Climbing Rescue Rig - What Do You Carry?

I have both a Cinch and an ATC Guide on my harness, most of the time. The ATC is for rappelling. Not much extra weight.

Jeremy B. wrote:I see much redundancy in it. The original thread is here: mountainproject.com/v/what-…

The original thread is in Climbing Discussions. This thread is in Mountaineering. Maybe some of the above posters can go minimalist, but I prefer not to. You may be climbing in heavily used areas with slimy polished holds, but I prefer to get away for a bit. The approach and journey is half the fun.

Oooh, minimalist is sooo coool... I like redundancy. Belay devices can be dropped when transitioning, so I always have my GriGri and Reverso. As an ultra emergency, multiple biners will do for a rap. I am wondering if there are any certified guides posting above.

I weigh a lot less than most of the above pictures I would guess by looking. In a shitty situation, I am setting up two pulleys to maximize my ability to lift.

I am not trying to climb like a gym climber at my max rating when in the mountains, so a couple extra pounds of gear is no biggie.

Clint White wrote: The original thread is in Climbing Discussions. This thread is in Mountaineering. Maybe some of the above posters can go minimalist, but I prefer not to. You may be climbing in heavily used areas with slimy polished holds, but I prefer to get away for a bit. The approach and journey is half the fun. Oooh, minimalist is sooo coool... I like redundancy. Belay devices can be dropped when transitioning, so I always have my GriGri and Reverso. As an ultra emergency, multiple biners will do for a rap. I am wondering if there are any certified guides posting above. I weigh a lot less than most of the above pictures I would guess by looking. In a shitty situation, I am setting up two pulleys to maximize my ability to lift. I am not trying to climb like a gym climber at my max rating when in the mountains, so a couple extra pounds of gear is no biggie.

gud 4 u

Clint White wrote:Maybe some of the above posters can go minimalist, but I prefer not to.

That's cool, doesn't negate the effectiveness and viability of going minimalist.

Clint White wrote: You may be climbing in heavily used areas with slimy polished holds, but I prefer to get away for a bit. The approach and journey is half the fun. Oooh, minimalist is sooo coool...

Ahh, so your way is the RIGHT way.

Clint White wrote: I like redundancy. Belay devices can be dropped when transitioning, so I always have my GriGri and Reverso.

I like redundancy as well! I know the munter hitch. You should to.

Clint White wrote: As an ultra emergency, multiple biners will do for a rap.

Very good. Always be prepared when you drop your rescue cluster and the emergency goes ultra.

Clint White wrote: I am wondering if there are any certified guides posting above.

I don't know any guides that would bring that kit to the mountains, not saying there's not, but I doubt it.

Clint White wrote:I weigh a lot less than most of the above pictures I would guess by looking. In a shitty situation, I am setting up two pulleys to maximize my ability to lift.

Have you practiced this? How'd it go?

Clint White wrote: I am not trying to climb like a gym climber at my max rating when in the mountains, so a couple extra pounds of gear is no biggie.

I'm getting older and hate carrying extra weight into the mountains. I'd take a couple extra pounds of water over that gear list. Everything on there can be improvised with the standard gear you already carry.

for standard multipitch, i bring an extra locker with a tibloc and a knife

if we're heading into the mountains, i'll throw a pouch in my pack that has tape, lighter, meds, e bivy, sunscreen stick and iodine tabs.

if we're going to be expecting an all day climb with glacier travel, i'll throw a jetboil and a micro trax in the mix

at the risk of sounding critical, if you're rolling into the backcountry with that much rescue gear, how much does your pack end up weighing after you add in rope/rack/food/layers/water/personal gear?

i'm still a firm believer in keep it tight, fast and light. moving fast and limiting exposure to weather/conditions/rockfall/fatigue/etc. should be as big a part of your safety margin as anything.

i think experience and logging hours in the mountains will help you pare down your rescue rack. but if that's what makes you feel safe now, use it. but keep your mind open to techniques and skills to make you more efficient and lighter/faster.

Ashort wrote:Why the Gri Gri and the Reverso? Why not just carry the gri gri?

As you asked, answering the questions above. You cannot rap from a GriGri in the way a rap is intended. GriGri is great for the climber's safety in the case of rock or ice fall on the belayer. The Reverso functions in many different ways.

ATC guide that I'm carrying anyway, long and short prussick, and a microtraxion if I think something weird could happen. And the rack that we're taking anyway.
Preference towards double ropes if I think we could get in trouble for some reason.
I one quarter feel the microtrax is overkill, but it makes 1:1 hauling packs easy.
(Edit: Oh, this is in the mountaineering forum...Is there glacier travel involved? Another pulley then.
How well do frozen grigris work btw?)

replace the gri gri and reverso with an edelrid mega jul?

I always carry these items on my harness, they have gotten me out of many a jam and saved many a friend from unpleasant situations.

double length runner on a locker
2 lengths of accessory cord on a locker (for friction hitches)

cordelette (useful in escaping a belay and building bomber anchors)

reverso (prefered to gri gri because it can be used to manage 2 ropes)

PAS / Daisy Chain (great for extending belays which keeps friction hitches from jamming into your belay device as well as keeping them off your leg loop which is a problem if your leg loops are 'speed buckles'

Clint White wrote: You cannot rap from a GriGri in the way a rap is intended.

Yes you can

My dedicated rescue kit includes a tibloc, double length sling, and a small knife all on one carabiner. Small and light.

