ANCHORS

Contents
1. Intro
2. Hydrolic Anchors
3. Building a Natural Anchor
3.1 Natural Chock Anchor
3.2 Cairn Anchor
3.3 Deadman
4. Knot Chocks
4.1 Retrievable Knot Chocks
5. Ghosting
5.1 Getting the Sling Back with Two Rapides
5.2 Simul-rap
5.3 The Greasy Girth
5.4 The Slick
5.5 Janus Anchor
5.6 Omnisling
5.7 Slip-knot Knot Block
5.8 Dowel Anchor
5.9 Macram Knot
5.10 Sliding knots
5.11 Flicker Chocks
5.12 Body Anchor
5.13 Sandbags
6. Extending an Anchor
7. Curious, interesting, but suspect anchors
Links


Intro
Advanced canyoneering anchors are designed for
limiting impact and ghosting, an ethic of leaving nothing
behind. These involve building natural anchors and
using retrievable systems. Most retrievable anchors are
inherently unstable because the anchor can easily be
undone. They should be used with caution after much
practice. Retrievable and releasable anchors can fail in
two ways: premature release and lack of release.
Premature release with a canyoneer mid-rappel can be
very dangerous, if not fatal. Failure to release will cause
loss of whatever is attached to the retrievable anchor
(extender, rope, slings, pull line, etc). An injury or a stuck
rope negates whatever style points you may have hoped
to acquire by ghosting. Use sound judgment.
Stone chock anchor.
Leprechaun canyon.
Most of these anchors violate the ERNEST principles described on the Anchors
page. They often lack redundancy, contain extenders, and may be marginally solid.
Use of any anchor that is not bombproof must be done only with carefully
evaluation of the consequences of anchor failure. Be safe. There have been
anchor failures. Don't be one of them.
1. Hydrolic Anchors
An empty sandbag can be used as a drift anchor.
See Cerberus Canyons for details.
Building a Natural Anchor
Natural Chock Anchor
Natural chocks, such as logs and rocks of various sizes may be wedged between
the canyon walls or between large, solid boulders. Their strength will depend on
positioning and on the quality of the chock.
See also log anchor in Englested canyon.

Cairn Anchor
1. Tie into the largest rock available.
2. Pile lots of rocks on top.
3. Gently rappel off.
Cairn anchors can be solid, but require careful planning
and thought of friction and force vectors. It is often
difficult to evaluate the quality of the webbing in a cairn
anchor left by a prior group of canyoneers. Sharp
edged on rocks under the pile can lead to cuts in the
webbing and webbing in dark, wet environments can
rot. Found cairn anchors should be taken apart,
inspected and rebuilt prior to rappelling.


Deadman
This is similar to the cairn anchor, but with more dirt.
Cairn anchor in North fork of
Robbers Roost
1. Tie into the largest object available - stone, log, toss-bag filled with sand ...
2. Dig a big hole.
3. Bury the object.
4. Pile everything you can find on top.
5. Gently rappel off.
- Use great caution with wet sand.
Knot Chocks
Back in the day before nuts, hexs and cams became
common, rock climbers sometimes tied knots into cord,
webbing and rope and used them as chocks. It is
somewhat of a lost art, but might be useful for canyoneers
as it allows one to anchor into a variety of sized cracks
without carrying a full rack of nuts. As with any chock, skill
is required to set the anchor correctly, but a well placed
knot chock can be bomber. That said, this is an advanced
technique and getting a good placement is not easy.
Knots commonly used are the overhand, figure eight and
the single fisherman. Data from Jrg Brutscher
suggests:
figure eight is the best knot when using cord, while the
overhand is best for webbing;
webbing and cord should be doubled if at all possible;
5mm cord is the thinnest cord that could be used, and
it should be used doubled;
leave reasonable tails as the knot may roll a little as it cinches down;
when using webbing, fit as many loops of webbing into the crack as possible
and then set the knot on top (if you can fit doubled webbing into the crack,
use that -- if you can fit trippled webbing, use that, etc);
be careful after someone else rappels on a knot, as the knot may cinch
down and become small enough to slip through the crack.
As always, find a second anchor point to make your system redundant.
Study of a variety of widths of both webbing and cord and a couple of knots
with their slip vs failure rates by Jrg Brutscher
Knot Chocks on ACA forum
Dave Black's Alternative anchors
Retrievable Knot Chocks
Knot chocks should be
as large as the crack
allows. Illustration
copyright Rich Carlson,
used with permission.
Recently, a few canyoneers have begun experimenting with techniques to retrieve
a knot chock. This may allow knot chocks to be used as a ghosting technique. It
does, however, add increased instability to an already unstable anchor point. Care
must be taken to obtain a good placement. Redundancy with multiple anchor
points is highly recommended. Examples include:
Paul Stovall's wedge shaped knot.
Ghosting
Getting the Sling Back with Two Rapides
This is a fairly safe technique as the anchor will not release
with the rappel line in it. If the sling snags on retrieval, the loss
is only of the webbing and pull line. It can be used on trees,
wedged logs, horns and maybe a chockstone.
1. Tie two rapides into a loop of webbing.
2. Wrap both sides of the webbing around tree that is much
more solid than the toy tree shown.
3. Run the rope through the two rapides.
4. Attach a pull line above the water knot. This pull line should be a static cord
strong enough to overcome the friction of whatever edges it may pull over.
Tying above the water knot may keep it out of the rapides as the rope is
pulled.
5. Rappel off double-rope fashion and pull the rope.
6. In a single steady movement, pull the sling down. The second rapide will
travel up around the tree and then come crashing down on your head.
Watch out!
One should take care where the rapide lands.
See also Petzl Arborist instructions.
Simul-rap

