Dumb question not a troll!

I have never sport climbed and know very little about bolting so I am very ignorant in the subject.

My question is about bolting a tower. I understand most routes are bolted using a top rope or rappelling but what happens when the only way to get to the top is to climb up there? Is the only option to free solo up?

I know very little about bolting, but...some climbs are bolted on lead, while hanging from a hook or at a good stance, then drilling bolt holes from that stance. After that first bolt is placed, climb up to the next stance and install another bolt and so on.

Known as establishing a route "ground up." A bold way to bolt a route.

I'm sure some experienced first-ascensionists/developers will chime in.

mustardtiger wrote:Is the only option to free solo up?

That's one option...

Unless you have a helicopter to drop you at the top, you have to climb up one way or another to get up there. You'd be surprised by how much hard climbing is done ground-up, bolting on the lead.

Aid climbing is pretty common to get the bolts (or gear) in place for free attempts. Also, it might be possible to climb a different route to the top to get a fixed line in place to bolt a better objective.

In the sandstone tower region of Germany known as Swiss Saxony, "ground up" is the only style permitted when establishing new routes. This area is a little quirky, though.

The tower I am asking about has two sides that look really blank and cool but on the backside it seems like it could be a fairly easy free solo but it is about 150 feet tall. Once access is good I am sure I will see how it's done.

Looking at the pictures now it seems like it could be done with trad gear.

Any combination of lead bolting/trad/aid or whatever that´s needed to get up if there´s an easyish route then rap the chosen line. Or aid the line you want from the bottom which is a fair amount of work generally and you need some sort of removable intermediate bolts/hook or whatever for between the "real" bolts.

How do you aid from the bottom up? I was always under the impression that aid is when you use some thing besides your hands and feet to move you up but if there is no rope coming down then what do you attach the aid to?

How do you aid from the bottom up? I was always under the impression that aid is when you use some thing besides your hands and feet to move you up but if there is no rope coming down then what do you attach the aid to?

Imagine sport climbing and arriving at the first bolt. Now imagine that the first bold isn't there, but you have a bolt kit with you to drill a hole, place a bolt, clip it, and continue climbing. That's how it works, in a nutshell.

Depending on difficulty, the first ascensionist may need to use aid gear to back him/herself up while drilling the hole.

The simple answer is you clip a webbing ladder into a piece of pro, climb up the ladder, place more pro and repeat. Hard aid will often use more than just cams and nuts.

Wade J. wrote:The simple answer is you clip a webbing ladder into a piece of pro, climb up the ladder, place more pro and repeat. Hard aid will often use more than just cams and nuts.

Well..duh!
Spend a spring in Yosemite, find an old Canadian dude with a big crab. You will not regret it.

The Willy Stick

Question is answered. I just assumed there would be an easier way to do if. Seems pretty difficult.

You could always use a bolt gun. There accurate up to 50 yrds.

amarius wrote: The Willy Stick

That's so cheating!
No it's not "difficult", sport. It's called "mountain climbing"!

Folks can get pretty creative for "getting the rope up there". Example:

The infamous hoopstick. Photo by Gillian Burns.

mustardtiger wrote:How do you aid from the bottom up? I was always under the impression that aid is when you use some thing besides your hands and feet to move you up but if there is no rope coming down then what do you attach the aid to?

Love it dude! All good answers here. Helicopters, bolt guns, and crazy sticks get the rope "up there". You could also tie the rope into a lasso and wrangle a distant horn. You could use a crossbow to launch a grappling hook up there. The sky is the limit.

Sad to see this site going downhill like this. I suppose it was destined to happen...all online communities do after enough time.

This is so good, and of course trollenor is here.

Like a fly to dung.

I got enough good answers to get an idea if how it's done so I don't think it was to bad of a thread. All of the trolls now are pretty much wasting their time.