Best trad climbing reddit. 8 range lately, and my partner is around the same. Less impact on the gear means more longevity and a greater chance for a marginal placement to hold a fall. I’m looking into beginning to trad climb, any tips in regards to where to buy gear (cams and such)? Also would like to hear peoples favorite brands for gear and why? Edit: Climbing in and around the Richmond, VA area in the United States We would like to show you a description here but the site won’t allow us. To become proficient at climbing trad you first need to be proficient at climbing. On top of the trad basics (anchor building, rope management, gear placement, etc), what May 1, 2025 · Whether you’re shopping for a sport climbing harness or a something to keep you going on big walls, we’ve got what you’re looking for. Enjoying the exposure on the final pitch of Yellow Ridge (5. Think about protecting your second - especially on traverses. The best shoe is the one that fits your foot and meets your needs. Traditional Climbing Traditional climbing: use at your own risk. What would help out my belayer in this situation? a ground anchor? A directional piece at the beginning of the climb? Or just intentionally creating drag? For multipitch trad, climbed free, two 8mm ropes are fine. Hello! As the title states I am a beginner to crack climbing specifically (have been bouldering/top rope for awhile) I have only been using a wooden crack trainer at the gym and I am getting much better at everything that is like thin hands up to about cupped hands. After climbing in a pair of mythos for years, I like how well they smear and climb on slabs. 11. 6 in the Valley. Not for beginners. I find the hexes and offsets tend to have the strongest placements and get placed more often but I definely still use the nuts a lot. 2/0. Best budget-friendly (<$8. Hello friends! So I am looking to starting my first rack. I'd like some feedback on my potential tick-list. No one-size-fits all in either climbing style (blocks vs swing) or anchor building (slings vs rope). Oct 16, 2018 · Find rock climbing routes, photos, and guides for every state, along with experiences and advice from fellow climbers. Half ropes are used almost exclusively in the UK for trad climbing. For you this means you need dry if you're a guide or going ice climbing/mountaineering, because normal people and climbing- you just stop climbing when it's wet out. I always rack at least two. 12 votes, 48 comments. It covers everything from hard single pitch cragging where you're basically sport climbing on gear to sketchballs alpine climbing where the gear is mostly there so they can follow the rope to find your body. Hi folks, I'm starting to get into trad climbing, and I've been reading various different accounts of how people have been gotten injured on the wall and their partners have been able to retreat with them safely, which got me thinking about the rope skills you'd need to know to get out of a hairy situation. Let him try them on and purchase the he likes the most. ) but want to know what skills I should have solid before I dive into the mountains. it's dangerous. But once I get to fist jams I struggle a lot. If you are single pitch climbing, it's probably fine, but multipitch climbing with a full double rack, draws, anchor material, atc/grigri, and water bottle/packable jacket gets really tight without a lot of gear loop space. 00) trad/alpine draw carabiner? Anyone have recommendations for cheapish biners to use with a trad/alpine draw? I've looked at BD, WC, Mad Rock, everything really. Friends with full trad racks are the best kinds of friends. Clipstick Jacket Shoes Book Now i need and want a big pack. Thanks in advance! Hello all, My partner is 105 lbs and I am around 150 lbs with all the gear on me for a pitch. I’ve been climbing for 2 years and have just started to get into trad climbing and multi pitch. 80m rope /ropebag Food/3l blatter 2 climbing harnesses/ helmets Sportdraws / carabiners. Reply reply Tom0laSFW • I’ve been climbing about 8 years, leading trad consistently for maybe 3. Best advice would be to see what he is planning on using it for. I believe a small set of micro nuts are in order but if being used for trad leading which sizes should I get? Offset or not? Which brand? Brass or alloy? I am a fan of DMM's products. Finally able to buy some trad gear! Can’t wait to learn what it’s all about Share Add a Comment Sort by: Top Open comment sort options Best Top New Controversial Old Q&A damphands • I have some guide books on the way but wanted to ask the hive brain for recommendations on super fun single and multi pitch trad climbs in Little or Big Cottonwood Canyons or slightly further afield near the end of October. 20K subscribers in the tradclimbing community. Always seems to go in on the most engaging fun pitches. For sport and bouldering I use a Patagonia Cragsmith 32L which is a fair bit less bulky but equally good. They inspire more confidence than any other small piece but they are slightly bigger than 0. Trad and sport harnesses can be different with the padding and gear loop layouts. Two years ago, though, I got into trad and haven't looked back. If you plan to climb anything higher than 30 meters (half a rope lenght), the self-rescue book is also mandatory, for your partner and your safety. Grigri, ATC, prusik, triple or quad length sling or a cordalette, bail gear, etc. Tending to Blue ice moonlight 55l Blue ice octupus 45l they just brought out new versions Myster ranch 47l Mountain hardware crag wagon 60l Bd creek 50l Bd stone duffel 42l Mammut Preferably something thorough for rock climbing trad anchors, I don't care about teaching them snow anchors and mountaineering details. 