Adam is an AMGA Certified Rock Guide based in Utah. Connect with Adam: @adam.fleming.climbs, and his website.

I also posted this question on Mountain Project and got some helpful answers from a variety of people. I’m not going to credit all of them directly, but if you're reading this and see your words below, thank you!

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photo: Andy Kirkpatrick, from his excellent book “Down”, used with permission

All alpine climbers have to deal with rappelling down an unknown or unfamiliar route.

• Maybe it's an established rappel route, but you don't know where the anchors are.

• Perhaps you’re heading down a “non-standard” rappel route, and you know you're gonna have to deal with anchor building as you go down. (Also known as, potential epic in progress . . . =^)

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Before we get into it, I'm gonna give a shout for Andy Kirkpatrick’s outstanding book on everything to do with getting down mountains.

Appropriately called “Down”, I consider this mandatory reading for any climber. (You can tell by the beat-up cover and the many bookmarks that I've read this many times!) Support your local independent bookstore.

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Keep track of the big picture.

Whatever it is, it's easy to get drawn into the micro details of route finding and lose track of the bigger issues. As you descend, keep asking yourself these questions to keep track of the overall picture:

• How far have we descended?

• How far off the ground are we?

• How long until dark?

• How much gear do we have left?

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First, let's have a look at the “established rappel route, but you don't know where the anchors are" situation.

• Check the route topo, or any other source you might have access to, for descent beta. Are you looking for bolted stations or natural anchors? How long a rope do you need? Can you do it with one rope or do you need two? How many total rappels are there? Is it an older route that might have been bolted with a 50 meter rope that was standard at the time, or a newer route that might use something longer? Having an overview like this in your mind before you start down can help a bunch.

• Rappel slowly, and expand your awareness to look down, left, and right. Try to think like the first person down the route making the anchors. Where would you put them? What's a logical spot, like ledges? Focus on those.

• In soft rock, sometimes rope marks, or grooves toward one side, might tell you where the next anchors are.

• If you come across a gear anchor that has a pre-equalized sling pointing to one side or another, that probably tells you which way you should be heading for the next anchor.

• All existing anchors are guilty until proven innocent, especially if the route doesn’t get much traffic. Check everything you come across thoroughly. Be prepared to cut out old crap webbing and add your own good stuff.

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Second, let's look at the more complicated situation: heading down a “non-standard” rappel route.

1. Examine the terrain (and the beta) before you commit

2. Practice making retreat anchors

3. First person down takes the rack

4. Use “block rappelling”

5. Consider lowering the first person

6. Be prepared to ascend the rope

7. Consider rigging with a Munter Mule Overhand (MMO)

8. Be ready to “extend” your rappel rope if needed

9. Dealing with loose rock

10. Look for natural anchors

11. Can you downclimb?

12. Can you traverse to another better rappel route?

13. Consider the “shiver bivy”

14. Leave the rope

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Examine the terrain (and the beta) before you commit

If you commit to going down a gully, or side of a ridge line, you may be very attached to that choice. So think carefully before you do it!

Personal story: Coming off the summit of Mt. Thomson in North Cascades of Washington, my buddy and I saw a perfect rappel anchor on a stout tree that headed off down a gully. We rigged it, rapped it, pulled the rope . . . and realized a minute or so later that we were definitely off the standard route. A very sketchy traverse got us back to safe ground, but it was NOT fun!

We followed someone else's error instead of reading the topo / route description, which would've (correctly) told us to continue on the ridge another 50 meters or so to a short and easy rap.

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Practice making retreat anchors

There are a few special techniques you can pull out of your #CraftyRopeTrick toolbox when you need to build rappel anchors.

I cover lots of them in my articles on alpine retreat anchors, Part 1 and Part 2.

• Bring 6-ish meters of 6 mm cord in the bottom of your pack, and/or be ready to cut up your cordelette.

• Bring a knife.

• Wrap a bit of athletic tape around the spine of a few of your least favorite carabiners, to leave behind as your masterpoint as a “cheapskate locker.”

Here's one method to equalize two placements for a retreat anchor: Stopper and a piton, about 2 meters of 6 mm cord, flat overhand bend to connect the ends, girth hitch master point, cheapskate locker: good to go!

Practice alternative anchor techniques like this on the ground before you ever have to use them for real.

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First person down takes the rack

The first person down might well have to make their own anchor, so it makes sense that they should have the rock gear with them, and most of the extra cord / webbing, and a knife.

