rock climbing Rock climbing is a climbing sports discipline that involves ascending climbing routes, routes consisting of natural rock in an outdoor environment, or on artificial resin climbing walls in a mostly indoor environment. Routes are documented in c ...

, a bolt is a permanent anchor fixed into a hole drilled in the rock as a form of

climbing protection Rock-climbing equipment varies with the specific type of climbing that is undertaken. Bouldering needs the least equipment outside of climbing shoes, climbing chalk and optional crash pads. Sport climbing adds ropes, harnesses, belay dev ...

. Most bolts are either self-anchoring expansion bolts or fixed in place with liquid

resin A resin is a solid or highly viscous liquid that can be converted into a polymer. Resins may be biological or synthetic in origin, but are typically harvested from plants. Resins are mixtures of organic compounds, predominantly terpenes. Commo ...

Climbing route A climbing route () is a path by which a Climbing, climber reaches the top of a mountain, a rock face or an ice-covered obstacle. The details of a climbing route are recorded in a climbing guidebook and/or in an online climbing-route database. De ...

s that are bolted are known as sport climbs, and those that do not use (or allow) bolts, are known as traditional climbs.

Description

While bolts are commonplace in rock and gym climbing there is no universal vocabulary to describe them. Generally, a bolt hanger (or a fixed hanger) is a combination of a fixed bolt and a specialized stainless steel hanger designed to accept a

carabiner A carabiner or karabiner (), often shortened to biner or to crab, colloquially known as a (climbing) clip, is a specialized type of shackle, a metal loop with a spring-loaded gate used to quickly and reversibly connect components, most notabl ...

, whereas in certain regions a bolt runner (or a carrot) describes a hangerless bolt (where the climber must provide their own hanger bracket such as a

rivet hanger Glossary of climbing terms relates to rock climbing (including aid climbing, lead climbing, bouldering, and competition climbing), mountaineering, and to ice climbing. ebook: The terms used can vary between different English-speaking countries; ...

). A

climbing rope A dynamic rope is a specially constructed, somewhat elastic rope used primarily in rock climbing, ice climbing, and mountaineering Mountaineering, mountain climbing, or alpinism is a set of outdoor activities that involves ascending moun ...

is then clipped into the carabiner. Generally

quickdraws QuickDraw was the 2D graphics library and associated application programming interface (API) which is a core part of classic Mac OS. It was initially written by Bill Atkinson and Andy Hertzfeld. QuickDraw still existed as part of the libraries ...

or slings are employed between bolt hangers and the rope to reduce drag when ascending,

belaying In climbing and mountaineering, belaying comprises techniques used to create friction within a climbing protection system, particularly on a climbing rope, so that a falling climber does not fall very far. A climbing partner typically applies ...

and

rappelling Abseiling ( ; ), also known as rappelling ( ; ), is the controlled descent of a steep slope, such as a rock face, by moving down a rope. When abseiling, the person descending controls their own movement down a static or fixed rope, in cont ...

Types

Variations of climbing bolts include: * Ring bolt has a loop on one end so it presents as a U-shape embedded in the wall. * Glue-in bolt resembles a pin that is popular in Europe. * Carrot bolt is a metal hex-headed machine bolt used in Australia to function like a bolt but with no fixed bolt hanger attached; climbers attach to the carrot bolt by using a version of a

or by attaching a removable bolt hanger plate.

Use

Rock climbing

route Route or routes may refer to: * Air route, route structure or airway * GPS route, a series of one or more GPS waypoints * Route (gridiron football), a path run by a wide receiver * Route (command), a program used to configure the routing table * ...

s that have been bolted for climbing protection — but not as a source of aid to help progression — are called sport climbs. Where a route has bolts to aid progression (i.e. a climber can pull on the bolt), it is called an aid climb. In

competition lead climbing Competition climbing is a form of regulated rock-climbing competition held indoors on purpose-built artificial climbing walls (earlier versions were held on external natural rock surfaces). The three competition climbing disciplines are lead ...

, all of the routes are bolted.

Lifespan

Bolts degrade over time — particularly in coastal areas from salt, but also from

stress corrosion cracking Stress corrosion cracking (SCC) is the growth of crack formation in a corrosive environment. It can lead to unexpected and sudden failure of normally ductile metal alloys subjected to a tensile stress, especially at elevated temperature. SC ...

— and eventually, all sport climbs need to be re-fitted after a number of years. The highest quality

titanium Titanium is a chemical element; it has symbol Ti and atomic number 22. Found in nature only as an oxide, it can be reduced to produce a lustrous transition metal with a silver color, low density, and high strength, resistant to corrosion in ...

bolts are too expensive to use regularly, and the next highest quality

stainless steel Stainless steel, also known as inox, corrosion-resistant steel (CRES), or rustless steel, is an iron-based alloy that contains chromium, making it resistant to rust and corrosion. Stainless steel's resistance to corrosion comes from its chromi ...

bolts have an expected lifespan of circa 20—25 years (the cheaper plated stainless steel bolts have a shorter span); and in 2015, the

American Alpine Club The American Alpine Club (AAC) is a non-profit member organization with more than 26,000 members. The club is housed in the American Mountaineering Center (AMC) in Golden, Colorado. Through its members, the AAC advocates for American climbers d ...

established an "anchor replacement fund" to help replace the bolts on America's estimated 60,000 sport climbing routes.

References

External links

Can you trust that bolt: what every climber should know

The Access Fund The Access Fund is a not-for-profit rock climbing advocacy group in the US. Their goals are twofold. First, keeping climbing areas open and gaining access to currently closed climbing areas. Second, they promote an ethic of responsible climbing ...

(2023)
Access Fund and American Alpine Club Policy on Fixed Anchors
{{Climbing navbox Bolt Caving equipment Sport climbing fr:Point d'ancrage

Description

Types

Use

Lifespan

See also

References

External links