6 and I think was described in the guidebook as the best 5. 1 but DMM Dragonflies would be a good alternative. You get a placement that I would rather fall onto pretty much every time imo. Get to be the best trad leader you can be, then test yourself on some longer routes. What happens to the rest of them when you fall on the top piece. 15 votes, 23 comments. Been trad climbing with some buddies for a while now and ready to commit and buy my own rack. Friends who don’t have any trad gear but are solid climbers and willing to follow me up any trad climb are equally as good. Looking for something comfortable to hang in, but also comfortable to walk in. I’ve read a ton of articles and reviews and even searched through old posts on this thread. Previous to having this harness, I just squeezed all this stuff behind all the alpines, but it was a pain. I think trad has ruined sport climbing for me I've been climbing 10 + years, 5 quite seriously, and have clipped bolts all over North America. I have bought a full set of DMM offsets and I’m now starting to look at cams. Dry treatment is a good upgrade for your first rope, especially dry sheath, it'll stay nicer, longer. I’d rather not buy things twice so I’d rather spend the money and get the best stuff I can. Pretty convinced it's going to last me many years because I can barely see any wear after 1. If you were starting from scratch what cams would you get? I’m It stretches out, but not back while wet. Honourable mentions to the smaller blue offset, and the red six. Trad climbing is a lot more than placing gear and clipping it. . We're pretty efficient with our turnovers to swing leads, as we were able to If I was buying a rope for just traditional climbing, I would choose the rope with the lowest impact force. The best advice I have for you is to boulder a ton so that you start to develop proper technique so that you don't get elvis leg (as much) while placing gear. 5-3, and Master Cams or Aliens for smaller sizes. If that is not an option for whatever reason then I use whatever slings I have available on my harness. Traditional climbing: use at your own risk. For big wall, a ~10mm dynamic line for leading and a static tag/haul line are the standard. Aside from tech cord which is not accessory cord. 2 and sometimes the plastic piece that guides the trigger wires can be troublesome in tight places. This past weekend -- for the first time in 2 years -- I went on a short sport climbing trip to a classic area, and was -- frankly -- bored. and then start ticking long free routes. That being said, if you’ve got rope to spare for anchor building you certainly gain a lot of ease in connecting pieces (don’t have to fiddle with making static arms and other weird configurations). 5 seasons and 2 washes. Yes, get a set of nuts. I've had my BD Momentum since I started climbing and I really like it, but its starting to die on me and I want more gear loop space/organization, so ideally I want something with a 5th gear loop. All brands fit differently as well so maybe offering to purchase one in your budget is a good idea. The higher heel helps support your ankle torqued over in cracks and the rigidity of the sole helps with edging. Trad grades are stiffer than sport grades at many venues. This is by no means an exhaustive analysis as I have a limited amount of gear on hand, but You give up head width, some stability, and taking up more space around the placement which is a bummer if not aid climbing. 7) I'm planning a trip to Vegas in the spring and looking for recommendations for multipitch trad adventures. g. DMM wallnut, size 3. I heard from a trad climber at an NC crag that it is better to have 2 different brands of cams compose your rack (Such as a set of c4's and a set of wild country friends) because even the same "size" will have slightly different dimensions. Part of it seems to be that I can’t seem to get my feet in very well. It's a 3 pitch 5. I climb in Squamish and cannot say enough good things about the black Totem. It's basically walking up a gully/ramp to an amazing finger crack on a low angle slab, with a big ledge at the top with nice views. Sport climbing we usually use an Edelrid Ohm and while it's not ideal for clipping, it saved me a few ground falls. I was leading up to about 5. If you don’t know who Heinz Mariacher is, he is basically responsible for designing most of the best climbing shoes of the last 20+ years and all of the recommended shoes on this thread. Haul loop: Shoes. 10 trad climber. Some additional things you need to think about: How your gear placements affect the system. A subreddit dedicated to discussing and reviewing climbing shoes. Route finding Getting back down Cleaning and re-racking gear Rogue 48 is great for trad, takes a full rack with double cams, extra layers, food, water, a pair of 50m half ropes, and quite comfortably. Apr 4, 2025 · We tested 15 climbing harnesses from Petzl, Black Diamond, Blue Ice, and more to find the top options for all climbing styles. Thanks, and my apologies if this is asked everyday. Sep 11, 2023 · Trad climbing is a lot broader than sport. Find rock climbing routes, photos, and guides for every state, along with experiences and advice from fellow climbers. Mad Rock Ultralight : Good price, maybe small, one color Trango Phase : Similar price/weight to Ultralights, multicolor, very few reviews Jun 5, 2025 · We found the best climbing harnesses of 2025. For more specific to rock climbing and trad, I would recommend Craig Leubben's book, "rock climbing: masterising basics". 