Rock Climbing - An Instructional Guidebook
This guidebook, covering all the basic rock climbing skills and climbing equipment, is invaluable not only for beginners but also for climbers wanting to increase their technical knowledge of climbing single- and multi-pitch routes. Written by one of the UK’s top mountain instructors.
Rock Climbing
Author
Cover
Paperback - Laminated
Edition
First
ISBN_13
9781852845292
Availability
Reprinted
Price
£12.95
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Difficulty
Excellent for beginners, also for those wishing to improve on technical knowledge.
12 MULTI-PITCH ROUTES
Fairly early on in your climbing career you will probably find yourself setting out to tackle a multi-pitch route (a slightly misleading term in that such a climb may have as few as two or as many as 10 – or more – pitches!).
Some short outcrops can contain routes with more than one pitch. Although the height of the cliff may be less than a rope length, the route may zigzag or dodge under an overhang, thus making a two-pitch route more sensible in order to avoid rope drag and communication problems.
Most multi-pitch routes, however, will have more than two pitches. These need not be of any difficulty, and there are a great number of low-graded routes on crags and mountains that will provide easy but absorbing days out for anyone just starting out on their climbing career. These routes will either be continuous, with stances taken on appropriate ledges at certain points along the way, or may include a bit of walking. Mountain routes in particular – and especially those in the easier grades – may involve arriving at a large grassy ledge, bringing up your second and then having to move to a different part to climb the next pitch.
I would recommend a low-level crag for your first trip or two. It is much better to learn how to deal with multi-pitch climbing in a reasonably controlled situation rather than on a windswept mountain route.
Weather
This will be a relevant factor for any day on the crag, but on longer routes finding out what the weather has in store becomes crucial. Choosing a mountain ridge route on a wet and windy day would not be sensible; neither will a south-facing crag in the middle of a heat wave in summer. The type of rock may also have a bearing: choosing a slippery surface such as mica schist to climb on in the wet would not be the best decision, whereas a grippy rock such as granite will offer a lot more security if the weather is looking a little dodgy.
Gear
By the time you head out for your first multi-pitch route you will have a very good idea as to what technical kit is going to be useful. I would suggest taking an extra couple of long slings with screwgates attached, as these are always very useful. Helmets are essential, particularly in a mountain situation, as the chance of debris being dislodged is quite high. Think about how you are going to carry the kit. Each of you will probably start off with a rucksack for the walk in. Once geared up, it may be worth whoever is seconding carrying one of these with all the spare kit, including the second rucksack rolled up, so that nothing is left behind.
Walk in/walk off/length of route/timing/daylight hours
These factors all have a bearing on each other. If daylight hours are short, such as in late autumn, planning to climb a route that will take two hours to walk in, five hours to climb, an hour to descend and two hours to walk out would not be a sensible objective. You may decide to walk in early, or accept that you will be walking out late, with a head torch each, but as the chance of becoming benighted on the route is quite high the sensible option would be to choose something else.
Descent
It is astonishing that climbers don’t give more thought to this prior to setting out. There will have been, worldwide, far more epics in descent than on the actual climb. So how do you get down? Do you need to abseil or is walking off the norm? Your guidebook should give you the necessary information, and you will probably find that walking off is, in the majority of cases, the most usual finish to the day. So do you need to change your rock shoes for walking boots? Does it require navigation or complex route finding? This all needs to be sorted out prior to reaching the top of the route and saying ‘Oops – what do we do now?’
Depending on the technique used, the ropework styles at the individual stances will differ slightly, mainly in the way that the belayer rigs the system. It is very easy to just anchor yourself and haul your mate up, swap gear and watch him launch himself up the next pitch, but doing this without thinking through the relevant rope systems could cause tangles and all sorts of problems, and the main points are covered below. Remember to practise on a short section of crag before committing yourself to a long route and finding that the system you’ve chosen doesn’t work too well.
