Eva Eskilsson offers the following royalty-free article for you to publish online or in print. Feel free to use this article in your newsletter, website, ezine, blog, or forum. ----------- PUBLICATION GUIDELINES - You have permission to publish this article for free providing the "About the Author" box is included in its entirety. - Do not post/reprint this article in any site or publication that contains hate, violence, porn, warez, or supports illegal activity. - Do not use this article in violation of the US CAN-SPAM Act. If sent by email, this article must be delivered to opt-in subscribers only. - If you publish this article in a format that supports linking, please ensure that all URLs and email addresses are active links. - Please send a copy of the publication, or an email indicating the URL to [email protected] - Article Marketer (www.ArticleMarketer.com) has distributed this article on behalf of the author. Article Marketer does not own this article, please respect the author's copyright and publication guidelines. If you do not agree to these terms, please do not use this article. ----------- Article Title: How Do We Free Climb The European Big Walls? Author: Eva Eskilsson Category: Outdoors, Sports, Recreation and Leisure Word Count: 451 Keywords: big wall climbing, grandes voies, multi-pitch climbing, Alps, Europe, rock climbing Author's Email Address: [email protected] Article Source: http://www.articlemarketer.com ------------------ ARTICLE START ------------------
The highest concentration of multi-pitch routes and so called Big Walls or Grandes Voies in Europe you find in France, Italy, Switzerland and Spain. Many are put up on legendary walls in variable and incredibly beautiful places. You find a mix of modern routes (recently and well equipped), routes on traditional gear, historical walls, and mountain routes. A big wall can be anything between 5 and 25 pitches. Being longer than 500m of sustained difficulties, it is already considered to be a very big wall. The route descriptions can be found in several different guidebooks, some a lot better than others. Always compare several to find the best description of long and demanding routes. A guidebook also gives you the difficulty of a route by writing either the maximum grade (type 5+, 6a, 6b.. of the hardest pitch on the route), the obligatory grade (the hardest passage between two possible points of protection), or the overall grade (type D, TD, ED.. Indicating the seriousness of the mission). The times given in guidebooks often correspond to a team of two persons capable of free climbing the route on sight. We climb big walls in teams of 2 or 3 persons, most commonly using two half-ropes. This is convenient for rappelling and for avoiding rope drag, since the pitches are often 40m long and the points of protection are seldom in a straight line. On hard, steep and straightforward routes we often haul a small backpack. Then we climb with one single rope and a thinner trail line for the backpack and the rappelling. The gear (quick-draws, friends/camalots, nuts, pitons..) is sometimes described in the guidebook, but it is recommended to confirm such things with other people who have already climbed the route. The equipment in place (bolts, pitons, slings) varies a lot and it is essential to know how to connect points and build proper belays before climbing big walls. Always bring two locking carabiners and a 120cm sling to build belays. Additionally, the general personal material to bring is: harness, friction shoes, helmet, chalk bag, two prussic slings, a belay device of type reverso with two locking carabiners, pocket knife and a first aid kit. If you are planning/risking to bivouac also bring a head torch and a bivi-bag. Adapt your clothing to the climate and bring something to drink and eat. Most places in the Alps and other mountain ranges in Europe are covered by the cell phone networks, so bring your phone and remember to register the number for the local rescue. Do not hesitate to take a day or two together with a professional mountain guide to learn the necessary skills before going to more adventurous places than the sport climbing crags. Eva Eskilsson writes for a small guiding company based in Chamonix Mont Blanc (http://www.mountain-spirit-guides.com). They offer guided rock climbing and mountaineering in the Alps and tailor made climbing and mountaineering courses in Europe. ------------------ ARTICLE END ------------------ [Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
