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A close cousin of the retraced figure 8, the retraced overhand knot has a few niche applications, like making retreat anchors. Learn about it here. Premium Article available https://www.alpinesavvy.com/blog/the-retraced-overhand-knot

Trees can make great rappel anchors, but there are definitely some best practices and things you want to avoid. Have a look at Part 2 of my detailed series on tree anchors. Premium Article available https://www.alpinesavvy.com/blog/trees-for-climbing-anchors-rappel

Arriving at an bolt anchor with a small stance? Clip a quick draw to the bolt, and then either clip or clove hitch yourself to the draw. This secures you while you build the rest of the anchor. Use the top carabiner of the quick draw as part of the anchor. See a step-by-step and photo sequence for both multi pitch and top rope. Premium Article available https://www.alpinesavvy.com/blog/start-your-anchor-with-a-quickdraw

A 1:1 haul is the big wall standard for moving up your vertical camping supplies. But when it starts to be close (or even a bit more) than your bodyweight, it can be very hard to lift. Here’s a #CraftyRopeTrick that let’s you haul extra-heavy bags 1:1. Premium Article available https://www.alpinesavvy.com/blog//how-to-11-haul-a-load-heavier-than-you-are

Want to learn some #CraftyRopeTricks for using trees as climbing anchors? The deep dive series on tree anchors covers general principles, and rigging systems for rappel, top rope, and multi pitch climbing.  Premium Article available https://www.alpinesavvy.com/blog/trees-for-climbing-anchors-part-1-overview

Five more quick tips on best practices. In this article: Best place to put your pulley in a hauling system, how to rack pickets, why it's good to have waypoints rather than just a track on your GPS, minimizing cluster at big wall anchors, and why it's good to stand away from the cliff when you pull your rappel rope. Premium Article available https://www.alpinesavvy.com/blog/do-this-not-that-part-7

Can we improve single pitch “clip and lower” anchors? This anchor ticks all the boxes for low cost, simplicity, security, longevity, and more. See all the details, variations, and cost breakdown here. Normally, I publish a complete version of my articles for my Premium Members, and a shortened version of articles on the public part of my website. However, for this article, I'm changing that.  Because I want this to reach the largest possible audience, I'm posting the entire article here on the public part of my website. Inspiration and peer review for this article is from Kevin Maliczak, aka ClimbingTaiwan. Connect on his Instagram @climbingtaiwan and YouTube. Thanks to Evan Wisheropp for peer review of this article. Connect with Evan on Instagram, @evanwisheropp https://www.alpinesavvy.com/blog/rethinking-single-pitch-anchors

Do single pitch anchors get any better than this? It ticks all the boxes for security, convenience, longevity, ease of use, and more. See all the details, variations, and cost breakdown here. Premium Article available https://www.alpinesavvy.com/blog/is-this-the-best-single-pitch-anchor

Part of a continuing series of looking at strength of anchors, gear, and knots. How strong is a belay loop? How about a rope after you stomp on it with a crampon? Can I trust that rappel anchor made with old, sun bleached webbing? Learn the answers to these and more. Premium Article available https://www.alpinesavvy.com/blog/how-strong-is-it-gear-part-1

The 2:1 haul is a fundamental system in rope rescue. If you use a progress capture pulley, there are two places you can put it: on the load, and on the anchor. There are pros and cons to each; learn ‘em here.  Premium Article available https://www.alpinesavvy.com/blog//two-ways-to-rig-a-21-c-haul

When lowering off and cleaning an overhanging route, you may have a problem at the bottom quick draw. If you unclip that and let go, you're probably gonna take a big swing, which may be into something dangerous. Here are two techniques to solve this problem. Premium Article available https://www.alpinesavvy.com/blog/how-to-safely-clean-an-overhanging-route

Hauling isn't just for big walls; pulling up your pack on a small diameter cord can be a lot nicer than having it on your back. Here's a great way to set up an ergonomic hauling system that's simple, fast, and lets you lift with your legs, not your arms. Premium Article available https://www.alpinesavvy.com/blog/foot-haul-your-pack-on-a-multi-pitch

Hauling isn't just for big walls; pulling up your pack on a small diameter cord can be a lot nicer than having it on your back. Here's a great way to set up an ergonomic hauling system that's simple, fast, and lets you lift with your legs, not your arms. Premium Article available https://www.alpinesavvy.com/blog/foot-haul-your-pack-on-a-multi-pitch-8lg4j

Being able to see in real time on your phone if you’re on public lands or not is helpful for all kinds of things, especially finding free dispersed camping spots. Here’s how to use some modern mapping tools like Caltopo and Gaia GPS to do this. https://www.alpinesavvy.com/blog/find-free-camping-on-public-lands-with-these-mapping-tools

Being able to see in real time on your phone if you’re on public lands or not is helpful for all kinds of things, especially finding free dispersed camping spots. Here’s how to use some modern mapping tools like Caltopo and Gaia GPS to do this. https://www.alpinesavvy.com/blog/how-to-find-public-lands-with-map-software/apps1

Do you have a 3:1 hauling system set up, and need a little extra pulling power? Here's a simple way to turn it into a 5:1 with minimal extra gear. Premium Article available https://www.alpinesavvy.com/blog/hauling-systems-boost-your-31-to-a-51

Five bite sized, quick tips of best practices. In this post: 1) “boosting” a low anchor, 2) rope pull tip for a traversing rappel, 3) how a redirect increases anchor loading, 4) why you don't need an overhand knot on a tied loop anchor, and 5) how to set up a lower with a Grigri.  Premium Article available https://www.alpinesavvy.com/blog/climbing-tips-do-this-not-that-part-6

Expert American alpinist Colin Haley is known for a few things: an expertise for routes in Patagonia, and a tremendous obsession with climbing gear. Check out this great video interview where he offers a free ranging commentary on equipment he’s designed, customized, and uses regularly. Premium Article available https://www.alpinesavvy.com/blog/whats-in-my-pack-gear-obsession-by-colin-haley

Expert American alpinist Colin Haley is known for a few things: an expertise for routes in Patagonia, and a tremendous obsession with climbing gear. Check out this great video interview where he offers a free ranging commentary on equipment he’s designed, customized, and uses regularly. Premium Article available https://www.alpinesavvy.com/blog//whats-in-my-pack-gear-obsession-by-colin-haley-part-2

We've all wondered - how strong is it? The Alpinesavvy web gnomes scoured the web to find some break testing for common (and not so common) gear, knots and rigging. Start here for an overview, and then head over to the more detailed articles. https://www.alpinesavvy.com/blog/how-strong-is-it-overview