7 there, been dabbling in the 5. Trad Climbing Community A place to talk about trad climbing. 7, but it took so long to get here that it feels like I’ll never be a 5. After one year of trad climbing and nearly 100 pitches led, I am very comfy leading 5. Start climbing in the Valley! Be solid on leading 5. But, If slab’s aren’t your thing and you’re more crack or edging, then I can honestly say the TCs are the best. Hey Guys, I am looking for a Crag Pack to throw everything in. Where will you be climbing? The basic trad rack varies by area, but a lot of people like C4's from . So far in my trad climbing career I have been using a typical setup with 10+ Alpine quickdraws each consisting of of 2 biners… I was cleaning up my climbing gear today after an unfortunate incident during a muddy approach, and I started thinking about alpine draws. On here sits all the extra stuff. Yeah I think that’s totally valid. The main complaint with those seem to Is this a serious question? There’s not gonna be a discernible difference between whatever spools your climbing shop has. The climbing is easier than most of the routes at Swan Slab and Pine Line, etc. You should try on shoes that are intended for multipitch trad climbing. Rock protection, anchor, videos, photos, questions about gear, gear reviews and more! What kind of clothing for offwith climbing? We don't have much offwith where I am but I have a project this summer that probably require at least 100 meters of fighting in one. grand Teton, high sierras, etc. I was looking for something that could carry a small trad rack or big sport rack, and found one that's also light enough to be a backpacking pack. 8+ at the Gunks. 17K subscribers in the tradclimbing community. Edit: Also can't deny I enjoy placing an old machine nut slung on cord, occasionally. Particularly, which configurations I had seen at the crag, what I use, and what the best options were for putting more together with my current stockpile of gear. Hey all, I'm curious what you all would recommend for a dual purpose climbing harness. Being efficient building and cleaning anchors and belays helps on big walls when time is a factor. Now I’m comfy to around 5. Very overwhelmed on where to… My favorite sling for multipitch trad anchors is the rope I am climbing on. I'm struggling to find a do-it-all harness I really like for trad/multipitch/ice climbing. I want to do alpine climbing (e. What do you guys think? I'm new to trad so I would love any advice! Edit: Thanks for all the replies! I've recently started trad climbing as well and am using DMM nut set 3 (includes a set of nuts, offsets and hexes). We would like to show you a description here but the site won’t allow us. Trad climbing is a lot broader than sport. I’ve always had dedicated PAS but am leaning toward ditching it entirely and primarily anchoring with the climbing rope (I mostly do multi-pitch trad). It's not just a question of rote learning one system and off you go. Middle Rear (5th loop): Bought my Petzl Aquila specifically for this loop for trad climbing. Oct 1, 2022 · Find rock climbing routes, photos, and guides for every state, along with experiences and advice from fellow climbers. Currently I'm mostly leading in the Gunks, and feeling pretty solid on 5. This is the only correct answer, and should get added to browsers as an autocorrect replacement for every variation of "Best Trad Harness" , "What is the best Trad Harness", etc. Out of this list, which should I get after Hey gang, I've got a 10 day trip coming up to Red Rocks, with multi-pitch trad missions as the prime objective. 90% rock climbing, 10% mountaineering/ski mountaineering. 9 everything- face, slab, offwidth, chimney, etc. Whether you're sport climbing or mountaineering, we have you covered. 10b sport outside when I started getting into trad, then kinda had to start over when learning on gear. Devils Lake- this is the best trad climbing in the midwest - no one who is from Michigan, ohio, wisconsin, or indiana ( the northwest territories at one time i think) can deny its supremacy. I have done Apart from the ridiculous price, also worth thinking that if this is your first rack and you're new to trad climbing, all those cams are single axle which are much more finicky to place, they can invert and spin. You need to be thoroughly versed in all aspects of climbing ropework systems. I really like my WC Zero's for 0. I've occasionally used a single for short single pitch routes, but I've never met anyone using a single for a multipitch route. That little gold wire held my first fall, and ever since, brings on good feelings on a lead. 15 votes, 24 comments. I have gotten myself in too many situations while on a trad lead where I was wishing I had something smaller to protect the lead before running it out another 20 feet. I also have fairly decent crack skills and sport onsight solid 5. These ropes should be unicore ropes to avoid sheath slippage when jugging. My partner and I both have good fitness levels and 17 votes, 34 comments. How do you plan to get to your sport anchor or set up your trad anchor? Do you know how to rig - and pass - redirects around any rope-threatening edges? If your chosen system doesn't work as expected or something goes wrong, how The biggest factor in the difference between UK and US trad is that we use double ropes- obviously you can use a single rope for any trad route if you’re proficient at extending it and have enough long quickdraws though! Lots of Cornish climbing (and a tiny bit of Dorset stuff) is on tidal sea cliffs. jmgeer seg cuwheuzc qitf wuvk mgktu jthi kod eckmow huyk