This is the eleventh in a 12-part series from Climbing Magazine, Wild Country and Red Chili, demonstrating and explaining the basic skills needed to be safe on the crags. In this episode, Julie Ellison, Climbing Magazine's Gear Editor, talks us through coiling a rope in a quick, efficient manner. This is key to allow minimum faff, increasing speed in the hills, increasing the number of routes you can do in a day, or perhaps most importantly, prevent you from missing last orders in the pub!

There can be differences in standard practice between the USA and the UK, and some beginners may have been taught very slightly different techniques at their local climbing wall or club. However the methods in this video series are simple, easy to understand and if done correctly, safe. As always, feel free to discuss alternative methods in the forums.

Wild Country and Climbing Magazine have produced a series of 'How To' videos designed to demonstrate basic climbing skills and techniques. In this video Julie Ellison, Climbing Magazine Gear Editor, demonstrates how to coil a rope. There are many techniques for coiling a rope, depending on circumstance and in this video Julie shows off possibly the most useful, what she calls ‘the backpack coil’. This is a great way of coiling a rope that allows you to carry a rope in an unobtrusive manner if you’re walking down from the top of a crag or in any situation where you need free hands.