Building a Non-Retrievable Rappel Anchor

Hey guys! Fairly new to technical climbing and I'm looking for advice on anchor construction for rappels - either in a bail-out situation or just to get down ASAP. I used 8mm dyneema slings and one rappel ring - real situation I would use two rings. Also, I am assuming that chair legs are my anchors.

Sounds complicated for getting down ASAP.

I tried to critique this...but all I can say is that everything in the photo is unnecessary and overly complicated. It looks like you are assuming you have a two-bolt anchor to work with. If so, keep it simple. Throw a couple carabiners on them and rap. The ring is unnecessary for rapping in an emergency or bail situation.

^+1

Ryan Nevius wrote:Sounds complicated for getting down ASAP. I tried to critique this...but all I can say is that everything in the photo is unnecessary and overly complicated. It looks like you are assuming you have a two-bolt anchor to work with. If so, keep it simple. Throw a couple carabiners on them and rap. The ring is unnecessary for rapping in an emergency or bail situation.

What Ryan said. Though if you are worried about equalizing, then you could girth hitch the sling to the bolt hanger and then put a biner on the end to clip the rope through. However, the only reason I can see to do this is if clipping the biners to the bolt hangers created a weird angle when loaded and this forced the gates open.

You didn't happen to leave the following anchor setup in the South Platte recently did you?



This person had the sling connected to a rap ring via a girth hitch. Seems useless because I can't imagine that the above knot would hold under a heavy load. Yikes.

J. Albers wrote: Seems useless because I can't imagine that the above knot would hold under a heavy load. Yikes.

I agree, that setup looks quite sketch. Not something I would like to rely on.

Thanks for the input guys!!

Does anyone have any good anchor building resources I should check out?

IanHunter wrote: I agree, that setup looks quite sketch. Not something I would like to rely on. Thanks for the input guys!! Does anyone have any good anchor building resources I should check out?

John Long's book called "Climbing Anchors" should be in every climber's library.

Girth hitches on dyneema material is incredibly dangerous due to the super low melting point of the material. Never girth hitch dyneema.

Second the issue with dyneema. The slings are safe, but do have limitations that you should know.

The Long book is great. So is the Leubben (sp?) book. Some people like one over the other. I think they are both awesome resources.

rging wrote:Girth hitches on dyneema material is incredibly dangerous due to the super low melting point of the material. Never girth hitch dyneema.

Never is a bit too strong. Most of us are aware of the problem inherent with girth hitching dyneema, but when setting up an emergency rap anchor, it is an extremely thin possibility that it will fail because of cutting itself.

In short, you are being a bit alarmist by saying that girth hitching dyneema is 'incredibly dangerous'. See the link below posted on the Alpinist:

alpinist.com/doc/ALP18/news…

Or check out mschlocker's post in the link below. Notice that the girth hitched sling broke at ~4600 lbs. There is no way that you are generating that in a rap situation.

mountainproject.com/v/10587…

Either John Long's 3rd edition of his anchor book, or Craig Luebben's comprehensive anchoring guide. Both good.

What was your goal? I think that would help foster a better discussion.

Is it - To rappel off a 2 bolt anchor which does not have rappel rings, doing so safely while leaving a minimum of gear behind?

Why leave behind dyneema when you can leave behind 6mm (5mm, 7mm, etc) cord? Tie a fishermans knot in cord around whatever is sturdy enough. Rap down, pull rope. Quick and super cheap.
Pretty sure I'll die doing that, but haven't yet.

Oh, and that's for bail out situation, or get down ASAP situation. Not as a way to set up a rappel that will be used more then once.

FYI

Almost every single (non-bear grylls created) rap anchor is non-retrievable.

To simplify, for your purposes (and mine), every rap anchor is non-retrievable.

I was going to write that you don't need two slings and two rings, and then I realized how fucking crazy I would be to instruct a complete beginner on how to set up an anchor over the internet by telling said noob not to be redundant.

It's super rewarding to figure all this stuff out, and the internet is a great resource, so I guess, while you are getting a feel for the basics, it's probably OK to overbuild everything you do.

