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Rappelling with bolts

lungpuncher1

lungpuncher1

Well-Known Member
Joined
Jun 11, 2018
Messages
250
Anyone use bolts and rappel down?

I almost exclusively use bolts but I’d like the option to rappel down as well. Can you stop and grab bolts on the way down? On preset trees where I leave bolts in the tree can I pull my rappel rope down without the rope getting hopelessly stuck?
 
lungpuncher1 said:
Ever any real issues with bolts getting hung up on rope and coming out or just getting tangled in general?


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Click to expand...
Havent rappelled while using bolts but have with multiple sticks and one sticking and it is a non-issue. I use a running jrb hitch for my rappel rope and it is a remote releasable hitch so rope isnt getting hung on anything, sticks, bolts, limbs whatever. Easy to stop and remove sticks or platform. If you are using and ATC or munter, you will need to back it up with a friction hitch to stop and go hands free. With a figure 8, you can lock it on the way down or back it up with a friction hitch. I dont use the mechanical devices like a safeguard or grigri but you can stop and go hands free with some of them as well. Lots of options for stopping on the way down. The bigger issue is easy rope retrieval and I am not aware of any setup that works better than the running jrb hitch.
 
The only issue I see is the number of times you are gonna have to stop to pull all your bolts out.
 
I wouldn’t do this unless I could set anchors in every preset that allowed for easy rope removal and setting.

I still wouldn’t do it because it takes 30 seconds to climb down a tree safely on bolts.

Neither of these statements precludes you from having rope on you to rappel for some emergency or special reason. Otherwise it makes little sense from a time, money, fiddle factor, energy, effort, focus perspective.
 
kyler1945 said:
I wouldn’t do this unless I could set anchors in every preset that allowed for easy rope removal and setting.

I still wouldn’t do it because it takes 30 seconds to climb down a tree safely on bolts.

Neither of these statements precludes you from having rope on you to rappel for some emergency or special reason. Otherwise it makes little sense from a time, money, fiddle factor, energy, effort, focus perspective.
Click to expand...

Kinda the thought process that’s kept me from doing it after 5-6 years of using bolts.


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I do it just for the fun of it.
I climb my presets with bolts and a lineman's rope
Tether in with the rappel rope and rappel down with a Madrock, so the rappel rope retrieval is easy.
 
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