.
The two rapides system can be modified for Simulrapping. In a Simul-rap, two
canyoneers rappel simultaneously to counter-balance each other. This is typically
done using an arch. The rope is set over the arch and the two canyoneers rappel
Two rapides
Simul-rap retrievable anchor Single ring
on opposite sides of the arch. Some folks slimply drape the rope over the arch. On
retrieval this leads to ugly cuts in the arch.
An alternative Simul-rap anchor is shown on right.
1. Set the red rope rapide close to the lip.
2. Once down, hold onto blue and pull one strand of red to retrieve.
3. Once red is down, pull both strands of blue to retrieve the whole rig.
4. Watch out as the rapides come down.
Naturally, use a longer sling than what is shown.
Three minor modifications exist:
One can use rap-rings instead of rapides. This limits the amount of metal
falling on your head.
One can use a single rap-ring. Tie blue through the sling and attach red to
the sling via a rap-ring. Less metal, but still uses the sling to drape over
delicate parts of the arch.
One can use a single rap-ring and run both ropes through it. Quick and easy
set up.
I prefer the second. It leaves the flat webbing across the arch, which will cause less
damage than the narrow rope.
If blue just barely reaches the ground (as a 200 foot rope will when doubled over
from Morning Glory arch) be sure to hold onto the end of blue while you retrieve
red. If you retrieve red without holding blue, some of the friction on the ring will get
transferred to blue and you may pull blue up over the arch a few feet, thus making
its subsequent retrieval impossible.
Individual situations will dictate the safest and least damaging retrieval method.
The Greasy Girth
Another relatively safe system as the anchor cannot release
with the rappel line in place. However, if the extender line is
thin, it is possible for the knot to bite and be difficult to
release. This will abandon the extension and pull line.
Details and instructions at WelchWorks.
The Slick
A super keen device you can't buy yet involving a three ring
system co-opted from a parachute release valve. It will not
Greasy Girth
bite even under high loads and can be easily released even from long distances.
This allows one to establish anchors significantly up-canyon and still retrieve the
extension with some degree of confidence. Like many other releasable systems,
inadvertent force on the pull line will cause premature release of the anchor.
Details, pictures and examples at Desert Highlights.
Janus Anchor
A system based on the Slick, but designed to be
tied in the field with webbing and cord. It can be
used to tie an extender from an up-canyon anchor
to the canyon lip and still retrieve the extender.
Like the Slick, it will release despite extreme
loading. Both systems do have safe-guards to
prevent premature release. However, significant
inadvertent force on the pull line can still cause
anchor failure.
Details and instructions at WelchWorks and Janus Anchor.
Omnisling
The Omnisling is a special weave of webbing that has pockets woven into it. The
original Omnisling was designed for holding cargo in airplanes. Canyoneers, led by
Dave Black, have adopted the Omnisling and figured out a few ways to use it as a
retrievable anchor.
No Pictures available.
Slip-knot Knot Block
This is one way to use non-Omni-sling webbing to make an Omni-sling like
retrievable anchor. Basically, it is a rig that allows you to retrieve the webbing using
the rope as a pull line. This version relies on the strength of a slip knot to set an
auto-block. As with many retrievable systems, there are real dangers. This system
is particularly marginal, so the usual rules all apply, but more so. If you rappel on
the pull line, the knot and anchor will fail and you will die! Significant loading can
lead to rope bite, making release difficult and causing rope loss. If the rappel is
over a lip with lots of friction it can also be difficult to release the knot and you will
lose the rope. With an Omnisling-like approach, the knot is released mid-rope so
that the webbing and the lasso-like loop of rope come down together. This is a
snag waiting to happen. That said, here is one way to rig it.
Janus 1
Janus 2
Take a loop of webbing tied off with a water/beer knot. Break out grandma's old
sewing machine and tack down the two sides. Leave a loop at both ends. These
are not weight bearing stitches. They are there just to decrease the chance of the
sling catching on something.
1. Place a rapide on one end and loop the other around a much-more-solid-
than-shown toy tree.
2. Pull up a loop of rope and slide it through the distant loop of the webbing.
3. Place one twist in it.
4. Pull up a second loop of rope to form a slip knot. Make sure this is a real slip
knot and not just a mess of loops. Leave a long loop tail.
5. For safety, clip a carabineer through this loop and clip it on the rappel line.
6. Consider using a canyon quickdraw to bear the anchor weight for all but the
last rappeller. This will decrease the risk of over-tightening on the knot.
7. Last one down should unclip the canyon quickdraw and the safety
carabineer, then rappel on the rappel line (careful!).
8. Once down, pull the pull line. The slip knot should untie and the rope should
pull down the sling.
Steps to using the Omnisling