Anchor considerations
In an ideal world perfect anchor options present themselves at every stance. Unfortunately it is rarely so, and we need to think through the optimum system in each situation. Ideally – and certainly for leading on – a single anchor point is desirable. This may be achieved by simply having a sling around a suitable boulder, or by equalising anchors with a sling (see Chapter 4). You should be familiar with the relevant methods before having to rig the systems for real.
Leading on
The same climber will be leading consecutive pitches. A single attachment point is a real boon here as it makes changing things around at the stance so much easier. A classic stance management would be as follows:
Leading through
This is perhaps the most usual way for a pair of climbers to share the leading on a route (often the best bit!). The stance set-up will be slightly different to that used when leading on.
Fairly early on in your climbing career you will probably find yourself setting out to tackle a multi-pitch route (a slightly misleading term in that such a climb may have as few as two or as many as 10 – or more – pitches!).
Some short outcrops can contain routes with more than one pitch. Although the height of the cliff may be less than a rope length, the route may zigzag or dodge under an overhang, thus making a two-pitch route more sensible in order to avoid rope drag and communication problems.
Most multi-pitch routes, however, will have more than two pitches. These need not be of any difficulty, and there are a great number of low-graded routes on crags and mountains that will provide easy but absorbing days out for anyone just starting out on their climbing career. These routes will either be continuous, with stances taken on appropriate ledges at certain points along the way, or may include a bit of walking. Mountain routes in particular – and especially those in the easier grades – may involve arriving at a large grassy ledge, bringing up your second and then having to move to a different part to climb the next pitch.
Choosing a route
Picking a route suitable for your first multi-pitch lead can seem a little daunting, but should not be a problem if you consider the following:- Crag or mountain
- Weather
- Gear
- Distance to walk in
- Length of route and climbing time
- Descent
- Distance to walk off
- Available daylight hours.
I would recommend a low-level crag for your first trip or two. It is much better to learn how to deal with multi-pitch climbing in a reasonably controlled situation rather than on a windswept mountain route.
Weather
This will be a relevant factor for any day on the crag, but on longer routes finding out what the weather has in store becomes crucial. Choosing a mountain ridge route on a wet and windy day would not be sensible; neither will a south-facing crag in the middle of a heat wave in summer. The type of rock may also have a bearing: choosing a slippery surface such as mica schist to climb on in the wet would not be the best decision, whereas a grippy rock such as granite will offer a lot more security if the weather is looking a little dodgy.
Gear
By the time you head out for your first multi-pitch route you will have a very good idea as to what technical kit is going to be useful. I would suggest taking an extra couple of long slings with screwgates attached, as these are always very useful. Helmets are essential, particularly in a mountain situation, as the chance of debris being dislodged is quite high. Think about how you are going to carry the kit. Each of you will probably start off with a rucksack for the walk in. Once geared up, it may be worth whoever is seconding carrying one of these with all the spare kit, including the second rucksack rolled up, so that nothing is left behind.
Walk in/walk off/length of route/timing/daylight hours
These factors all have a bearing on each other. If daylight hours are short, such as in late autumn, planning to climb a route that will take two hours to walk in, five hours to climb, an hour to descend and two hours to walk out would not be a sensible objective. You may decide to walk in early, or accept that you will be walking out late, with a head torch each, but as the chance of becoming benighted on the route is quite high the sensible option would be to choose something else.
Descent
It is astonishing that climbers don’t give more thought to this prior to setting out. There will have been, worldwide, far more epics in descent than on the actual climb. So how do you get down? Do you need to abseil or is walking off the norm? Your guidebook should give you the necessary information, and you will probably find that walking off is, in the majority of cases, the most usual finish to the day. So do you need to change your rock shoes for walking boots? Does it require navigation or complex route finding? This all needs to be sorted out prior to reaching the top of the route and saying ‘Oops – what do we do now?’
Climbing the route
There are two different methods of climbing multi-pitch routes: ‘leading on’ and ‘leading through’. On a single-pitch climb one person leads the route from bottom to top, as it would obviously be impractical for any changes in lead to take place. On a multi-pitch route, however, things can be a bit more fluid.- Leading on means that the same person leads consecutive pitches. The leader climbs the first pitch, belays, brings up the second and then leads the next pitch.