Its not redundant but it is retrievable...

Way too complicated.

You've brought one (or more) rap rings, so you're expecting to maybe need to bail. Also bring a length of cord or tubular webbing -- far less expensive to leave behind than sewn dyneema slings, and works just as well. Also, for a rappel, you really are fine with just one steel rappel ring, you don't need redundancy there.

Simple(r) solution:

Girth hitch (or other appropriate hitch) one end of your cord/webbing around one side of your anchor. Thread both strands of cord/webbing through your rap ring. Attach other end of sling to other anchor with a clove hitch, or other appropriate knot. Put over-hand knot in the cord/webbing with the ring pulled through the knot, giving you a power-point, and isolating the two legs of the anchor, and the two strands through the ring, making all of the anchor (except the ring) redundant. Simple, easy, quick.

I would also recommend ignoring the two proposed solutions above me in favor of reading up on best practices.

Lots of retrieveable rappel anchor systems and setups out there, checkout techniques for "ghosting" canyons sometime. Or check out the Imlay Sand Trap .

Edit: most will not be applicable to climbing (or beginners), just an interesting read if you like rigging/anchors/canyoneering.

If that's an omega pacific rap ring they're pretty bomber and no need to double them. Lots of people will recommend doubling the SMC rolled aluminum rap rings but this is to limit wear from pulling ropes, they're fine by themselves and are rated to 14kn iirc.

As others have said easiest and lightest solutuion is to leave a sling/cord/biners you're already carrying. I'd suggest a 4-6 ft piece of 1/2" tubular webbing with a rap ring if you really want to carry a bail anchor. Thread through bolts add ring and tie together with a water knot, equalize in direction of pull and tie an overhand. Cheap and pretty light especially with an SMC ring.

A lot of climbers would shit their pants on some canyoneering rappels. Not much you can do about that rusty loose quarter inch buttonhead which is the only anchor in the middle of an otherwise inescapable canyon (other than send your partner down first). Such fun is usually had on a low stretch static line too!

+1 for reading "Climbing Anchors" by John Long.

If there's a chance you're going to bail from a bolt, I recommend carrying one or two steel quicklinks. Just throw that thing on the hanger and you're good to go. If you've got a second bolt nearby (e.g. at an anchor), you can then girth hitch a sling to the bolt and attach the end to the quicklink for redundancy.

Also, if the situation warrants, make sure you have something you can use to sling a boulder/tree, thread through a hole, etc. The standard material is nylon webbing. If you expect to do that, it's probably worth carrying some. Personally, I just plan on chopping a cordalette in that situation. Having a knife makes this process a lot easier. As others have said, one new rap ring is fine for a one-off rappel. I'm not saying it's a good idea, but some folks even skip the ring and rap directly off the webbing/cord loop since the rope *should* stay pretty static during the rappel.

and...... heres another one for get a mentor. There are far to many variables for the internet to tell you how to build a rap anchor. Learn more than enough about the basics. Physics involved, strength of materials etc...... also.... I and most everyone else I know, use a piece of cord to hold our chalkbags on our waists.... that way if an I need to bail situation occurs you always have something a bit more versatile than a sewn runner. and its a lot cheaper too.

how I build a GTFO this rock anchor is, remove cord from chalkbag and waist. clip chalkbag to harness, tie cord around something that wont fall/move/break, tie fishermans knots, put rope through cord and rap.

I don't think there is much magic that the internet can teach about this. Like anything else involving climbing the best way to learn is.... find yourself an old dude thats survived climbing for 25+ years and climb with him/her.

The Cowardly Noob wrote: I was going to write that you don't need two slings and two rings, and then I realized how fucking crazy I would be to instruct a complete beginner on how to set up an anchor over the internet by telling said noob not to be redundant. It's super rewarding to figure all this stuff out, and the internet is a great resource, so I guess, while you are getting a feel for the basics, it's probably OK to overbuild everything you do.

+1! I like finding double-triple redundant anchors made of shiny biners and sometimes cams in the mountains.