Types of Rock Climbing :
- Bouldering
- Free Climbing
- Lead Climbing
- Scrambling
- Sport Climbing
- Top Roping
- Traditional (Trad) Climbing
Bouldering:
Bouldering is climbing short routes , 10 – 25 feet tall, often on short cliffs and boulders that aren’t large enough to justify roped climbing. Boulderers typically do not wear helmets and harnesses to protect them from injury. Instead, they use thick, cushioned mats called crash pads to provide soft landing zones, and spotters to guide them into these landing zones when falling.Bouldering is generally more social than roped climbing, as many climbers can “work” a route together, each hopping on and off to try/compare/suggest moves, spotting each other, and offering encouragement and ideas. Bouldering can be done indoors or out. Check out this video to learn some bouldering basics, or this video for highlights from our favorite bouldering area.
Free Climbing:
Free Climbing is what most folks think of as “rock climbing.” In free climbing, we use only our bodies – our hands, feet, arms, back, knees, etc. – to ascend the features of the rock, rather than pulling or stepping on or climbing equipment (like slings or makeshift ladders) for upward progress.Most free climbers also use a harness, rope, and other climbing gear to protect themselves in case of a fall, but any upward progress is dependent on the climber’s skill and strength. Top-roping, lead climbing, and bouldering all fall within the free climbing category, while aid climbing is not free climbing.
Lead Climbing:
In Lead Climbing, the climbers and their rope start climbing from the ground-up, with no protection or safeguards above them. The climber places protection (small, removable anchors) in rock features as they climb (traditional leading), or uses permanent bolts already in the rock (sport leading). The climber clips the rope to each piece of gear as they pass. If the climber should fall, their highest piece of protection will hold the rope and limit the fall so the climber does not hit the ground. That’s the idea, anyway.
Scrambling:
Scrambling bridges the gap between hiking and rock climbing. Scrambling is moving through rocky terrain not steep or exposed enough to warrant the protection of a rope, but difficult enough to require use of both hands and feet. Climbers and hikers often scramble through talus or boulder fields, or up/down steep gullies.
Top Rope Rock Climbing:
Top rope rock climbing. The climber is tied to the rope, which goes through an anchor at the cliff top, then back down to the belayer.
Sport Climbing:
Sport Climbing is a type of lead climbing where the climber clips bolted hangers permanently fixed to the rock as they climb to protect them from falling to the ground. At equal route difficulty, sport climbing is much easier than trad climbing, as the climber need not worry about carrying or placing artificial protection. When a sport leader falls on a bolt, they generally need not worry it will fail, unlike falling on artificial placements.
Top Roping:
The lowest-risk approach to rock climbing, top-roping protects the climber by attaching them to a pre-constructed “top anchor” via a climbing rope before the climber begins to ascend. By climbing while connected to a top rope, the climber cannot fall very far – a few feet at most – and the climber enjoys a strong sense of security.
- In bottom-managed top-rope climbing scenarios, the belayer manages the rope from the base of the cliff, where the climber begins, and lowers the climber back to their starting point after they finish climbing.
- In top-managed scenarios, the belayer belays from the cliff top, next to the anchor, and the climber ascends up to them. This is common in sea cliff areas, like Tettegouche State Park or Acadia National Park, as well as in certain ice climbing areas, like Pictured Rocks or Ouray Ice Park.
Traditional (Trad) Climbing:
In traditional climbing a climber places artificial protection (metal pieces like cams, nuts, hexes, etc.) into rock features (cracks or constrictions) to protect them in case of a fall. Trad climbing requires a foundation in good climbing technique, as well as a thorough knowledge of how to place artificial protection. It is not uncommon for a trad leader to fall 10 – 15 feet onto a piece of gear that may or may not hold. To see trad climbing in action, check out this video.