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Chockstone Forum - Accidents & Injuries

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Stuck Climber scenario 24-Apr-2009 At 9:54:45 AM stuart h

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There are some good strategies available if you need to arrange the descent for someone of limited experience, where you don’t want them to be arranging critical elements of their system. If the descent is only one ropelength or less and pretty straight it is generally easiest to lower them, which gives you control and allows you to coach them regarding good body position for later abseils. This also works for multi-pitch descents provided the anchors are established and obvious. In this case it is even better if they are on decent ledges, you have climbed past them on the way up and you have good visual contact.

If you need to go first, to arrange anchors, organise a diagonal abseil, sort out rope tangles or because you want to develop your partner’s experience, for example, you can connect your partner to the rope via the abseil device above you before you leave. In this way you know that their abseil device is properly connected to the rope and harness. Disconnect the person from the anchor, so that they will not have to undo or touch anything when you are not there, and abseil away – your weight will act as a fireman’s break and hold them in place until you are ready for them to descend (keep in mind that you want to keep the rope weighted as much as possible when you cross ledges or reach the anchor).

When the anchors are reasonably high this is quite comfortable for the person ‘chained’ in place. If the anchors are at foot-level it is better to connect their harness to the device with a suitable length sling.