If you're doing this in the dark (extra bonus points!) give the best headlamp to the first person down.

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Use “block rappelling”

Block leading when going up means the same person leads several pitches in a row, rather than alternating leads every pitch. This can also be a good practice when rappelling multiple pitches. Typically this will be the most experienced person, but not always. This allows one person to have all the gear that they need and not be handing it back-and-forth, and to get into the mindset of focus, efficiency, and minimizing risk.

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Consider lowering the first person

The first person down might need to pendulum back-and-forth to reach an appropriate anchor, build a new anchor, or climb back up the rope if they go too far. For all of these situations that require use of your hands, it’s probably less risky for them to be on a proper belay from the top.

This can also be helpful if you’re heading down with lots of loose rock around you, because anything you kick down can't fall and potentially damage the rope that's below you.

Here’s a much more detailed article I have about lowering your partner.

There are a couple of ways to lower your partner.

The simplest: lower them on one strand. Of course, this requires solid communication so they don't get lowered too far. Might be a good place for some radios, or at the very least good visual line of sight.

Another option is slightly more complicated but gives sort of the best of both worlds. You can tie off the middle of the rope at the anchor to isolate each strand, have the climber rappel single strand while being belayed on the other strand. This gives the rappeller full control over where they stop, with the security being on belay from above so they can go hands-free to swing around, build an anchor, climb up the rope, etc.

A bonus for this method is that the second strand of the rope is carried down by the first person, with no chance forward to get tangled, blown around, etc.

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Be prepared to ascend the rope

If you need to go back up the rope for any reason, it's good to rig in advance to make this as easy as possible. As mentioned above, if you’re rapping a single strand with a Grigri, ascending a rope becomes quite a bit easier.

There are several ways to do this, I cover them in this article.

If you’re rappelling double strand on an extended rappel device, here's a simple technique that allows you to ascend the rope, covered in this article.

Carry a friction hitch or two (especially one that slides easily like a Sterling Hollowblock) and be ready to use it.

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Consider rigging with a Munter Mule Overhand (MMO)

In some cases, such as if you think you might need to rappel more than half the length of your rope, rigging with an MMO on the top anchor can be a great idea.

Doing this allows, the first person down to rap single strand, with the rope locked off at the top by the MMO.

If the first person down finds an anchor before they get to the end of the rope, great.

If they don't, their partner up top can release the MMO and lower them down on a the Munter hitch a bit more until they hopefully find an anchor spot.

If the first person went too far, and they can climb up a bit, the Munter allows them to be easily belayed up.

If you anticipate doing this, the first person down should be tied into the end of the rope rather than relying on a stopper knot.

So now what happens to the person up top? That's the next tip!

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Want to learn more tips about descending an unknown route, such as:

• “Extending” your rappel rope

• Dealing with loose rock

• Look for natural anchors

• Can you downclimb?

• Can you traverse to another route?

• Consider the “shiver bivy”

• Leave the rope

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Climbing Tips: Do This, Not That (Part 4)

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In this article:

1. Backup that single strand rappel anchor

2. Use modern hardware when maintaining or establishing a route

3. Use color coded “rack pack” carabiners for your cams

4. Klemheist ver 2.0: stitching IN the knot

5. Rack your Connect Adjust with a slipknot

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1 - Backup that single strand rappel anchor

At some point in your climbing adventures, you’ll probably come across a rappel anchor like what's in the photo below on the right.

Do you want to rely ONLY on a single strand of skinny cord in any part of your climbing system? I didn't think so. So don't settle for that in a rappel anchor.

If you find an anchor like this, you can back it up by simply tying another piece through the existing ring / quicklink.

This is one more good reason to carry some spare 6 mm cord. It's useful for all kinds of things. For a stout tree like this, you need about 2 meters of cord for each strand.

(For the redundancy police, who may be concerned about that single point, non redundant rappel ring, don't worry about it. It's rated to 30+ kN and it’s never gonna break.)

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2 - Use modern hardware when maintaining or establishing a route

I volunteer for the High Desert Climber’s Alliance, my Local Climbing Organization (LCO) in central Oregon, and assist with their bolt replacement projects at Smith Rock State Park.

The photo below shows some side-by-side hardware from a recent project: we pulled the old crusty expansion bolt and hanger on the right, and replaced it one of these beautiful stainless steel glue ins on the left.

