Disclaimer: The Reepschnur Rappel is an advanced climbing technique. Like all technical climbing techniques, misunderstanding or misapplication can lead to serious bodily injury or death. Seek qualified in-person instruction on this technique from an AMGA certified guide or a seasoned and vetted mentor. You take all responsibility in attempting any climbing technique you learn from the internet.

Last week my partner Foster and I found ourselves at the top of the second pitch of the classic Wanderlust route on Humprey’s Ledge, North Conway NH. We were climbing with a single 70 meter Mammut Alpine Dry Climbing Rope.

Comments on Mountain Project indicated a 70m double rappel would just barely reach the ground. I chose instead to conduct a Reepschur Rappel. I had read about this technique in a couple of different climbing texts. I felt it would be a good choice for the situation we were in. In fact if you are not sure your ropes will reach the next anchor or the ground this is a great method to understand.

To begin, I tethered into the anchor. This allowed me to untie from my rope end. Then I fed a little more than half the rope through the fixed anchor rings. I then lowered Foster directly from the anchor with a Munter hitch and a third hand friction hitch backup. There are many ways you could lower your partner like a redirected plate. The advantage of lowering your partner is clear. You can measure accurately how far you need to go to reach the next anchor. In our case, it meant reaching the ground. The middle mark of the rope passed through my lowering system. It traveled about 20 feet down the cliff. Then Foster reached the ground.

At this point, I tied an overhand on a bight on the brake side of the lowering system. I then clipped it with a locking carabiner to the strand I had lowered Foster on. This essentially creates what some folks call a “GriGri Rappel.” You can now conduct a single strand rappel on this strand with any appropriate device. A blocked “GriGri rappel” is pretty simple. The challenge is how to recover your rope when the “pull” side does not reach the ground.

The solution here is pretty simple. When you reach the end of the “pull” side of the rope, attach enough material to it. This way, you can finish your rappel and still have a connection to the pull side for rope recovery. What you attach to this side can be anything. You could untie a 20 foot cordelette. This is especially true if your joining knot is a Flat Overhand Bend. You could chain all of your quick-draws together. You could literally use shoelaces if you needed to. Use whatever you need to finish your single strand blocked rappel and still have a connection to the “pull” side. Once you are secure, either at the next anchor or the ground, you can pull your chain of connection. This will allow you to recover your rope.

This technique really opens up the potential of climbing with “pull cords” which can be insanely light and pack-able. The Petzl Purline is an industry favorite. It is ideal if the climbing party only wants to carry one fully rated dynamic climbing rope. Climbers can still conduct full rope length rappels.

Dangers!

• If you unintentionally install your device on the pull side of this blocked rappel it would end in tragedy. Be paranoid of this error and don’t make it!

• If your rope gets stuck while pulling your pull cord, you likely won’t have any rated climbing rope. This means that you can’t “lead back up.” You can’t fix the problem like you would in a more traditional double rope rappel system.

• Skinny pull cords can be hard to grasp and pull especially if there is a lot of friction above. I fondly remember trying to rappel with a pull cord. It was 60 meters of 5mm accessory cord on Cathedral Ledge. This was almost two decades ago. We read about the technique in “Climbing Magazine.” In moderate winds, our pull cord wrapped itself around our main climbing line dozens of times. We got down with only mild hypothermia. We had to build an improvised 9:1 haul system to actually pull the rope down.

With those considerations and warnings in mind the Reepschnur rappel likely deserves more awareness in the recreational climber’s repertoire. Like many advanced climbing techniques, we usually learn about them directly from a certified climbing guide. Alternatively, books like the Mountain Guide Manual, published with advanced users in mind also give this information. This post aims to introduce this valuable technique to a broader audience. I sincerely hope that the audience heeds the warnings of nuanced application.

See you in the mountains,

Northeast Alpine Start

Affiliate links above support the content created here. If you make a purchase after visiting one of these links the author earns a small commission on no additional cost to you. Thank you!