At High Mountain Gear, we make reliable gear in Tacoma, Washington for guides, skiers, and climbers. We handcraft each piece to support ice climbing, mountaineering, skimo, trad climbing, multi-pitch climbing, aid climbing, and most definitely big wall climbing.
One of the questions we normally get asked is what is big wall climbing or big walling, so we thought we’d dig into that here.
What is Big Wall Climbing
Big wall climbing is a style of rock climbing that involves long, multi-pitch routes on steep rock faces. Big walling can usually take multiple days to complete, requiring specialized gear like ropes, ascenders, and hauling systems. Lastly, big wall climbing can often involve setting up portaledges to rest, in case of a storm, or for overnight bivouacs on the wall.
What is Big Wall Climbing Gear
Essential big wall climbing gear includes a climbing harness, rope, helmet, quickdraws, ascenders, belay device, PAS- personal anchor system, and specialized big wall gear for hauling supplies and setting up portaledges.
Key points about big wall climbing:
1.What Length of Climb Makes it a ‘Big Wall’:
Big wall climbs are significantly longer than typical multi-pitch routes, often spanning hundreds of meters, and may require many hours or multiple days to ascend.
2. Aid climbing:
Due to the difficulty of the terrain, big wall climbing often involves using "aid" techniques like placing gear for assistance, like an Aid Ladder, and not just relying on body strength.
3. Hauling systems:
Climbers need to haul their gear and supplies up the wall using dedicated hauling systems and ropes.
4. Portaledges:
To spend nights on the wall, climbers often use specialized "portaledges" which are small platforms that can be clipped to the rock face.
Essential big wall climbing gear:
- Climbing harness
- Dynamic climbing ropes
- Tag line
- Belay device
- PAS: Personal Anchor System
- Quickdraws and Locking Carabiners
- Helmet
- Ascenders
- Hauling system
- Portaledge
- Camming devices: ‘Cams’ are specialized gear for placing protection within cracks in the rock
This is by no means all the gear we might pack for a big wall climb, and it’s often different depending on the rock type, the season, the length and difficulty of climb, who are climbing partners are, etc.
If you are new to Big Wall Climbing, check out Ryan Jenks of HowNot2’s Big Wall Bible, a comprehensive guide for big wall climbers.