Use stainless steel in just about every outdoor environment. (The exception might be titanium in a coastal area.) Stainless steel corrodes much more slowly. This applies to the “internal” hardware that’s in the rock, as well as the “external” hardware, like hangers, quicklinks, rings, and chains.

The old argument of “galvanized (non-stainless) is cheaper and/or easier to buy” doesn’t apply anymore. Online stores such as HowNOT2 offer a huge variety of top quality bolting supplies, and they buy in such quantity that the stainless steel hardware is about the same price as galvanized. (HowNOT2 basically sells it at their wholesale cost.)

HowNOT2 also has a great selection and prices on the best epoxies for glue in bolts, which are insanely strong and will usually last much longer than expansion bolts. In many cases, glue ins are preferable.

Finally, if you want a deep dive into anything to do with installing bolts, check out the latest edition of the Bolting Bible, also by HowNOT2. It's the most comprehensive resource available on the topic, and it's completely free.

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3 - Use color coded “rack pack” carabiners for your cams

For decades, I racked my cams on whatever small wire gate carabiners I could scrounge up. There's certainly nothing wrong with this, and it works fine.

However, now that most cam manufacturers (generally) make similar colors in similar sizes, it satisfies some strange OCD compulsion of mine to match the racking carabiners with the color of the sling.

My gear rack feels more grown up! =^)

This also has a more practical application: you can glance down and more quickly grab the correct size off of your harness.

The cost is pretty much the same, so why not get the color-matched carabiners?

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• How can you tie a Klemheist hitch to easily ascend a rope?

• How about a trick to easily shorten your Connect Adjust?

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Stirrups for rope ascending

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Back in the day, I saw a superb slideshow by big wall legend Hans Florine, holder of multiple speed records on El Capitan, about his vertical adventures. One was a video clip of him jumaring up a fixed rope at a ridiculous speed. It looked like he was jogging up a flight of stairs!

What was he standing in? Nothing more than a DIY stirrup of 1 inch webbing, with an overhand knot tied in each end. Clip one end to your ascender, make a sort of girth hitch out of the other end and cinch it down on your foot. Cheap, simple, efficient!

I may cover that DIY hack in a future article, but today, let’s look at a more refined tool that’s a lot more comfortable and adjustable - stirrups.

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The ones I like: these sweet custom stirrups from Skot's Wall Gear. 

Skot Richards is a big wall expert and one-man operation who sews everything himself from his shop in California. I like supporting his small business, innovative gear, and commitment to “Made in USA”, and I hope you do too.

(Skot was kind enough to send me these stirrups for review. In the rare cases I’m offered gear for a review like this, I’ll always tell you about it upfront. I only tell you about gear that I think is great, and never because I might get it for free.)

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Almost ready to jug this rope.

(Not shown for clarity: two tethers connecting my harness and each ascender, see photo below. Those are important!)

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Big wall ascending overview . . .

In big wall climbing, the rope is typically fixed by the leader and then ascended by the second, who cleans the gear. 

There are three main components to a standard ascending system for big walls:

• Two handled ascenders on the rope

• Two tethers of some flavor, each attached an ascender with a locking carabiner

• Two of something for you to stand in, which traditionally is your aid ladders

Here's a photo of the typical set up.

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However, using your “leading” ladders for rope ascending has a few problems.

• Main problem, your foot wants to wriggle out of the ladder every time you step up. Some ladders have a bit of elastic sewn underneath one of the bottom steps to try to deal with this, but that’s a bit of a bother. (Yes, once you get skilled at ascending, it’s easier to keep your foot in the ladder step, but it still is a bit of a balancing act.)

• Especially on skinnier ladders with narrow steps, it's not so comfortable for your foot.

• You can't fine-tune the height of the step for optimum efficiency. 

• The unused steps are flapping around below you, occasionally snagging on things and generally in the way.

• The ladders are often heavier than necessary. This is especially true with some of the more robust, older style ladders. It may not seem like a lot of weight, but every time you slide that ascender up, you’re lifting the weight of the ladder. Multiplied by 3,000 times to get to the top of El Capitan, and that's a lot of weight.

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A more modern way to ascend a rope: replace your aid ladders with a pair of dedicated foot loops, a.k.a. stirrup.

Stirrups solve all of the above issues:

• They have a strap to lock your foot in place

• The bottom of the stirrup has wider webbing, so it's more comfortable

• They are easily adjustable, so you can fine tune the length

• Nothing dangles down below your foot

• They are lighter than your ladders

• Bonus: relatively inexpensive, about $30 each.