1. Rapide on
one side of
Pseudo-
Omnisling

2. Make a loop

3. Twist the
loop

4. Tie a slip
knot. Leave a
long loop.

5. Lock it off.
Last one down
should remove
'biner


Avoid this: Knot pulled through! (Rope much to thin for rap ring)
If you are using a thin rope, make sure the knot will not slip through the rapide/rap-
ring. If it does, it's not the end of the world (well your world anyway). The sling will
lock on the object you are rappelling off. If you still manage to untie the knot, you
will get your rope back, but the sling will remain.
(Editorial Comment: this is a really dodgy way to do things. Not recommended.)

Three loop system. Photo by Sonny Lawrence
Sonny Lawrence has worked to develop a more reliable system using a
butterfly block and a slip knot held with three loops. Each of the three loops
are progressively smaller so they do not snag on each other on retrieval.
See ACA discussion.
Dowel Anchor
Dave Black has proposed two new systems using an Omni-sling. The dowel
technique can be adapted to a standard sling in the following manner:
1. Attach pull line to 1 inch dowel with eyehook or by drilling a small hole in the
dowel.
2. Girth hitch sling to dowel (Figure 1).
3. Undo one end of the Girth hitch and slide far end of webbing between the
knot (Figure 2).
4. Put half a twist in one webbing loop and clip rapide in (Figure 3).
5. Run rope through rapide and rap with a 'biner block or using double-strand
rappel.
6. Once down, pull down the dowel with the pull line and then pull down the
sling with the rope.
o If the sling catches, pull the rope out of the rapide and abandon the
sling.
Naturally, one should use a much longer piece of webbing.
Strength testing reported on the ACA forum suggests the Omni-sling system is
limited by the strength of the webbing, not the dowel. The Girth hitch may decrease
the webbing strength a little bit. However, the Girth hitch holds the dowel securely
in place while getting on rappel.
This system has a number of advantages. First, it is cheap and easy. Second, the
dowel is very difficult to release under simple body weight, minimizing the risk of
inadvertent force on the pull line releasing the anchor. Third, positioning the
webbing loop in the middle of the Girth hitch prevents the hitch from cinching down,
which would make release difficult. Last, the pull cord/dowel and the sling/rope are
retrieved separately. This makes it an ideal system for anchors with difficult sling
retrieval (e.g. pulling sling through knobby debris). If the sling catches on
something, simply pull the rope down and leave the sling.
One could tack down part of the upper webbing loop with non-weight bearing
stitches in a similar manner to the Omni-sling. This might minimize the tendency of
the webbing loop to catch on retrieval.
Steps to Setting a Dowel Anchor
Macram Knot
This is another slipknot variation. It should be used with caution. See ACA forums
for instructions, failure and discussion. See also CerberusCanyons for details and
discussion. Also read Tom Jones' first hand experience half-way down this thread.
A few words of caution:
Don't rap on the pull line. This will release the knot while you are on rappel!
Throw the pull line down just before rappelling. This will avoid a snag as it
comes out of the rope bag.
Use caution on rappels longer than 30 feet as the knot can over-tighten and
be difficult to release.
Don't send many people down as the knot will over-tighten.
Use a canyon quickdraw to secure the rope for all but the last rappeller to
decrease over-tightening.
Use extreme caution when tired. This knot is tricky to tie and errors are
easily made.
Can be used on a sling like the Omnisling or Web-o-lette.


