DudeOnRock‭

I am a staunch proponent of leave no trace. I don't carry dish detergent (sand and small rocks work much better on stainless steel anyways,) and I don't use soap or shampoo, not even of the biodegr...

12 answers  ·  posted 9y ago by DudeOnRock‭  ·  last activity 7y ago by System‭

The general advice I have heard for surprise lightning storms when climbing is to retreat. Since retreating quickly is not without danger itself and often is not even all that quick (I personally h...

2 answers  ·  posted 11y ago by DudeOnRock‭  ·  last activity 11y ago by System‭

I used someone else's Wisperlite Universal for the duration of a trip and it looks like the only functional difference is a jet that can be attached for burning propane. Can I purchase just that je...

2 answers  ·  posted 11y ago by DudeOnRock‭  ·  last activity 7y ago by System‭

I have experienced the same when trail running. I can pretty consistently reproduce the symptoms on downhill stretches when running distances that are much longer than my regular runs, when starti...

posted 11y ago by DudeOnRock‭  ·  last activity 11y ago by System‭

I am looking for sustainable alternatives for carrying out human waste. WAG bags, though convenient, sadly have to end up in land-fills. I am looking for a system where the non-biodegrading compone...

1 answer  ·  posted 11y ago by DudeOnRock‭  ·  last activity 7y ago by System‭

I have friends who say stuffing your rainfly prolongs the life of the tent, because folding waterproof material over and over is going to make it leak. I have other friends who say folding and roll...

3 answers  ·  posted 11y ago by DudeOnRock‭  ·  last activity 8y ago by System‭

The best practice for climbing is to actually go climbing. I have wasted both time and money experimenting with training setups at home for practicing climbing, and I have mostly been disappointed....

posted 11y ago by DudeOnRock‭

What is your intended use for those joined ropes? If your life depends on it (you tagged your question with "safety"), I would not recommend using drastically different sized ropes in the first pla...

posted 11y ago by DudeOnRock‭

I wanted to mention two additional scenarios not covered by Ben Crowell's great answer. When it is possible to fall past the belayer (on a multi-pitch climb, or when getting to the start of a cli...

posted 11y ago by DudeOnRock‭  ·  last activity 11y ago by System‭

Google Earth can give you an elevation profile of pretty much anything. There are 4 ways to go about: Look for a .KMZ or .KML file to load into Google Earth. Activate the EveryTrail layer in Go...

posted 11y ago by DudeOnRock‭  ·  last activity 11y ago by System‭

I consider a couple of factors when it comes to dropped gear: Some equipment is pretty easy to inspect. A carabiner has one moving part (the gate, possibly a second, if it's a locker). Nuts and h...

posted 11y ago by DudeOnRock‭  ·  last activity 10y ago by System‭

Just two small addenda to the great answers from AM_Hawk and JPDurham: Look down. This advice seems obvious, but if you don't specifically train yourself to do this, you might not do it when you ...

posted 10y ago by DudeOnRock‭  ·  last activity 10y ago by System‭

Short answer: Climb lots of other routes in many different areas and have lots of other people climb your routes. Let me get into why you opened a can of worms with your question: Ratings for rou...

posted 9y ago by DudeOnRock‭  ·  last activity 9y ago by System‭

Stay hydrated. Dehydration prolongs the time it takes to recover from exertion. Eat. Make sure you bring enough and the right kind of food for the trip to adequately fuel your body. Sleep. Make su...

posted 9y ago by DudeOnRock‭  ·  last activity 9y ago by System‭

To answer your question as to the ideal break position when using the munter: It depends. It depends on your comfort and experience with the knot, its application and the situation. I have rappele...

posted 8y ago by DudeOnRock‭  ·  last activity 8y ago by System‭