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• Why does one stirrup need to be longer than the other?

• What do you do with your lead ladders when you’re cleaning?

• How do you dial in the all-important distance of the tether to your ascender?

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Is a small anchor angle better? Maybe not!

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In Anchor Building 101, you probably learned the importance of the angles between the “legs” of an anchor. 

The general concept: The smaller / narrower the angle, the better load sharing between the legs. 

For example . . .

• With an anchor leg angle of around 30° or less, each leg gets approximately 50% of the load.

• About the maximum angle you ever want between the anchor legs is 90°. In that case, the force going on each leg is about 70% of the load, not so good.

• So (as the theory goes) keep your angles as small as possible in order to best distribute the load to each leg.

While that’s generally a good principle to follow, it turns out for ideal load sharing, it may not be that simple.

In fact, a smaller angle can at times actually increase the load on the anchor legs!

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A recent web article and video (links below) by Grant Prattley, a New Zealand rigging expert with Over the Edge Rescue, shared an interesting theory and load cell testing that puts a new spin on this idea.

Short version: the "ideal" angle of 30 or so degrees works mostly in theory only, and not so well in the real world.

In real world applications, the load may shift a bit from side to side, or your original rigging is not perfectly balanced between the left and right anchor legs. Let's call this an “error.”

When even a small “error” of about 5% happens with a 30° anchor leg angle, it quickly shifts a majority of the load onto one leg of the anchor.

However, when this same 5% error happens with a 50° anchor leg angle, you maintain much better load distribution between each leg.

Grant presents a pretty compelling argument that the optimum angle for a two point anchor is between 45° and 60°. 

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Curious about those bolts in the photo?

They’re called Practibolts, and they are a great way to practice anchor rigging on just about any magnetic surface, such as your refrigerator or here, a dry erase board.

Get ‘em at the superb online climbing shop, HowNOT2.

image: https://hownot2.com/products/practi-bolts

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Does anchor angle really matter for most recreational climbers?

My short answer: not really. Bigger picture, it's usually more important to pay attention to the quality of your placements rather than the rigging you use to connect them.

If you have two good bolts, then the angle between them really doesn't matter.

If you follow the general anchor rule of “narrow angles are good, anything over 90°, not good”, and you'll be fine.

However, in some cases when load sharing might be important, like when, try as you might, your placements may be lousy, or you have a giant load like pulling your truck out of the ditch, paying attention to small rigging details like this might be important.

Sometimes I dive into more esoteric parts of anchor building on my website, and this is one of those times. =^)

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I’ll leave you with that as the takeaway. 

If you're interested in a deeper dive, including the math, check out Grant's entire video and article on his website.

(To be honest, given the number of clever engineer people who are attracted to climbing, I’m a bit surprised that it took this long for this to be recognized. But hey, credit to Grant, he took a close look at this and explains it thoroughly in the video and article.)

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• Want direct links to the detailed article and video?

• How about a trick to use your fingers to estimate the angle of your anchor when you're actually climbing?

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Rappel tips for tricky terrain

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Note - This post discusses techniques and methods used in vertical rope work. If you do them wrong, you could die. Always practice vertical rope techniques under the supervision of an experienced climber, and ideally in a progression: from flat ground, to staircase, to vertical close to the ground before you ever try them in a real climbing situation.

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The standard rappel practice of “toss-rope-with-a-knot-on-each-end-and-hope-for-the-best” usually works fine in friendly conditions.

But, if you have any one or combination of these potential rappel problems:

• high winds

• traversing and/or overhanging rappel

• low angle

• vegetation, deep cracks, or other rope eating features

then the typical rope toss might cause some issues.

Here are some alternative rappel methods for these difficult conditions. (Listed in my rough personal order of preference. )

1. Rope bomb

2. Lower your partner

3. Rope bag

4. Saddlebag

5. Tie both ends to your harness

6. Lower down both rope ends with a weight 

Let's take a closer look at each one.

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1 - The “rope bomb”

I wrote a detailed article about the benefits of “casting” your rope, like casting a fishing lure; a sort of weight on the end that spools off the rest of the line.

That's the idea here. Flake each half of the rope into two piles, then make a small butterfly coil with roughly 1/3 of the rope. This is the “weight”. Now, you can toss this with some force down the route, and with any luck this will carry down the remaining rope.