Rapping off a hook. North fork Robber's Roost. The yellow sling is used to back up
the system with meat.
Sliding knots


Retrievable autoblock. Photo copyright Rich Carlson, used with permission

Retrievable Tibloc
You can set up a loop of rope secured by either an autoblock or a Tibloc. Once
down, pull the release line and "milk" the knot off the end of the rope.
These techniques can be nerve-racking looking at the free end of the rope beyond
the autoblock. If the autoblock doesn't set right, you'll slide off the end of the short
rope. If the autoblock catches on a small edge on the end of the rope, you'll lose
the rope.
Be sure to have a clean, melted end of the rope or the autoblock will snag
and you'll lose your rope.
Some folks think a klemheist works better than an autoblock.
o See ACA forum discussion
Flicker Chocks
Flicker chocks include any system that can be undone by wipping the rope from
below. This could include looping the rope over a chickenhead or around a rock,
clipping into a knot chock that can be flicked loose or a hook. As with any chock
type anchor, careful placement is everything. Less than perfect placement will
probably fail.
Using a flicker knot chock:
1. Place an overhand knot with a long tail in a crack.
2. Rappel off.
3. Jiggle the rope until the knot comes free.
4. Use as one of several fixed points forming an anchor unless the cost of
failure is minimal.
5. Pictures and details at Canyoneering.com
Using a flicker hook:
1. Set carefully.
2. Gently rap off.
3. Jiggle rope to retrieve.
Failure of rope around small pedicle.
The issue with flicker systems is that solid placements often are difficult to release
and easily released placements are often unreliable. Be willing to abandon
unreleasable knots and hooks. Be willing to find better placements when knots and
hooks can be easily retrieved.
Body Anchor
This requires a very good climber on the team
1. Anchor canyoneer finds a very strong stance. This may be ballasted by a
second canyoneer.
2. Attach rope to anchor canyoneer.
3. Find second fixed point if at all possible.
4. Team members rappel off anchor canyoneer very gently.
5. Anchor canyoneer carefully down climbs with team spotting below.
This absolutely requires a solid stance as failure of the anchor canyoneer can
cause injury to two team members. It should thus be used only as a last resort with
understanding of its inherent risks.
Pictures and details at Canyoneering.com.
Sandbags
This is a very unstable system that is mentioned more for interest than use. It
works better in theory than practice. Still, as an interesting experiment it merits
mention.
Recent experience suggests that two pot shots carefully placed and equalized are
more stable and that the single sandbag should be avoided.
1. Fill sandbags with sand and rocks
2. Place carefully and equalize
3. Gently rap off
4. Pull bags individually to retrieve
See details and pictures from Quandary canyon experimentation.
See details on the pot shot page and at Imlay Gear.
Extending an Anchor
The Greasy Girth, Omnisling, Slick and Janus anchor can all be used to extend an
anchor over a lip and still retrieve the extension. This is useful if the anchor is
positioned such that the rope drags over an edge or is substantially up-canyon and
you'd rather not pull the rope over that much canyon. The extension prevents
grooves in the soft sandstone created by dragging the rope over the rock and limits
wear on the rope. This can make the start of the rappel a little more precarious.
Using a canyon quickdraw to shorten up the anchor can improve the safety of
getting on such a rappel for everyone but the last rappeller. Here are some
thoughts for getting the final rappeller on a tricky rappel.
1. Secure yourself to the anchor with a canyon quickdraw.
2. Secure the rope to the anchor with a second canyon quickdraw.
3. Rig the releasable extension with the pull point beyond the canyon lip.
4. All but last canyoneer rappel off from the secure position with the rope
cliped to the canyon quickdraw.
5. The last rappeller clips their rappel device to the rope, locks it and then
releases the canyon quickdraw.
6. With a belay from below, the rappeller now gets on rappel by
o downclimbing until their rappel device is taut on the anchor, or
o lowering themselves hand-over-hand down the extension or,
o lowering themselves using a short line doubled through the upper
part of the anchor and secured on a second device or Munter hitched
to the HMS carabiner.
This last option may be easiest if done with the two lines (one short, one long) both
secured on 'biner blocks and run through the same ATC, as an ATC can rappel on
two ropes separately. If the short line is 'biner blocked with the rappel line just long
enough to reach the end of the extension, you can place both brake lines in your
brake hand and rappel off the end of the short line. Once the short line is through
the device, pull down the 'biner block and clip it to your harness before completing
the rappel. This is obviously tricky and should be practiced first.
Curious, interesting, but suspect anchors
These are sort of fun, but maybe not something you'd want to rap off on a regular
basis (ok, you probably won't want to rap off them on any basis).
Piton block
The BeerBro
Retrievable Bolt
Links
Books
Mountaineering: The Freedom of the Hills
Basic Climbing Anchors
Knots & Ropes for Climbers
Web links
Cerberus Canyons Tech Tips
Chockstone Technical Tips
Canyoneering Primer
Alternative Anchors
Rock Climbing Anchors