CLIMBING

Climbing is an activity where an individual under their own power ascends a steep object. Some engage in indoor climbing on artificial climbing walls, whereas outdoor climbing is usually limited to rock or ice. In this write-up we will limit it to rock climbing.

To get a basic understanding on the above subject, we need to look at the rating system. I will use the Yosemite Decimal System, because it is the one I am most familiar with. It consists of five classes indicating the technical difficulty of the hardest section:


Class 1

Hiking and or Backpacking with low chance of injury

Class 2

Scrambling with the use of hands in sections. Fall could produce severe injury, but would most likely not be fatal.

Class 3

Could be compared with climbing a steep staircase on the side of a tall building with no handrail. Care must be taken with hand and foot placement. A fall may be fatal, but not always (depending on your immediate exposure level). Many folks at the class 3 level carry a rope for extra safety.

Class 4

Steep short sections where the use of a rope and some protection is highly recommended. An un-roped fall could be fatal.

Class 5

This is where things get serious. Most climbers look at class five as true rock climbing. It involves predominantly vertical or near vertical rock. Expert training is highly recommended, in order to gain the required skills. A rope would be mandatory in order to proceed safely. Un-roped falls would positively result in severe injury or death.

Class 5

Climbing is also divided up into decimal fractions from 5.0 - 5.14. A rating of 5.8 and beyond would be considered by most climbers as advanced. Ratings beyond 5.12 are reserved for the elite climbers of the world.



As stated above, hiking and backpacking would be considered class 1 activities with a possibly of a little class 2 thrown in here and there. As far as climbing is concerned, I would break it down into two categories.

The first category I would call "General Climbing," and the second category I would call "Rock Climbing" General climbing would involve class 3 and class 4 ratings. Rock Climbing, on the other hand would involve class 5 climbing. There is also a class that was not mentioned above, and that is aid climbing.

That would belong to the advanced climbing category, and it is broken down into terms such as A1, A2, etc. depending on the security of the anchor placement. Rock Climbers (from what I have experienced) most often like to engage in activities that involve a short approach to their intended climb. They especially like being able to drive their car right up to their intended climb. This makes it so they can spend the maximum amount of time on the rock rather than having to spend time driving, hiking, or packing into their location. This method also provides for a quick escape if weather turns bad, or if someone gets injured. Yosemite would be the classic drive and climb type of National Park. But by far and a way, most Rock Climbers spend most of their time working on local bouldering problems near their homes or on indoor sport climbing walls. Certainly a great way to hone ones skills for more advanced climbs in the future.

But climbing is an inherently dangerous activity, and care must be taken at all times in order to avoid injuries.


So remember to be safe and enjoy,
Dave French


Tips and Hints for Climbing

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Curabitur scelerisque mauris quis diam gravida eu placerat ligula scelerisque. In vitae sem nec massa imperdiet condimentum. Donec ut mauris vel risus rutrum commodo. Duis sed massa id urna varius. Fusce nibh sapien, porttitor sed euismod in, aliquet eget lorem.

  1. Donec ut mauris vel risus rutrum commodo.
  2. Fusce nibh sapien, porttitor sed euismod inaliquet eget lorem.
  3. Curabitur scelerisque mauris quis diam gravida
  4. Placerat ligula scelerisque.
  5. In vitae sem nec massa imperdiet condimentum.

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