Our twin boys run, climb, scramble, hike, backpack, swim... you name it. We try to find items that can be used - and used well - across many different disciplines. We've been using the La Sportiva Ultra Raptor II Jr shoes for life on the trail as well as scrambling on the rocks. How well have they performed as trail runners, hikers, and approach shoes? Take a look at the full review.

I had been on an approach hike into a climb when one of my toes started hurting. I hadn't knocked my toe against anything. I hadn't been heading downhill and impacted my toe against the front of my boot. What could have been causing it? Surprisingly, it was my socks. Here's how, and what I now do to prevent it.

Our boys, now age 8, have been using the Deuter Climber 22 Liter Kid's backpack for over three years. It's been the pack they take on just about every hiking, backpacking, camping, and climbing adventure. So, with that much wear and trust put into the backpack, we thought it would be worth a review. Here's what we dislike, like, and love about this pack.

A semi-rigid, extended quickdraw is sometimes called a "cheater stick" for rock climbing, but it can be a good tool when we find ourselves on a sport route that has critical bolts placed just beyond our reach. It does introduce new risks that need to be managed, however. This video shares what this tool is, how we can use it safely, and how we can either buy or build one of our own.

Whether you are a climber on the approach to the climb or a hiker who is putting in miles on the trail, we want to be conscious about conserving energy and avoiding stumbles and falls. This is where a basic understanding of a few rock climbing footwork fundamentals can help keep us efficient and safe, which will matter a great deal after 10 thousand, 100 thousand, or even 1 million steps.

I don't feel like my family and I should be pushing our limits with hard climbing all of the time. We had previously done a video about learning to find satisfaction with some of the less demanding forms of adventure so that our risk profiles aren't always high. Well, exposing the boys to backpacking was one of those experiences we wanted them to try and see if they enjoy. We made a short film about it.

Early in my climbing career, a mentor told me "...now we need you to start thinking about the 'working end' of your carabiners." He was talking about orienting my carabiners to maximize efficiency and safety. This video takes two case studies, attaching our carabiners to our anchor points and attaching ourselves to the anchor, to go into some of the subtleties of carabiner orientation.

Downclimbing is an important skill for anyone who climbs outdoors. It is downright necessary for those who "scramble" on ridges or other terrain that typically doesn't use ropes. There are times where it feels self-evident to face in towards the rock, and there are times where it feels very comfortable to face away from the rock. But what about those times when it isn't obvious? Here's how I think about deciding to face in or away.

I think it's a false choice that we can either "climb quickly but with high risk by soloing" or "climb slowly but with low risk by using a rope" when we are on terrain that is well within our abilities. This is part of a short series on some techniques that allow us to use a rope to mitigate risk on moderate terrain without burning through time the way fully-pitched climbing sometimes demands. This fourth video covers short-pitching.

I think it's a false choice that we can either "climb quickly but with high risk by soloing" or "climb slowly but with low risk by using a rope" when we are on terrain that is well within our abilities. This is part of a short series on some techniques that allow us to use a rope to mitigate risk on moderate terrain without burning through time the way fully-pitched climbing sometimes demands. This third video covers simul-climbing.

I think it's a false choice that we can either "climb quickly but with high risk by soloing" or "climb slowly but with low risk by using a rope" when we are on terrain that is well within our abilities. This is part of a short series on some techniques that allow us to use a rope to mitigate risk on moderate terrain without burning through time the way fully-pitched climbing sometimes demands. This, our second video in the series, covers terrain and body belays.

I think it's a false choice that we can either "climb quickly but with high risk by soloing" or "climb slowly but with low risk by using a rope" when we are on terrain that is well within our abilities. This is a start of a short series on some techniques that allow us to use a rope to mitigate risk on moderate terrain without burning through time the way fully-pitched climbing sometimes demands. Our first decision is if we should bring a rope along at all or if we should just "scramble" a route. Here is how I think about that decision.

We've done a few series on techniques I think are important for any climber taking on multi-pitch routes but especially for a climber out with children. Well, it was time to put those skills to practice as we broke from climbing with two adults per kid and tried out two kids with one adult. This short film shares our beautiful afternoon out on the rock.

There are a few reasons why a climbing team may choose to lower the first climber down rather than have them rappel. There are times you might need to perform a short lower during the climb up but also might use lowers for entire sections of the descent. For different needs, different lowering techniques might be appropriate. Here's three different ways.

As my climbing objectives got more technical, so did the probability of me needing to perform many rappels (abseils) down large faces to get off a route. Here is the procedure I was taught when using two climbing ropes along with how the procedure may change if using a single rope or a single rope with a tagline.

I've instructed a lot of new climbers, but teaching your kids to climb puts what works and what doesn't into stark relief. Here's why and how I approached teaching rappelling to my kids, helping them overcome the natural fear that comes from easing yourself over a cliff.

Cleanly throwing your ropes down a pitch for a rappel can mean the difference between a safe and efficient retreat from a face and a potential epic (or worse). If you have increasing winds or terrain below you that is likely to catch a thrown rope, you may need to use different techniques for getting the ropes down. Here are three ways we get our rappel ropes to the bottom to deal with increasingly severe challenges to a clean toss.

Our home wall overhangs at thirty degrees. After graduating from jugs, the boys wanted a challenge and so asked for me to set a route on twenty millimeter edges. When the route proved too difficult for them to make easy progress, rather than ask me to change it, they asked for a training plan and expressed a desire to learn how to project a route. Eventually, they were able to climb the route on lead. This short movie documents the eight months they spent training and working the route.

When climbing multiple pitches, you may end up having to perform multiple rappels. That adds in risks such as rappelling off route, past the anchor, or getting ropes stuck as you pull them. Any of these scenarios may demand that you ascend the rappelling ropes. This video demonstrates how to switch from rappelling to ascending when you are using two strands on rappel.

You've run out of anchor gear, or you have damaged ropes, or you need to stay tied into the climbing rope, or... or... or; there are some compelling reasons to use an equivocation hitch for a rappel, and it can be done safely with a single rope or with doubles or with a tagline, but you better construct it correctly.