Rock Climbing (Yarncliffe Quarry)

At Yarncliffe Quarry (17/11/11) the equipment we were provided with, (harness, helmet, Karibieners, belaying device and rope), was handed out and we were instructed on how to put the equipment on. Jed then set up the ropes on the rock face and made sure it was safe for us to climb.
The jobs that I did whilst we were climbing were:
Belaying: I stood at  the person at the bottom of the rock face and  tightened the rope through a belaying device as the climber gradually climbed up the rock. Then when the climber reached the point of the rock that they wanted to,  i was responsible for the climbers safety and when the climber was abseiling they must gently release the rope through the belaying device.
Climbing:
Once the belayer was ready, we climbed onto the cliffe face. We tried to grab the rock that had the most grip as it was quite wet. We used the strength  in out legs to push up off the lower rocks so that we could climb the rock. Once at the top we had to lean back and then the belayer lower us.

How To Fit  A Harness


Unravel the harness so that the leg hoops are in front of you. The leg hoops should be hanging from the waist band so they are infront of your legs when harness is lifted up.


Step into the leg hoops (like a pair of trousers) and pull it up till it can go no higher. The strap that connects the two leg straps together should be at the front of your legs if it is not then the harness is on the wrong way.


Then tighten trhe waist strap so that it wont drop down and will carry your weight once climbing.


Double back on the waist strap so that it is secure and wont loosen off.


Then tighten the leg straps so that they are as tight as they can get.


Again double back on the leg straps so that it won't loosen off.

How To Fit A Helmet

Put the helmet on the top of your head and with the tightening mechanism at the back of the helmet turn it clockwise so that it tightens. But turn it anti clockwise if it needs to be loosened off.

Then fasten the chin strap.
Once its fastened  tighten it using the strap so that it is secure on your head and won't fall off.

Belaying Techniques


 Measure up the size of the climber and the size of the belayer so that they are in proportion to one another so the belayer is strong enough to anchor the climber.

Tie the climber into the harness using a figure of 8 knot and then a stopper knot  then check that the climber is secure by pulling the knots to see if it will stay and prevent the climber from falling.

To belay a belay device is needed in order to get the climber down. Every time there is slack on the rope, the rope needs pulling through the belay device so that if the climber falls they will not fall all the way down as they will have been stopped and the belayer will have full control of the rope. To get the climber downyou need to ask them to grab the knot fastened to their harness and lean back. You then grab the rope at either end of the belay device and then gently release the rope through the device to make the climber come down whilst they step down on the rock face.

When communicating with either the belayer or the climber you need to make sure that the message is clear and that it has been clearly understood. For example if the rock is high and the climber has gone most or all of the way up you could use signs that have been explained prior to the climbers assent. You could also shout up to the climber once they have finished climbing and say things like 'lean back' and 'hold onto the knot on the rope'. These are clear instructions and cannot be misinterprited.  

Tying a Figure of 8 and stopper knot

Figure of eight
1. Fold your rope into a loop.

2.Then fold it back across itself.

 3.Wrap the loop around the back of the folded rope and thread it back through the main loop.

4.Adjust the knot size.



Stopper knot
1. Start the knot by making a loop, and wrap the short end of the rope around itself twice.

2. Send the short end through the knot.

3. Tighten the stopper knot evenly.

4. Secure the end of any other knot using a stopper knot.

Appropriate route choice

When planning a route when climbing you need to make sure that there are ridges and indents in the rock face so that you can gain a good grip that will prevent you from falling from the rock.

There are also different ways that you can grip the rock so that it will make your choice of route more diverse and possibly easier to be able to climb.



You could use the mantel shelf which is using your arms to push yourself up onto a ledge using upper body strength so that you can get your knee or foot onto the ledge that your arms are on.

You can also use layback. This is basically when you transfer your body weight from your hands to your feet.

 A crimp is also another climbing technique. For this you only use your fingertips to hold the rock with.

A pinch is another way to hold the rock. You need to just pinch either side of the rock so that you can get a good grip.

Hand and foot jams are when you wedge your hand or foot into a rock so thatit is easier to climb. For Hand jams your palm needs to face on side of the crack and the back of the hand the other. For the foot jams you need to do the same but with your big toe facing up and your little toe facing down but you foot needs to be in the crack upto the arch in the foot so it is secure.

Place protection

Place protection is when you place a Hex (Hexcentrics), a camming device or a nut into the rock so that there can be ropes up the rock so that it is safe for the climber to climb up it.

Use of an anchor
An anchor is usually something that is attatched to the climber, rope, rock, building etc. It's goal is that in the event of a fall it will usually stop a fall or hold a static load.