Everything else, I assume I'll have anyways and can multipurpose (anchor material, slings, atc guide).

I always have the following on me if my harness is on.

1. An extra sling (recently replaced this with a Percell Prusik jury still out)
2. One medium lenth Prusik (was a medium and a long until I added the Percell)
3. Four Locking biners.
4. Belay tube.
5 Auto block
6. Jack knife (assited opening)

I have a Piranha on my chalk bag, I think the idea of putting the extra small headlamp is a good idea, I'm gonna do that. I'm pretty careful, but still, I sometimes get caught off the ground when it's dark (or close enough that I'm worried).

For rescue type gear I almost always carry:
-ATC Guide
-a small locker with a auto block
-a non-locking revolver with a chest and foot prusik
-double length nylon runner with a locker

Depending on the climb, I sometimes carry:
-a small knife
-tape (should move this to the almost always!)
-oval wire gate carabiner
-headlamp
-vary sizes of first aid kit
-Personal Locator Beacon (very seldom)

Then I have all the normal gear; slings, locking and non-locking carabiners, cordelette. I have debated the merit of the prusiks, because of the cord, runners, and autoblock, but I ended using my prusiks several times, for various things, so I decided to keep them.

Alright, I'll play.

As the OP mentioned it before, I am an AMGA certified Rock Guide and working my way through the alpine track at the moment.

If I'm going out for more than a trail run/hike for longer than about an hour or any place more committing than the trail system on the edge of town where I live, I have two non-negotiables:

Headlamp
Water source (carry my own water, chemical treatment, stove & fuel for melting snow/ice, etc., but something that let's me hydrate)

Everything else is negotiable based on the conditions, time of year, weather, objective, partner, remoteness, severity, etc.

@OP: I think that as you grow in knowledge you'll find that most of what you've listed can be improvised in other ways using nothing but carabiners, slings, and cord if necessary. I will selectively bring other more advanced tools depending on the situation.

In many ways your kit seems excessively heavy and brings to mind the old alpinist's adage: "If you plan to bivy, then you'll bivy." In other words, if your gear is so heavy it slows you down enough, you may just end up needing it.

This is not meant to be harsh criticism, but simply an exhortation to seek additional knowledge that will allow you to better evaluate what tools you really need in the mountains.

I've got some slings, cord, a prusik minding pulley, a knife, and carabiners. I can use them in various ways to make shit happen.

Given that there are fully effective ways to belay without a belay device, carrying two of them in case one is dropped speaks more of incompetence than prudence. After all, if you can drop one then you can drop two.

It is impossible to be fully prepared for all possible emergency scenarios, so one has to make intelligent and functional compromises about how much otherwise useless special-purpose gear to lug. The probability of encountering a situation in which a climber has to be raised more than a foot or two is ridiculously tiny, and wouldn't be in in the picture at all if it weren't for the self-rescue books and courses.

Two short prusik loops and a small knife in a zipper chalk bag pocket together with the regular collection of climbing gear have sufficed for me for many years of back country mountaineering as well as cragging. Of course I also carry a small headlamp, but I don't think of that as a "rescue" item.

rgold wrote:...The probability of encountering a situation in which a climber has to be raised more than a foot or two is ridiculously tiny, and wouldn't be in in the picture at all if it weren't for the self-rescue books and courses...

To that end, and I'm not sure where I heard this heuristic, but I've always operated under the saying:

"It's easier to lower down ten pitches than it is to raise up one."

Clint White wrote: The original thread is in Climbing Discussions. This thread is in Mountaineering. Maybe some of the above posters can go minimalist, but I prefer not to. You may be climbing in heavily used areas with slimy polished holds, but I prefer to get away for a bit. The approach and journey is half the fun. Oooh, minimalist is sooo coool... I like redundancy. Belay devices can be dropped when transitioning, so I always have my GriGri and Reverso. As an ultra emergency, multiple biners will do for a rap. I am wondering if there are any certified guides posting above. I weigh a lot less than most of the above pictures I would guess by looking. In a shitty situation, I am setting up two pulleys to maximize my ability to lift. I am not trying to climb like a gym climber at my max rating when in the mountains, so a couple extra pounds of gear is no biggie.

Clint:

I am actually not minimalist at all. I often take double on even the shortest of climbs. However, I do think a lot about ways to minimize weight without reducing safety and often times a greater breath of knowledge can allow one to work safely with less possessions.

I'll give you a parallel example. When I first started hiking and climbing outside a lot I would take an extensive first aid kit because I wanted to be 'safe'. I had miles of gauze, tape, ace bandages, several splints, tweezers, trauma shears ice packs, bug bite cream, thousands of band aides in several different shapes and sizes. With my rudimentary first aid knowledge and this sizable kit I felt safer in the back country. However, when I started taking more advanced first aid classes, then eventually EMT class, my first aid kit started to shrink considerately. I found that the knowledge and training allowed to more judiciously evaluate what i wanted to carry and what could be improvised. In first aid, most things can be improvised. Similarly, in self rescue, most things can be improvised.

It might be helpful if you practice your hauling and lowering systems and pretend that you dropped each component of your rescue system. Is it still possible for you haul without it?

But what do i know... I just a gym climber that loves me so slimmy holds. hahah

I usually carry a small first aid kit in my pack. On my person I carry a ropeman, 2 prussiks and a couple small lockers, in addition to a knife.