- Leading through (‘swinging leads’) means that one climber leads the first pitch, belays the second who, on arrival at the stance, takes over the gear and leads the next pitch.
Depending on the technique used, the ropework styles at the individual stances will differ slightly, mainly in the way that the belayer rigs the system. It is very easy to just anchor yourself and haul your mate up, swap gear and watch him launch himself up the next pitch, but doing this without thinking through the relevant rope systems could cause tangles and all sorts of problems, and the main points are covered below. Remember to practise on a short section of crag before committing yourself to a long route and finding that the system you’ve chosen doesn’t work too well.
Anchor considerations
In an ideal world perfect anchor options present themselves at every stance. Unfortunately it is rarely so, and we need to think through the optimum system in each situation. Ideally – and certainly for leading on – a single anchor point is desirable. This may be achieved by simply having a sling around a suitable boulder, or by equalising anchors with a sling (see Chapter 4). You should be familiar with the relevant methods before having to rig the systems for real.
Leading on
The same climber will be leading consecutive pitches. A single attachment point is a real boon here as it makes changing things around at the stance so much easier. A classic stance management would be as follows:
- The leader climbs the route and belays, using either a single anchor or multiple points brought down to one.
- He brings up the second.
- The second positions herself on the stance in an appropriate place for belaying the next pitch, with her braking arm away from the direction of load (away from the cliff). Taking the rope from just below the leader’s belay device she ties a clove hitch and clips it into the same anchor.
- The leader can now take off his belay device, as both climbers are safe.
- The leader retrieves any necessary gear from the second, stripped out from the previous pitch.
- The rope will need to be ‘turned round’. At the moment the rope to the second is coming out of the top of the pile so she runs it though, starting at her attachment point, piling it on the ledge in a suitable position, just off to her braking arm side.
- This rope will come tight on to the anchor, and from there onto the leader. The second now puts the leader on belay.
- The leader, having checked that everything is ready, can now unclip from the anchor and start up the next pitch.
Note
By following this routine you ensure that you are both connected to the system at all times, either by being on belay or clipped into the anchor. Don’t ever be tempted to wander about on a ledge unclipped, unless it is quite large and you are well away from the edge. Even so, it may be worth having a rope loosely attached to the anchor.
Leading through
This is perhaps the most usual way for a pair of climbers to share the leading on a route (often the best bit!). The stance set-up will be slightly different to that used when leading on.
- The leader reaches the stance and belays himself as above.
- He pre-places the first piece of protection for the next pitch, and clips the rope in. The rope runs from his belay device up and through the gear and then down to the second. The second climbs up to the stance, with the belayer facing inwards, as any load, in the event of a fall, will be coming from the pre-placed gear.
- As the second will now become the leader, she may elect to not clip into the anchor. Although there is no problem in doing so, a quicker method will be to tie her off at the belay device. Taking a large bight of rope from just by the device on the dead-rope side, tie a large overhand knot in it with at least a 30cm tail. This will provide ample back-up should the leader slip, as the knot will immediately jam in the belay device.
- The new leader now collects all the relevant gear from the new second.
- Having checked that everything is ready, the belayer unties the overhand knot and the leader starts up the next pitch.
- Once the second arrives at the stance, she clips into the anchor with a separate screwgate.
- The belayer takes her off his device and repositions himself as appropriate. This may just be turning his body around from an ‘arm inward’ to an ‘arm outward’ position.
- The rope is reconnected to the belay device in the correct manner. When the leader was belaying the second the dead rope will have come out from the top of the device. It now needs to come out of the bottom, as he is now belaying a new leader above him.
- Once she is back on belay, the new leader can take her rope off the anchor and start to climb.
Note
It is very useful to pre-place the first runner of the next pitch. It not only makes the rope management much easier at the stance, but also immediately provides a way of preventing a fall factor of 2, which would otherwise produce a high loading on the anchor system.
