UKC

Off to Japan in 10 days and will be doing some hiking/scrambling in the Japanese Alps. Some of the routes we're looking at will involve a lot of exposure on narrow ridges and quite a bit of scrambling.

I'm fine on exposed ground and am a confident scrambler however my fiancée isn't quite as comfortable on this sort of terrain. I've been advised on here and have read elsehwere that a "confidence rope" could be useful in giving my fiancée some reassurance.

My ropework is at a very novice level having only spent a couple of weeks in the Alps on an introductory course so was looking for some advice on the sort of gear I should take and how the confidence rope actually works?

Understand it may be hard to describe but was planning on popping down to Cotswolds on the back of this thread to pick up any extra gear and have a word with them face to face as well.

Thanks all.

In reply to James1982:

When hear confidence rope I think 10-20m of climbing rope tied into a harness or bowline around the client's waist and used like a dog lead, the leader using natural pro like a couple of loops over a boulder or an Italian hitch through an hms with a sling over a spike; to protect a short exposed section. But if you dont know what it is are you sure you should be using the system?

Perhaps you could pm forum member "ice solo" for local advice at least.

In reply to James1982:

Unless you are 1005 happy with using gear I wouldn't bother taking it - just the rope. You will need to rely on running it round rocks to arrest a slip and be prepared to wedge yourself into secure positions to belay.

Using gear you aren't familiar with is fraught with difficulty especially - paradoxically - on easier ground. This is because you are trying to move quickly and falls (usually slips) can easily result in hitting ledges or spikes.

In reply to GrahamD:

100% that is !

In reply to James1982:

Use of a confidence rope on Alpine routes requires care and experience: it can make you a lot slower in situations where speed can be vital. If your fiancee isnt comfortable you should really deal with that first by more climbing, or chose easier routes where the rope normally stays in the rucksack but is there as a back-up, or hire a guide who can use a rope safely without slowing you down very much.

Cheers guys. My natural instinct is pretty much what you've said - i.e. I'm not convinced I should start using gear that I'm not used to using and it may well end up putting both of us in more danger!

I just wanted to get a sense of how it might work. Using the rope as a lead and then belaying off natural points (rocks, etc) is what I kind of expected to read.

In terms of the route from what I've read it's completely doable without rope but it was suggested on here by people who've been there that a rope could provide a little reassurance on the more exposed sections. I imagine though we'll probably go without and assess the ground and how my partner feels about it when we're actually there. There's plenty of other stuff to do if she isn't feeling up for it.

Thanks for the advice.

In reply to James1982:
http://www.theoutdoorshop.com/showPart.asp?part=PN31313

In reply to James1982:

It's quite fun moving together - working out where to wedge yourself to belay, finding spikes to loop the rope around etc. I wouldn't bother with gear, it's much harder to operate the system. Photos of how to coil the rope: http://www.rockclimbingcompany.co.uk/Technical-Information/Rope-Coils-Scram...
Some more stuff here: http://www.thebmc.co.uk/hill-skills-scrambling

Practice on non-life-threatening ground first!