Lead belaying is more than holding the rope during a fall. It's more than keeping a middling amount of slack (too much means big falls, too little means it's hard for the leader to clip). If we are really paying attention to our climber, who should be anticipating their "slack" and "take" needs.

I've linked many a short set of climbing pitches into a longer pitch. But I don't always do it. The idea that having to only set up one belay and therefore one belay transition will speed up our climbing doesn't account for a host or reasons why speed might not be the ultimate consideration. The full video goes into a number of things I consider before I decide to link two pitches together.

When we need to pack 10, 20, 30 days of food for a big expedition, there are lots of ways to do it. What I like to do is create a Ziploc bag of food for each day of the trip. Here's why.

When getting ready for a big climb, we work on cardio fitness, we work on strength, we work on technique. But, if the climbing is really pushing our comfort zone, are we going to be able to get into and out of our systems when we are exhausted and stressed? Does practicing systems play a role in training? The full video gets into new climbers and those going on expedition often doing this along with the day-to-day upkeep needed for the rest of us..

Climbing is full of tradeoffs. It’s hard to have a simpler anchor for a rappel than a rope around a tree or rock, but that same system can be environmentally damaging (especially to trees) or can have too much friction to easily pull the rope (often when around rocks). So, here is an option that potentially addresses these issues, but it does mean more material is used, which increases the likelihood of the rope getting stuck, say, in a crack, when pulled.

Monolithic climbing anchors - anchors built from a single, unquestionably strong tree or rock - can be simple and timely while also being incredibly safe. But making them safe means we need to evaluate our chosen terrain feature well and understand a few nuances that can come with our rope, sling, or cordelette configurations, which the full video goes into in detail.

While I look at a lot of different metrics when choosing to buy a tent (peak height, length, water pressure test results, etc.), once I have made the purchase, there are a few I want to be able to find at a glance so that I can choose from amongst my various tents as I select one for a particular trip. Here's what I mark on my tent stuff sacks to make this easier.

When moving quickly through moderate terrain, we might be using the rope but not be using standard climbing anchors. When we aren't pitching it out, we can still have a climbing fall that might require us to escape the belay in order to hold our partner in place while we render aid. The full video gives three examples of how we can do that when we are using terrain or body belays by anchoring to the principles of any belay escape.

Some climbers love BOA lacing systems - using a cord and a dial (or two) to tighten the boot as opposed to regular laces. Some climbers don't trust the durability of the system. But if you are one of those climbers that use BOA systems, that ease of adjustment can make protecting our feet when moving downhill as easy as a few cranks of the wheel.

This last spring and summer, my kids finally had the experience, technique, and the physical size to utilize appropriate equipment that allowed them to climb steeper couloirs - snow gullies - safely. But those things are only part of the equation. Being aware of different risks and mitigation tactics are necessary, as well. The full video provides eight tips that helped us, and may help any other new climbers, approach snow climbing season with care.

Last week we provided a short about managing slack when providing a lead belay (https://youtube.com/shorts/NO2jBlNbJNo). Well another part of that equation is not wanting to step too far away from the wall, or we may create other problems!

There are occasions when we may want to use the climbing rope as the soft good in our climbing anchor. And there are occasions when we might want the same lead climber to climb multiple pitches in a row (block leading). What happens when we want to do both? The full video walks through that transition when having the rope we need to take up with us being used in the anchor.

While it is helpful to have rules-of-thumb about many things in climbing, like slack management when belaying, the realities are usually more complex. From moment to moment on a climb, the risk that is most significant can change. Constantly asking ourselves what is the most significant risk is a key for not only belaying, but climbing safely, overall.

The Flat Overhand Bend, also called the Offset Overhand Bend, has gotten a bit of a bad reputation, sometimes being called the European Death Knot. But reputable organizations, like the American Mountain Guides Association, actually recommend this knot for double-strand rappels. So, the full video goes deeper into the pros and cons of this knot, how we tie it, when we can use it, and when it might not be as good of a choice.

As we've discussed in a previous short, I do carry a quick link on my bail carabiner for a number of reasons, but to use it to bail from a sport climb isn't one of them. Here's why.

When we have a damaged section of our rope and need to rappel (abseil) off the route, we can either go through a procedure to pass the knot while on a double-strand rappel, or we can switch to a single-strand rappel and avoid the knot pass altogether. But our setups into a single-strand rappel come with tradeoffs. The full video walks through four methods along with some pros and cons for each.

When we are rappelling off of two ropes, we need to identify the pull strand and the rappel strand at each transition and then remember that designation when we reach the next rappel station. This simple trick can help us keep the full strand identified, even if we should forget.

Given how often I and my twin sons climb together, we've had to get fairly efficient at belay stance transitions. One such transition that (hopefully) happens almost every climb is the transition from climbing to rappelling down the route. If we can make these transitions fast and safe, we save time to climb more or more readily beat the weather or darkness setting in. The full video goes into detail on one climbing-to-rappelling transition that works for a team of three.

I like the cheap price and small aperture opening of a quick link to help create rappel anchors for alpine route descents. But the reasons I started carrying one, and the reasons I most frequently use one on a climb might surprise you.

Given how often I and my twin sons climb together, we've had to get fairly efficient at belay stance transitions. One such transition that (hopefully) happens almost every climb is the transition from climbing to rappelling down the route. If we can make these transitions fast and safe, we save time to climb more or more readily beat the weather or darkness setting in. The full video goes into detail on one climbing-to-rappelling transition that works for a team of three.