Solo Toprope, how to questions...

Hello all,

I am newer to climbing and boulder and sport climb outdoors quite a bit, I've occasionally seen people on top rope with no belayer, I'd like to learn how to do this so I can climb my local crag without a belayer sometimes... I am comfortable building anchors and setting up top rope but I'm not sure about the belay rigging to solo, do people just use an ascender? is there one type that's preferred over others for this type of setup?

There's a ton of information out there on this subject do some research and you'll figure it out. 

Good starting point https://www.petzl.com/US/en/Sport/General-principles-for-solo-climbing-with-a-fixed-belay-rope?ActivityName=rock-climbing 

Micro trax and disaster knots all day

This has been covered numerous times; but in the spirit of MP revival, I'll share the setup I've used below. All of the spots I've TR soloed at have 2-bolt anchors, so I'll describe as for that scenario.

Find the middle of your rope and tie a bunny ears figure-8 ( climbing.com/skills/learn-t…). I like this knot for it's adjustability off of two anchoring points. Clip each loop to a locker at each bolt.  If the line you're soloing is longer than a half-rope length, you can always bring two lines and anchor from the ends. Either way, I like to have two lines hanging down the cliff for reasons I'll describe at the end. Rap your line to the bottom of the cliff.

Tie a knot on the end you intend to climb on and attach your pack to it. A jug of water works as well, anything that will weight the line so that it runs straight up and down with a bit of tension through it. This makes for easier feeding of the device as you ascend. I solo using two Ushba Basic ascenders as they feed really well, don't have teeth, and I got them for cheap off a friendly local back in WA. They're hard to find nowadays, but people seem to have similar results with Petzl micro-traxions or similar. Both are attached with lockers for piece of mind. One is attached directly to the belay loop, while the other is trailed off a shoulder-length sling doubled over so that it runs a bit behind the first one without risk of the two contacting each other. Both are attached to the same line of rope, while the other line of rope hangs free. Climb to the top, then sit on the ascenders or clip directly to the anchor. Fix a Gri-Gri to the free hanging strand and weight it. Unclip your ascenders, and rap back to the bottom. Repeat as needed.

Thanks for all the help guys, Reading through the info on petzl's site now.

I clove to lockers on the anchor, then use the Trango Vergo and a microtraxion on a single line, so it’s easy to rap down to work moves. Vergo self feeds really well, unlike using a grigri. I use a little bit of shock cord to hold it up - buy a few feet, tie an overhand on a a bight to make a loop large enough to hang around your neck. On each of the tails, tie an overhand on a bite, so they each have a little loop. Put one loop in your locker, put the Vergo on, then the other loop. It holds the belay device up well, and doesn’t pull it to one side or the other. 

Camp Lift + Petzl Micro Traxion are my go-to.
Definitely worth buying a dedicated biner for your upper device, I use the BD gridlock as it helps keep the ascender in the orientation that I want.

Fix the rope at the anchor using your preferred knot (i use figure 8 on bight)
Weight the rope with water bottle or other device to help the rope feed smoothly through your ascenders as you climb.

Mike C wrote: Camp Lift + Petzl Micro Traxion are my go-to.
Definitely worth buying a dedicated biner for your upper device, I use the BD gridlock as it helps keep the ascender in the orientation that I want.

Fix the rope at the anchor using your preferred knot (i use figure 8 on bight)
Weight the rope with water bottle or other device to help the rope feed smoothly through your ascenders as you climb.

 Has anybody ever damaged a rope using a microtraxion while TR soloing "properly" (i.e., not falling onto a rope with a bunch of slack in the system)?  I've never heard of it and most people I know use two micros, but I keep reading posts where folks are using other tools like the Lift, which has no teeth. BTW - Does it move up the rope as easily as a micro?  Just curious.   

Erroneous Publicus wrote:

 Has anybody ever damaged a rope using a microtraxion while TR soloing "properly" (i.e., not falling onto a rope with a bunch of slack in the system)?  I've never heard of it and most people I know use two micros, but I keep reading posts where folks are using other tools like the Lift, which has no teeth. BTW - Does it move up the rope as easily as a micro?  Just curious.   

The micotrax definitely feeds easier on my set up than the Lift does, but as long as the rope is sufficiently weighted at the bottom the difference is negligible.

I mostly use the Lift as I have heard those apocryphal stories of the microtrax shreading the sheath in those "non-proper" falls.

