If a suitable ledge for stacking the climbing rope is not available, coil the rope over your anchor attachment. For maximum efficiency your coils should either start longer and end short, or start short and end long (never the same size coils!).

Choosing the right choice depends on who is leading the next pitch. If your partner is leading the next pitch you want to start with long coils progressively getting smaller. That way, when they start to lead, the smaller coils on top should feed off smoothly. This prevents looping under a longer coil, which creates tangles.

If you are leading the next pitch you should start with smaller coils progressively getting bigger. Then, after your partner tethers to the anchor, you can carefully “flip” the whole lap coil over onto their tether. The smaller coils (your end of the rope) should now be on top of the lap coil. They should feed off smoothly.

It takes some practice to do this neatly to avoid tangles. When done correctly the climbing party will lose very little time at the belay transition. If the lap coils are not tidy, re-stack or recoil the rope. This ensures the leader end will feed smoothly during the next pitch.

Have you been doing this?

Ever have a rope coil mess that you just toss down the cliff below you hoping for the best?

The rope used in this video is the Mammut Crag Classic Doudess 9.8mm 60m.

See you in the mountains,

Northeast Alpine Start

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