In my opinion, this is preferable almost all of the time! Instead of chucking off half of your rope in one big coil and hoping it's going to feed out smoothly, which it hardly ever does.

Image credit: Andy Kirkpatrick, from his great book “Down”, shared with permission

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2 - Lower your partner

Everyone is fine with being lowered by their partner when top roping from the ground or in the gym. But for some reason, the technique is rarely used by recreational climbers when it comes to being lowered from above. (It's more common in a guided situation, especially with a partner who may not be comfortable rappelling on their own.)

However, with a little practice, it's perfectly safe to do, and can easily get the first person down along with both ends of the rope, no problem.

Attach the ends of both ropes to your belay loop, with either a tie in knot or locking carabiner, your choice. Your partner lowers you on one strand directly from the anchor.

To lower your partner, you can use one of several different methods: a redirected tube style belay device, a Grigri, or a Munter hitch. 

Pros - pretty much guaranteed to get the rope down smoothly. 

Cons - Potential communication issues if you can't see or hear each other. (Radios could be helpful.) Lowering someone past the anchor could cause some problems. Lowering from above is an unfamiliar technique for most folks and requires practice to do safely.

Here is a more detailed article I have on lowering your partner.

Here is one of several ways you can be lowered; with a Grigri. Note the redirected brake strand, this is important.

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3 - Rope bag

Yes, my partner laughed at me, but I did bring a plastic grocery shopping bag on one climb where I knew we're gonna have some low angle rappels and it was pretty awesome. Trader Joe's shopping bags cost one dollar, are surprisingly sturdy, rolls up about the size of a burrito, weighs about 40 grams, and easily holds a 60 meter rope.

I never noticed it in my pack, but it made life a lot easier when we had to do multiple low angle raps. We flaked the rope into the bag (which took about two minutes) and then I hung it from my harness with a sling. The rope fed out beautifully.

Just because people don't do it very often doesn't mean it's a bad technique! (Personally, I found it easier than saddlebagging, which we’ll discuss next.)

Below, Trader Joe's ”improv rope bag”, easily holding a 60 meter rope.

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Since I've been yapping about the book “Down” throughout this article, I thought I'd give it a more formal plug here. Andy Kirkpatrick's book is an outstanding deep dive into the topic that I think is helpful for most everybody who plays in the mountains.

Support your local independent bookstore and buy it there. Here's a photo of my well thumbed and bookmarked copy.

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• How can you rig a snag-free saddlebag?

• Have you tried the technique of tying both ends to your harness?

• What conditions might be helpful to lower down both ends of the rope tied to something heavy?

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Climbing Tips: Do This, Not That (Part 3)

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In this article:

1. Cast, don’t throw, your rappel rope

2. Block leading - don’t “trap” the leader

3. Caution with girth hitched rappel rings

4. Flat overhand bend - tail about 30 cm

5. Cordelette on a tree: the “shelf” is different

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1 - Cast, don’t throw, your rappel rope

Try to avoid tossing one big coil of a rappel rope and hoping it's going to pay out smoothly down the cliff face. Most of the time it won't.

Think of casting a fishing line. There's a weight (lure) on the end. The line is carefully spooled on the reel. The weight is cast over the water, and the line smoothly follows it from the reel. No snags, no snarls. 

“Casting” rappel ropes uses the same concept. Create a weight with one end of the rope, and flake the rest of the rope carefully. Toss only the weighted end, which should carry down the rest of the rope. Only toss one strand of rope at a time.

Doing this might take a little more time initially, but it is usually a good investment because it saves you from declustering the ropes later on.

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2 - Block leading - don’t “trap” the leader

Block leading refers to the practice of one leader leading several pitches in a row. If you do, this, be sure that the leader attaches to the anchor in a way that allows them to easily get out of it.

In the left photo, the leader clove hitched themselves to the master point carabiner, and then added the Grigri between the clove and the gate. This “traps” the clove hitch, making it pretty much impossible for them to get out of the anchor to lead the next pitch!

A better choice is shown on the right. Here the leader is connected to the master point carabiner with a carabiner and a clove hitch. Now the leader can easily unclip and continue with the next pitch.

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3 - Caution with girth hitched rappel rings

If you come across a girth hitched rappel ring, be very careful how you clip it.

• If you clip it on the BOTTOM of the ring, it's safe.

• If you clip on the TOP of the ring, when you weight the ring it's gonna completely detach from the cord/sling and Yer Gonna Die (YGD)!!!