Note
Remember to swap gear at the stance if you are changing over, and to collect any stripped out of the last pitch if you are leading on. Once tied in there is no reason for the belayer to have any spare kit on him, such as slings, so make sure that you have as much as you need for the next pitch.
THE MULTI-PITCH TALE
One of the great joys of multi-pitch climbing is the time that you spend with a good companion. Sometimes, however, that time is a little too long, and a slight epic results. Such an event happened on one of my first ever multi-pitch routes, climbed in North Wales. It was early in the season and we had totally misjudged the amount of daylight available. Climbing, chatting and, I am very sure, poor technique, meant that night was upon us quicker than we had anticipated, leaving us with one final pitch to complete in almost total darkness.
Head torches were still a dream: surely ‘real’ climbers didn’t carry them (and our student grant wouldn’t stretch to the expense anyway). We had ignored not only the time of sunset but also the consequent effect that this would have upon our intended evening out with friends.
It was almost impossible to see the way ahead on the last short pitch. Although very easy by comparison to the rest of the route, the lack of light made progress very difficult. Luckily Simon had a lighter to hand. Using this I was able to see my way up the section, flicking the lighter so that the spark lit up the rock for a nanosecond, just enough for me to get my bearings. Attempts at climbing up with the flame alight were useless, as the slight breeze immediately put paid to that idea. I made my way up the last few feet of the climb by creating a flash of light, remembering where the holds were, groping in the dark for them, moving up, flashing again and so on. The idea of placing protection was abandoned, as arranging any sort of gear in those conditions would have been impossible.
Once I had reached the top it was Simon’s turn to come up. He didn’t have the luxury of a lighter, but did have the use of a tight rope coming from above, allowing him to climb in reasonable safely, if not style. I was pleased that he didn’t fall off, as I had been unable to find any sort of usable anchor and had simply wrapped my legs around a boulder to prevent me being pulled off the cliff.
The way down was lit by a willowy moon, luxury considering that the last pitch of the route – some 30 easy feet in height – had taken over an hour to accomplish. A further three hours of stumbling and we 4 3were down at the road, with an hour of fruitless hitching seeing us back at the campsite well after our friends had returned from the pub. We were just too tired to care.
The moral? Check out the route, the grade and the length, as well as access to and from it. Relate that to the competence levels of you and your partner and your estimated climbing speed. Leave in plenty of time, know when darkness is due and carry a head torch, even if your climb is planned to finish some time before dusk. Putting these elements together will help you to avoid the chance of becoming benighted on a route. It will also help you to avoid that most appalling of consequences – a week of mockery from your so-called mates.
EXTRA GEAR
The technical gear required does not differ from that used on single-pitch climbs. However, you will have to take a few extra items with you on routes that take a lot of time or are in a mountainous region, as follows:- Waterproofs Mountain weather is very changeable, so be prepared.
- Spare fleece for the same reason as above.
- Hat and gloves The temperature may be a lot lower higher up, or the wind may increase, so make sure you keep warm and comfortable; being cold and miserable will not enhance your day.
- Head torch Essential to ensure a safe descent if the day is short or the route is long.
- Map and compass You may need to navigate down, and even if you start climbing in clear weather the cloud may roll in later in the day.
- Food and drink A snack or two stashed in a pocket will be welcome after an hour or two of climbing. If the route is to take any substantial amount of time, pack a reasonable amount of food and set aside time to eat it. Carrying water or other liquid to drink is important, especially on hot days.
- Sun hat and sun cream These can be essential. Spending a couple of hours on a south-facing crag in the full glare of the sun can cause all sorts of problems, so be prepared.
Tip
If you have a definite route in mind – which will take most of the day – photocopy the relevant page from the guidebook and take that with you instead of carrying the book itself. Make two copies and give one to your partner, folded into a plastic bag and stashed in a pocket. If you lose the first one, or it gets sodden in a downpour, you have a back-up.
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