UKC

Was wondering if anyone had any advice...

We really need to buy double ropes. Will use them on UK routes but...

We have two weeks in the Dollies in Sep and it seems that we need the lightest poss 60m (I am small, lazy, and have a bad back so am weight-obsessed) e.g. mammut phoenix?

But not sure this would be right for our more usual Alpine trips - a week or so based at a hut(s) mixing easyish multi pitches (needing doubles) with alpine routes up to easy AD (where we use our 50m workhorse rope)- e.g. Orny and Trient huts. Would not want to lug the doubles plus the single up to the huts. If we just take the double ropes, one of the super thin 60m won't be best for glacier travel and moving together on long ridges or pitching. if I just take the single, may be limited in what rock climbs we can do.

Is there a solution? Apart from either lugging three ropes (aagh) or ensuring you don't do any routes with a longer than 25M abseil.

I thought about triple rated ropes but heavy(!). We do have a 70m single but it would be huge for glacier travel etc....

Sorry if this is rambling/confusing.

Any advice / experience really appreciated. Many thanks everyone.

In reply to Badpanda:

I would probably just take the two thin ropes.

In reply to Badpanda:

Just take the doubles. They'll be fine.

In reply to Badpanda: Several points that spring to mind:

Do you REALLY need 60s?

I'm fairly skeptical when it comes to long ropes on rock routes. I've used them various places from major alpine rock routes to Yosemite but never found them very compelling. I've yet to find any rock routes where they are ESSENTIAL for the ascent. Also, whilst I've certainly read about modern routes that have abseil stations at 60m intervals I have never found that has applied to the routes I've done or the routes that I am most likely to do.

Conversely, "for glacier travel and moving together on long ridges or pitching" I'd take a skinny 60m half rope over a standard 50m single any day of the week. [FWIW something like 40m of 9.2mm Mammut Revelation would be my first choice.]

Finally, I don't know why you think "easyish multi pitches" NEED doubles. A single and 6mm pull cord for abseils is a perfectly good option. If I needed/wanted a single rope on a trip, I'd considering sacking off the doubles completely. A couple more slings on my rack and 50m of 6mm as a pull cord would suffice for pretty much any rock routes.

There are stacks of options, you just need to be a bit more open to thinking about what compromises you can make.

In reply to Badpanda:

There is no easy solution to that, as you are finding.

Many people would say just take the doubles and use one strand for the glacier/moving together/easier stuff. You can always double one up when it looks sharp.

That works OK with care.

In the end, for us, we found using a light thin single "Serenity" was the our best option for such trips, but we don't do so much long hard rock stuff.

I think you have to find you're own solution. There is no official one. Eg dollies are great with double ropes, as you are thinking, but the last trip we took just a 60 single and it worked well. Better even (faster). We know the areas now so know when that might cause probs for descents.

Have fun.

In reply to Badpanda:

One super-thin single and one half-rope would be a good compromise. Use them as doubles or the single by itself, as appropriate.

In reply to Badpanda:

I've a similar dilemna to yourself and own a 50 m Mammut Revelation and a pair of 60 m Mammut Phoenixes. I'm going to use the Revelation for everything and am currently undecided whether to bring pull-cord (which I don't own and therefore would have to buy) or a half-rope in case of abseil descents. I'm probably going to bring a half-rope just to save cash and because the weight penalty is not that big. It also reduces the worry of sharp edges and makes abseils simpler. For the routes I aim to do we'd only be abbing in case of retreat so would want to make it as stress-free as possible!

In reply to john arran:


What John said. For the Dolomites and Alpine rock routes I've used a combo of 8.0 half rope and 9.1 multi-standard rope. Weighs the same as two 8.5's and the thicker rope is more reassuring for when you put the other rope away for moving together and ridge work. You've also got a sport rope for valley cragging during the inevitable periods of crap weather. Not a fan of pull cords at all for alpine stuff - you will encounter loose rock so some redundancy may end up being necessary if you damage one rope. Have a blast, the Dolomites are awesome

In reply to danm:

Actually, that is how we have used our light single sometimes too. Alongside a single strand of a double for abs. Not to bad carrying light half on back. Less danger than a pullcord in alpine environment.

In reply to Badpanda:

Thank you all very much - it's invaluable to have practical advice, as well as know we didn't miss a blindingly obvious solution!

There seem to be like three possibilities:

1. Just take the doubles and use one for the mountaineering / glacier routes. Very attractive, although I worrit about dragging (literally) a super-skinny over eg the Weissmiess and Lagginhorn traverses.
2. Take a single and a pull line.
3. Take one single and one double. Means buying more ropes alas. Would this cause problems belaying or ab'ing on different weight - and length - ropes? (Don't really fancy weighing down the second with an entire 60m rope - plus some routes say they need doubles on ascent)

Glad to know people loved the Dollies (been twice before).

In reply to Badpanda:

Im not a fan of super light half ropes partly cause im tight and want some durability but mostly because i see them as carefully designed for ice climbing.

Abseiling on different diameter ropes is not a problem just requires a little more care and attention, with practise no big deal particularly if u climb with the same people regularly.

"Classic" alpinism rarely requires 60m ropes.

In reply to Badpanda:
"Would this cause problems belaying or ab'ing on different weight - and length - ropes?"

Not a problem, but just be aware that the thinner rope will tend to feed through your belay plate faster than the other one, which mean that you use up the length on one side quicker than the other. With a bit of practice/awareness when you rigg your abs you'll be fine (knotting the ends: definitely a good plan!).

In reply to Badpanda:

Having done the traverse of the Weissmies (good route) I'm confused.

IMO something like a 30m x 8mm rope would be ideal for the route. Also, for anyone with even a modicum of rock climbing experience I would only expect it to be used for the glacier travel and not on the South Ridge.

As such, I can't see any issue.