By Brian in SLC
From Salt Lake City, UT
Aug 7, 2009
| springs wrote: A partner and I did a less-done (read: almost never) ridge in Big Cottonwood Canyon a few days ago. My partner got to the top of the 3rd pitch to set up a belay... the area was slanted towards the cliff with a bunch of several ton boulders on it.
You might be surprised that the Standard Ridge gets done a fair amount. Its on several folks (ahem) solo list. Guess those folks don't worry about anchors.
I find it fairly solid, but, your situation sounded scary as heck, and, I'm glad that rockfall didn't get you or the masses down below at the west end of Challenge or hiking over from Narcolepsy/Strone.
Yikes!
Lessons to be learned perhaps...
Cheers, and, glad you guys are ok. | 
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By Aaron G
From Salt Lake City, Utah
Aug 7, 2009
| This one might actually be bomber compared to some on this thread.... but humorous nonetheless. Rapped off this in the Dolomites. It was a huge rod of steel pounded in, then bent to make a nice hook.
| great anchor in the dolomites
Submitted By: Aaron G on Apr 26, 2006
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By springs
Aug 7, 2009
| Brian in SLC wrote: You might be surprised that the Standard Ridge gets done a fair amount. Its on several folks (ahem) solo list. Guess those folks don't worry about anchors. I find it fairly solid, but, your situation sounded scary as heck, and, I'm glad that rockfall didn't get you or the masses down below at the west end of Challenge or hiking over from Narcolepsy/Strone. Yikes! Lessons to be learned perhaps... Cheers, and, glad you guys are ok.
Indeed. The day this happened was the same day the guy fell and broke both of his ankles on Narcolepsy... kept hearing sirens, but we knew the rock hadn't made it down all the way to the trail. Crazy.
Lessons certainly learned. For me: Don't assume massive boulders are all stable. To test a boulder as an anchor, shove on it with all of your power, and don't do this while standing under it before you know if it will slide or not! |
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By Justin Cantrall
From Smoulder, CO
Aug 7, 2009
| springs wrote: To test a boulder as an anchor, shove on it with all of your power, and don't do this while standing under it before you know if it will slide or not!
I do not like this idea. What if someone had decided to "test" the Rewritten block as an anchor, and it tumbled down and landed on somebody below? (That happened, obviously, except it wasn't being tested as an anchor, and any injuries sustained were minor, fortunately!)
What if the block you're testing shifts, tumbles, and cuts your rope? What if it hits your belayer, and/or somebody else below? What if, when it shifts, it takes more rocks with it that were dependent upon its stability that you happen to be standing on, and now there's a rockslide happening and ALL of the above happen, including you tumbling to an undesirable landing?
I'm all for making sure your anchor is solid and redundant, but I really don't like building anchors on boulders. I can't see what they're anchored to; and "faith in friction" just doesn't cut it when it comes to building a solid anchor. If that is the ONLY option, then maybe I can climb higher or downclimb a few moves and build a belay elsewhere (hanging, if need be.)
If that's not an option, then I start freaking out and waving my hands wildly and pray to Bones to send Spock with his rocket boots to save my ass. ;) |
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By Jamie Henrichsen
From Ramona, CA
Oct 21, 2009
| I didn't get a picture of it but last weekend I was climbing in Joshua tree over at Atlantis Wall in the Lost Horse area. There was a family climbing a near me on Men with cows heads.
As I was cleaning my anchors and getting ready to walk off the top I noticed the trad anchor for their top rope which the whole family had been using had one locking biner in with two placements on short slings. What was alarming was the gate was weighted on a sharp ledge.
When I politely notified the father who had set the anchor that maybe his biner had rotated and it was on its gate at the edge of a ledge he acknowledged this as something he already knew. While still cleaning my anchors he came up to set a new top rope anchor. In small talk I told him that my route was open if he wanted it. Some how he didn't hear me. When I left I told him to have a safe day. Still didn't hear me. Weird...
Believe me I was not trying to be a jerk at all. Everybody there was super nice and cool. How do tell someone that you are concerned for their life and safety of their family? I understand that we all do some things a little differently but there are some things that you really try not to ever do. Or is it just me? |
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By Dave C
From Grand Junction, CO
Oct 21, 2009
| Braxton Norwood wrote: Luke's pic of the PBR anchor wins, hands down & bottoms up!
i knew that looked familiar... |
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By Pat Gioannini
From Tucson, AZ
Oct 21, 2009
| At Red Rocks, in the old days, I arrived at the belay which consisted of two 1/4 in bolts which was not too unusual at the time. Then my partner said look and pulled out both bolts which his fingers.
I arrived at another belay to notice that my partner had worked hard to place a belay but forgot to clip into it. |
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By Andrew C
From Colorado Springs
Oct 21, 2009
| You'd think with improved techniques and technology we would no longer see things like this :P |
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By Steve Levin
From Boulder, CO
Oct 21, 2009
| Climbers have nothing on canyoneers!
