How do you handle a stuck rope on rappel?
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I'm beginning to dabble in multipitch and/or trad climbing and have been wondering for a while what people do when they get a rope stuck during the descent. Assuming you're still a ways off the deck and there is nobody around to help out, do you either solo or jumar up the rope, unstick it, and build a bail anchor at that point? |
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I would not trust a prussik to catch a fall at all, they're really not intended for dynamic loading situations like that. Would probably just melt the prussik and/or rope. |
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Abram Herman wrote:I would not trust a prussik to catch a fall at all, they're really not intended for dynamic loading situations like that. Would probably just melt the prussik and/or rope.petzl documentation ;) |
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bearbreeder wrote: ;)Interesting that they used a 7mm prusik on a 9.7mm rope, seems to justttt violate the 3mm difference rule. Do you think the 7mm is required to hold the fall or would you go with a 6mm for better grip? |
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I was just going to suggest what Thomas said above me. If it's dire and you have a decent chunk of the rope and gear to make bail anchors, cut the rope and go with it. |
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Still wouldn't want to trust it, Bearbreeder. ;-) In that diagram the prussik is a last-resort failsafe, not the primary means of protection. Of course, I'd use it if I didn't have any other choice, but again, I wouldn't trust it. |
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Larry S wrote: possibly making intermediate anchors to bring your partner up higher, freeing up more lead rope to get you to where it's stuck.That's an interesting idea. Could be useful in some situations. |
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If you don't trust the prussik to catch a lead fall, you can just tie in and drop knots at intervals. The rope isn't running (the end you have should be tied to the anchor/your partner), but you should always have a bit of slack to work with. It's slower, but has the same affect. This is what i meant by "improvise a lead solo system". This wont' work if it's overhanging (you wont' be able to place pro), and it's possible you could end up in a pickle hanging on the middle of a rope that's fixed on both ends, so be prepared to get yourself out of that too. |
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MarktheCPA wrote: Interesting that they used a 7mm prusik on a 9.7mm rope, seems to justttt violate the 3mm difference rule. Do you think the 7mm is required to hold the fall or would you go with a 6mm for better grip?i think 6mm is a bit thin strength wise for a lead fall you could always use more wraps if youre worried ... or two prussiks ... at a certain point yr right that the prussik wont hold well if the diameter difference is minimal if the climb is moderate you can always lead up with a moving clove hitch, especially if you can aid it ;) |
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bearbreeder wrote: i think 6mm is a bit thin strength wise for a lead fall you could always use more wraps if youre worried ... or two prussiks ... at a certain point yr right that the prussik wont hold well if the diameter difference is minimal if the climb is moderate you can always lead up with a moving clove hitch, especially if you can aid it ;)My (rarely used anymore) hexes are threaded with 6mm cord, and i trust those to hold a lead fall, and in that situation it's holding almost twice what that prussik must hold. I still don't like the idea of trusting a prussik on a lead fall though. Not so much that it will break, but it will slip and melt. |
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D.Buffum wrote:If you did a double-strand rappel (i.e. did not use a tag line), then you have enough rope sitting at your feet to lead back up to where the other end is stuck.unless it was a diagonal rappel ... or something similar ... ;) |
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"You and your partner are anchored at a belay ledge, you pull the rope and it gets stuck halfway up, and it is really stuck." |
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How? Very carefully. |
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I didn't think about the fact that even if your rope gets stuck at the anchor it is pulled from, you'll still have half a rope length to protect you while you climb up and free it. So it seems the best option is to lead back to where the rope is stuck, belayed by the other end of the rope. Next option would be cutting it and doing short rappels. But since the rap routes are usually different than the climbing route, there is always the chance you will be stuck below something you can't climb / aid past. Maybe what I described above could be a solution of last resort in that scenario... |
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bearbreeder wrote: unless it was a diagonal rappel ... or something similar ... ;)Or you cannot lead the terrain you just rappelled. |
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csproul wrote: Or you cannot lead the terrain you just rappelled.Hope you brought a bolt kit then. If the area is remote and no other parties will be coming your way before you're out of water, then jumaring back up the line may be the only option. |
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This happened to me a few weeks back. Setting up the last rap out of 3 and when we pulled the rope it got stuck half way back up the wall. There was no way we were ascending a rope that was just stuck in a crack or something so one of us started leading back up and the other one clipped in when we ran out of rope. Then we simulclimbed the rest of the way and got the rope unstuck and ascended to the anchor and rapped back down. this method is assuming your partner most likely wont fall while simulclimbing. |
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If there is a possibility of placing protection periodically on a line that ascends to the rappel point, then the "inchworm" technique allows a climber to do this with a belay from below, even though the amount of rope available is limited. The price paid is that the leader in this situation will periodically have to change his or her tie-in point. |
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Prevent the situation from happening. I used to be very creative about getting ropes unstuck. Now I just do everything in my power to minimize the chance of sticking the rope in the first place. Every rap station I leave I look for things that might get the rope stuck. I always choose to pull the side that won't cause the rope to get stuck, and the possibility is always on my mind when I've only got 1 rope. sometimes I pull hard, but usually I just pull slow and evenly. |
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I have been in this situation several times. one we knew we were in a long rappel situation and required a second rope. We brought a 8mm half rope. when our lead rope became stuck we lead back up on the half rope while constantly pulling hard on the lead line which was through a gri gri. 3/4 the way up the pitch the lead line broke free, the leader took a big fall on the half rope but all was ok. back cleaned (down climbed) the pitch and continued with no other problems. |