Via Ferrata - I'm a competent climber, can I just buy a via ferrata lanyard and go? Or will I die?

we did the Oery via feratta with just slings and our petzl connects.  I treated it like a solo but it was very easy. I would not want to do a harder one without the real laynards.  I suppose you could rig your connects with screamers  if you have enough of them kicking around but I would absolutely prefer to have the real deal. 

BryanOC wrote:

Hi, I have been climbing for 10 years and I'm a self sufficient climber and I have only almost died twice in the alpine.  

I want to do some via ferratas in europe.  I see kids with parents doing them in tennis shoes.  As a climber, are they easy enough to do solo without a guide?  I have never done a VF before.  

I would buy the proper VF leashes as I've read that they have built in screamers in case I do fall, I won't break my back (again).  

I'm being nonchalant but I'm asking because I actually do take safety very seriously and I don't want to be overconfident and die a stupid death.  But VF from what I can tell, look like climbing a ladder high above the ground.  The only "special" gear I would need are VF leashes and leather work gloves? 

My wife and I are both climbers and we did two weeks of via ferratas and hut to huts in the Cortina area of the Dolomites. We did the hardest ones that we could find within our itinerary window and found families with kids and older folks alike who had some experience doing vf but clearly not climbers. They had no real difficulties other than mentally getting themselves through some exposed sections.

We also ran into an 87 yo man attired in all climbing garb taking his 20 something nephew up Col dei Bos (considered medium to hard depending on topo). he got to the top slowly but without issue. He did however have about 60+ years of mountaineering experience. He demanded he be in our picture when we asked them to take a picture of us at the top.

all this to say that if you’ve alpine climbed then you won’t have any issues moving through this terrain. Just make sure to get conditions reports and verify that the cable is free of snow. The risk is it may be buried and unusable which is not ideal. Rain is not really a concern, relative to snow, but it does make it more challenging.

Pic of Armando Nascu living life harder than most of us will. 

Lorenzo de Amicis wrote:

My wife and I are both climbers and we did two weeks of via ferratas and hut to huts in the Cortina area of the Dolomites. We did the hardest ones that we could find within our itinerary window and found families with kids and older folks alike who had some experience doing vf but clearly not climbers. They had no real difficulties other than mentally getting themselves through some exposed sections.

We also ran into an 87 yo man attired in all climbing garb taking his 20 something nephew up Col dei Bos (considered medium to hard depending on topo). he got to the top slowly but without issue. He did however have about 60+ years of mountaineering experience. He demanded he be in our picture when we asked them to take a picture of us at the top.

all this to say that if you’ve alpine climbed then you won’t have any issues moving through this terrain. Just make sure to get conditions reports and verify that the cable is free of snow. The risk is it may be buried and unusable which is not ideal. Rain is not really a concern, relative to snow, but it does make it more challenging.

Pic of Armando Nascu living life harder than most of us will. 

Btw, via ferratas are probably one of the most fun ways of traveling through the mountains imo. You feel like a hero without any of the worry of all the shit that can go sideways on alpine climbs. Pure fun.

Wiggle Mc Giggle wrote:

It was noted somewhere online that fall factors can go higher than factor 2. Due to a fall down a vertical cable possibly being much longer than the length of lanyard.

Roger that. Thanks. All the more important to use the via-ferrata-specific dissipators.

David Hodge wrote:

Similar to climbing, via ferratas have grades for their difficulty. Found a site that describes it: https://ferrata.world/grades

I lived near the alps for last 5 years and also experienced climber. IMO, anything A or B is going to be easy for climbers. Biggest challenge will need polished holds. At D and E the exposure is much higher and more of no fall territory. VF sets are more to prevent death not injury IMO. 

Thanks for the link to the grades. Today I learned that ropes are a thing for the two hardest via ferrata grades, even for experienced lead climbers.

You'll be fine. My wife who was an out of shape, 74 year old at the time, with zero climbing experience, did the Ouray via ferrate including the 5+ finish.  

She is very thin which I'm sure helped, but less than a year later she went into the hospital for a proper diagnosis on her heart and was told she has a weak heart.