Here's a "good" anchor in Trail Canyon, Utah, with Steve "Ram" Ramras rappelling.
| Rock cairn rappel, Trail Canyon, Utah. Steve "Ram" Ramras pictured.
Submitted By: Steve Levin on Oct 21, 2009
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By Tyson Anderson
From Las Vegas, NV
Oct 22, 2009
| Steve Levin wrote: Climbers have nothing on canyoneers!
I totally agree with you Steve. Check this one out, it looks like it came from home depot.
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By WiledHorse
From NoGo
Oct 22, 2009
| not really that bad, but worth throwin' in here...
| Bolt replacement Great Escape 7/29/09
Submitted By: WiledHorse on Jul 29, 2009
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By jmac
Oct 22, 2009
|
Not too bad but seems a little sketch for being brand new.
|
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By beavs
From Ft. Collins, CO
Oct 22, 2009
| Sometimes you have to work within a budget but welded paper clips seems a bit extreme. WTF? |
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By Crag Dweller
From Denver, CO
Oct 22, 2009
| jmac wrote: Not too bad but seems a little sketch for being brand new.
why would anyone actually rap off this? if i came up to this and had to rap off, the 'biners would be removed from the paper clips and attached to the hangers. |
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By Richard Radcliffe
From Louisville, CO
Oct 22, 2009
| Crag Dweller wrote: why would anyone actually rap off this? if i came up to this and had to rap off, the 'biners would be removed from the paper clips and attached to the hangers.
I'm not sure I would even do that given the apparent nature of this rock. Do you see that little shrubbery? It's not growing out of a crack. |
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By Crag Dweller
From Denver, CO
Oct 22, 2009
| Richard Radcliffe wrote: I'm not sure I would even do that given the apparent nature of this rock. Do you see that little shrubbery? It's not growing out of a crack.
Actually, it appears to be growing out from under a little flake. But, I noticed after I posted my comment that the 'biners can't be removed from the rap ring. I'd be short a couple of slings after rapping off this thing, that's fo sho. |
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By John Hegyes
From Las Vegas, NV
Oct 22, 2009
| What's with those extra-long chain links? Are they designed for climbing or not? I've never seen those before. |
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By Tom Hanson
From Castle Rock, CO
Oct 22, 2009
| Many years ago, my buddy Mark and I bailed while attempting some some obscure line in The Flatirons. We rapped off of a sling around a detached flake that was bending when we weighted it.
We gave it a fifty fifty chance of holding.
Obviously, it held.
On another occasion, my buddy Mike was leading what we discovered was an unfinished sport line of some backwater crag in New Mexico.
He used the thin strap of his chalk bag to thread a one inch diameter shrub before running it out to the anchors of an adjacent line. |
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By Dirty Gri Gri, or is it GiGi?
From Vegas
Oct 22, 2009
| | Hmmm...nice chockstone anchor. You go first, baby. I love you!
Jonny rapping into a big pool of cold water for another swim. : )
Middle Echo Canyon, Zion
9/23/09
Submitted By: Dirty Gri Gri, or is it GiGi? on Sep 24, 2009
|
Canyoneering in Zion. At least there's a big pool of water to cushion a fall with an anchor failure. |
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By Andrew C
From Colorado Springs
Oct 22, 2009
| You AND the rock lol |
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By David Appelhans
From Golden
Oct 23, 2009
| In a canyon, I once rapped off a sling carefully spread over a one inch vertical sandstone edge. Friction was the only thing holding it from falling and friction was the only thing keeping it from sliding off sideways too.
The sling only stayed in place if the rope was tensioned so as soon as we got off rappel the anchor went loose.
I think I got to be the last guy down with no backup for my clever idea. |
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By John Hegyes
From Las Vegas, NV
Oct 23, 2009
| Here's a profile shot of a bolt from an anchor that Andy and I rapped off of last week. The rock has broken away from the bolt. This is the top anchor on Amber in Red Rock.
| The rock has broken away from one of the bolts from the top rappel anchor.
Submitted By: John Hegyes on Oct 14, 2009
| |
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By TradByron
From Uxbridge, MA
Oct 23, 2009
| I was climbing once on Katahdin in Maine. I did a full ropelength traverse left across a 50 degree snowfield, with a bottomed out knifeblade halfway across. When I reached the end of the rope, I told my partner we should simulclimb since there was no anchor anywhere near me. I didn't have pickets. He said that he would PREFER a belay. I said fine, but that it wouldn't hold a fall so DON'T. I stomped out a seat and hip belayed him over to me. It would have held a good sneeze, but not a traversing slide with 100 feet of rope out.
I also got off route in the Bugs once and rapped off of a cluster of old slings. I could have found something to back it up with but didn't. When I weighted it, it made a crackling sound. I thought to myself, "You dumbass. You got away with it once--you probably won't if you try this again." |
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