There was a recent serious accident in the North Cascades related to this exact issue. (Link in my article) \

Please do not set up anchors like this. If you find one in the wild, be careful.

I recommend avoiding any sort of girth hitching a ring around a sling like this. The more standard methods shown in the photo below are more secure and easier to check.

When rigged like this, you can clip a tether to any point on the metal connection and you're gonna be safe.

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• Why is about 30 cm the ideal length of tail for a flat overhand bend?

• When you put a cordelette around a tree and you want to use the shelf, how is that different than a two point anchor?

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DIY - Ice tool tethers

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Ice tool tethers are pretty standard on longer alpine routes for good reason - a dropped tool from on a long, high route can be a serious problem.

Most major gear companies offer some version of a tool tether. They cost around $50. Here’s a DIY alternative; make your own for about 30 minutes of time and $10 in materials.

One simple way to make tethers is simply with 5 or 6 mm cord. The problem with that is that the cord wants to droop down below your waist, which is a potential tripping hazard. With the bungee cord, when there's slack on the tether, it shortens up.

I'll show you how to do it (as long as you don't make fun of my vintage Petzl Aztars, okay?)

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Tools and materials to make an ice tool tether:

• 12 feet / 4 meters of 1/2 inch tubular webbing

• 12 feet / 4 meters of 1/8 inch elastic cord

• Coat hanger

• Athletic tape

• Two small carabiners (be sure they fit into the holes at the bottom of your ice tools)

• Patience!

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1. Straighten out a wire coat hanger. Tape the elastic cord thoroughly to one end of the coat hanger. Use the coat hanger to wriggle the bungee cord all the way through the webbing. Be patient, this can take some fiddling.

2. Tie an overhand on a bight in one end with a small loop, and clip it to a carabiner. Don't worry about an exact fit; you can trim off a bit of the extra when you're done if needed.

3. Adjust the length one “arm” by sliding the webbing along the bungee, scrunching it up as you go. My arms are about 24 inches, with no stretch.

4. Create a harness attachment loop by tying a loose overhand on a bight in the webbing. This loop can be fairly small because it only needs to fit a carabiner. Do not snug this knot very tight, you're probably gonna need to adjust it later.

5. From the attachment loop, repeat step three, scrunching up webbing along the second arm until it’s the same length as the first. Tie another overhand on a bight in the second arm.

6. Give it a test drive. Adjust the length of the arms and the position of the attachment loop as needed until it feels comfortable. You don't want to have your tether impede your normal swing. It might appear to be short, but because it's clipped to your belay loop and attached to your tools with carabiners, you get a bit more length.

7. When it all feels happy, snug down the knots and trim off any extra webbing and elastic cord.

8. Give yourself a high five for saving $40. =^)

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• Do I need a swivel?

• What about girth hitching directly to your belay loop?

• Can I rest on this tether with my full body weight?

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Need a stronger anchor? Try a basket hitch

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A basket hitch (and no, I don't know why it's called that) is pretty simple. It’s a loop of loop of webbing, cord, or rope, doubled into a “U” shape.

Takeaway: a basket hitch more or less doubles the breaking strength of whatever material you’re using, because the load is shared over four strands instead of two.

For most climbing situations, this doesn't really apply much, because the maximum possible forces in any recreational climbing situation are never going to be more than about 9 kN. If you're using a sewn sling that has a Minimum Breaking Strength (MBS) of 22 kN, no worries.

And, even clipped in the regular end to end method shown below, the 28 kN where it broke is probably stronger than your carabiner!

But in a few cases that I can think of, knowing a trick to increase the strength of your rigging might be helpful:

• You need to use some skinny 5 mm cord for some kind of anchor building or application that it's not really designed for, and you want to squeeze some extra strength from your material.

• If you want to do something involving possible LARGE forces, such as pulling your car out of the ditch, dropping a big tree limb, or detaching a wrapped whitewater raft off a rock.

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My friend Ryan Jenks, the mad scientist gear-breaking genius behind the great YouTube channel HowNOT2, did some break testing on this.

Here are Youtube screenshots of the results of three different break tests. He’s using a standard sewn 8 mm Dyneema sling, rated with an MBS of 22 kN.

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Photo 1: The sling gets a “normal” end-to-end pull. It broke well above the 22kN MBS, which is a good thing.

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Photo 2: The same 22 kN sling, this time doubled with a basket hitch. With this rigging, it more than doubled the MBS.

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