Multiple different methods that are all reasonably safe. Use whatever method you have the gear for, and that gives you the warm fuzzys.

BUUUUTTTT regardless of what system you use, remember, you are alone. It is your responsibility to have everything on your harness that you may need to go up or down the rope at any point, and the knowledge on how to use it both safely and quickly.  

Go practice ascending the rope with every method you can find. It's good to know, and also has the benefit of being good cardio!

Go to the top, fix the rope, go to the bottom. Put on your progress capture device(s) of choice (i use a microtrax/camp lift or microtrax/ascender), put some weight on the bottom of the rope so it will feed cleanly and you're off.

If you are working a route that you're not sure if you can get to the top of, make sure you know how to get your weight off the devices used to ascend so you can transfer the load to whatever device you're going to use to get down.

Theres a bit of trickery involved, but with some practice and problem solving skills you'll figure out what works for you and get it wired pretty quick.

If you climb a route that wanders or has sharp edges, I found this video helpful for protecting yourself & the rope. You can use bolts or gear to clove hitch the rope and prevent the rope from rubbing on an edge or prevent a massive pendulum. Not a huge issue on most climbs, but if you're rapping off a tree over a ledge or you're not really sure where your line will be it's nice to have this in your back pocket.

https://youtu.be/kd13IaWS8gQ

Erroneous Publicus wrote:Has anybody ever damaged a rope using a microtraxion while TR soloing "properly" ...?

Not even close.  And, I have climbed hundreds of pitches tr solo, with dynamic and static lines of all kinds.  It would take progressive failure of multiple elements in the system to generate that much force.  Rope abrasion on the rock is a much more significant risk.  I always carry one or two Petzl protec protectors.     

Patrick Normile wrote:
If you climb a route that wanders or has sharp edges . . . clove hitch the rope and prevent the rope from rubbing on an edge or prevent a massive pendulum.

 I use cord with kleimheists/autoblocks to redirect (easier to untie one-handed than a clove that has been weighted).

Elijah Sheffler wrote:
I've occasionally seen people on top rope with no belayer, I'd like to learn how to do this so I can climb my local crag without a belayer sometimes... 

Just keep in mind that when you are dealing with the constant rigging and up/down transitions inherent to tr solo systems, there is no one else to help you prevent human error or to assist you if you make one.  

The gear is pretty straight forward.  Its application is much more nuanced.  

I climb with a Shunt as my primary device, and a Micro Traxion as a backup, on a single 9.8mm dynamic line.

Petzl explicitly recommends against using the Shunt as a top rope solo device, because of the possibility that it will not lock if you fall upside down. However, a) it has never happened to me, nor can I find any instances of it happening, and b) I have a backup device.

The Shunt is a game-changer if you frequently want to go back and work through sections. It allows you to switch to rappel very easily.

Erroneous Publicus wrote:

 Has anybody ever damaged a rope using a microtraxion while TR soloing "properly" (i.e., not falling onto a rope with a bunch of slack in the system)?  I've never heard of it and most people I know use two micros, but I keep reading posts where folks are using other tools like the Lift, which has no teeth. BTW - Does it move up the rope as easily as a micro?  Just curious.   

There are as many folks afraid of toothed devices as there are folks who have logged 100s of pitches with them without damaging the rope in the slightest. It comes down to personal preference.

OP - Setups generally fall into one of these types:
2 ropes, one device on each rope
one rope, 2 devices on it
two ropes, one device on one, loops tied in the other (clip into them as you go up)

In addition to the above advice, when TR soloing always carry a grigri, a prussik, and a couple slings on a locker

Sam X wrote: In addition to the above advice, when TR soloing always carry a grigri, a prussik, and a couple slings on a locker

Better learn to Prussik up and escape your Mini Trax long before you get on a route that you may not be able to finish ;)

One Rope, two devices.  Everything else is overengineering.  

I try to focus instead on managing rope abrasion and proper execution of transitions.

I use a grandwall uascend for my main device and a petzl micro traxion as backup. I find the grandwall uascend slides up my rope with less resistance than the camp lift. 

+1 practicing ascending a rope and descending before you hop on your rope solo setup, and have a plan and practice how you will transition from your climbing setup to descending while your system is weighted before you leave the ground. You may also find yourself wanting to designate a beater rope for toprope solo use. Even if you use the Dave Macleod system linked somewhere above you will wear your rope faster than your usual toproping/sport climbing wear.