climbing Climbing is the activity of using one's hands, feet, or other parts of the body to ascend a steep topographical object that can range from the world's tallest mountains (e.g. the eight thousanders) to small boulders. Climbing is done for locom ...

and

mountaineering Mountaineering, mountain climbing, or alpinism is a set of outdoor activities that involves ascending mountains. Mountaineering-related activities include traditional outdoor climbing, skiing, and traversing via ferratas that have become mounta ...

, a fixed-rope (or fixed-line) is the practice of installing networks of in-situ anchored static climbing ropes on

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 to assist any following climbers (and

porters Porters may refer to: * Porters, Virginia, an unincorporated community in Virginia, United States * Porters, Wisconsin, an unincorporated community in Wisconsin, United States * Porters Ski Area, a ski resort in New Zealand * Porters (TV series), '' ...

) to ascend more rapidly—and with less effort—by using mechanical aid devices called ascenders. Fixed ropes also allow climbers (and porters) to descend rapidly using mechanical devices called descenders. Fixed ropes also help to identify the line of the climbing route in periods of low visibility (e.g. a storm or white-out). The act of ascending a fixed rope is also called jumaring, which is the name of a type of ascender device, or also called jugging in the US. Fixed ropes are put in place by the lead climbers, and the ropes may or may not be removed as the climbers descend after completing the route. For popular Himalayan climbing routes, extensive networks of fixed ropes may be put in place to last the entire climbing season (e.g. the

Khumbu Icefall The Khumbu Icefall is located at the head of the Khumbu Glacier and the foot of the Western Cwm. It lies at an elevation of on the Nepali slopes of Mount Everest, not far above Base Camp and southwest of the summit. The icefall is regarded as o ...

Mount Everest Mount Everest (), known locally as Sagarmatha in Nepal and Qomolangma in Tibet, is Earth's highest mountain above sea level. It lies in the Mahalangur Himal sub-range of the Himalayas and marks part of the China–Nepal border at it ...

). While storms can strip a mountain of fixed ropes that have been left behind, the existence of old—and often unreliable and dangerous—fixed ropes along popular climbing routes, is a concern in climbing. On popular European, and latterly American, climbing routes, the fixed rope can be replaced by networks of permanently anchored metal cables, which are called '

via ferrata A via ferrata (Italian language, Italian for "iron path", plural ''vie ferrate'' or in English ''via ferratas'') is a protected climbing route found in the Alps and certain other Alpine locations. The protection includes steel fixtures such as ...

' routes. Fixed ropes are not used in '

alpine style Alpine climbing () is a type of mountaineering that uses any of a broad range of advanced climbing skills, including rock climbing, ice climbing, and/or mixed climbing, to summit typically large climbing route, routes (e.g. multi-pitch climbing, ...

' mountaineering as they are considered akin to a form of

aid climbing Aid climbing is a form of rock climbing that uses mechanical devices and equipment, such as aiders (or ladders), for upward momentum. Aid climbing is contrasted with free climbing (in both its traditional or sport free climbing formats), whi ...

. Fixed ropes are commonly used on

big wall climbing Big wall climbing is a form of rock climbing that takes place on long and sheer multi-pitch climbing, multi-pitch climbing routes, routes (of ''at least'' 6–10 pitches or 300–500 metres) that require a full day, if not several days, to ascen ...

routes where it is common for the non-lead climber(s) to jumar up on fixed ropes to save time and conserve effort; the re-belay technique is often used on big walls to reduce wear on fixed ropes. Guided climbing expeditions to Himalayan peaks such as the easier

eight-thousander The eight-thousanders are the 14 mountains recognized by the International Mountaineering and Climbing Federation (UIAA) as being more than in height above sea level, and sufficiently independent of neighbouring peaks. There is no precise defin ...

s, often set up extensive networks of fixed ropes on steep or icy sections of the climbing route to help their less experienced clients, and to allow their porters and sherpas move quickly along the route. For example, on the Hillary Step of

Everest Mount Everest (), known locally as Sagarmatha in Nepal and Qomolangma in Tibet, is Earth's highest mountain above sea level. It lies in the Mahalangur Himal sub-range of the Himalayas and marks part of the China–Nepal border at its ...

, networks of fixed ropes improve client safety, but then cause bottlenecks at altitudes in the death zone. The ethics on the use of extensive fixed rope networks by commercial adventure companies facilitating access to dangerous eight-thousander summits for weaker climbers is a source of debate in mountaineering.

References

External links

Using fixed ropes
Andy Kirkpatrick (December 2008)
Newcomers’ Guide: Fixed Ropes in Himalayan Climbing
''ExplorersWeb'' (March 2022) {{DEFAULTSORT:Fixed Rope Climbing techniques

See also

References

Further reading

External links