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Rock Climbing Anchors: A Comprehensive Guide
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"Climbing anchors allow climbers to safely defy gravity. Solid anchors and proper rope techniques can prevent a fall from turning into a catastrophe, while bad anchors are an accident waiting to happen," says certified guide Craig Luebben, who invented his own type of climbing protection, the Big Bro. Since then, he taught rock climbing to hundreds of clients and has conducted self-rescue clinics across the United States. He distills more than twenty-five years of experience into Rock Climbing Anchors.
This entry in the Mountaineers Outdoor Expert Series, for intermediate-to-advanced climbers, presents modern anchoring ideas and techniques for top-roping, rappelling, sport climbing, traditional rock climbing, and mountaineering-all in one comprehensive guide. Luebben covers the finer points of all types of commonly used removable anchors including hexes, wired nuts, tri-cams, expanding wedges, expandable tubes, and cams; natural anchors such as trees and boulders; and fixed anchors like bolts and pitons. Photos show a variety of gear placements, accompanied by discussion of the pros and cons of each.
"Climbing anchors allow climbers to safely defy gravity. Solid anchors and proper rope techniques can prevent a fall from turning into a catastrophe, while bad anchors are an accident waiting to happen," says certified guide Craig Luebben, who invented his own type of climbing protection, the Big Bro. Since then, he taught rock climbing to hundreds of clients and has conducted self-rescue clinics across the United States. He distills more than twenty-five years of experience into Rock Climbing Anchors.
This entry in the Mountaineers Outdoor Expert Series, for intermediate-to-advanced climbers, presents modern anchoring ideas and techniques for top-roping, rappelling, sport climbing, traditional rock climbing, and mountaineering-all in one comprehensive guide. Luebben covers the finer points of all types of commonly used removable anchors including hexes, wired nuts, tri-cams, expanding wedges, expandable tubes, and cams; natural anchors such as trees and boulders; and fixed anchors like bolts and pitons. Photos show a variety of gear placements, accompanied by discussion of the pros and cons of each.
256 pages, Paperback
First published February 28, 2006
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206 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 14 of 14 reviews
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April 30, 2009More WAC reading ... Just say NO to back clipping!
May 30, 2017
A good companion to Long's anchors. Both cover mostly the same ground, offering slightly different perspectives. I don't really prefer one or the other.
November 24, 2018
Must-read for any climber who wants to get outside! Burned through this as a refresher after reading it years ago. Only complaint is that some of the diagrams/anchor building are tough to decipher.
February 6, 2019
Went to New Jack for some sport climbing, i messed up on my first anchor set up but was able to fix it without dying thanks to the book.
September 23, 2019
Ever hike up a Mountain? You get to the summit with an amazing view but there no place comfortable to sit back and enjoy the views. Next time bring a hammock and climbing anchors.
January 25, 2017
This is a classic written with spirit. DeFacto textbook for traditional climbing.
April 4, 2016
Rock Climbing Anchors by the late, great Craig Luebben is an awesome read. He covers a dizzying number of anchor building techniques.
One excellent feature of the book is that each chapter ends with a set of exercises for the reader. This means that you can splay the book open at the crag and practice making placements with your gear. The books is also full of descriptive photographs.
Most of the knots in the book are explained as they are introduced; the ones that aren't are explained in the appendix number 2.
I really enjoyed the section on climbing physics. Of course it's a very high level view, but it provides the reader with a basic level of understanding on where the forces in a leader fall are distributed. There are a few good lines on fall factors and UIAA rope testing as well.
Buy this book as a substitute to an anchor building or trad climbing course, or use it as a self study manual to carefully practice the techniques in a controlled environment before using them in practice.
If you are looking for a book that goes over the proper sequences to be used in trad and multipitch climbing, this is not the book. This book only focuses on anchor building and placing gear.
One excellent feature of the book is that each chapter ends with a set of exercises for the reader. This means that you can splay the book open at the crag and practice making placements with your gear. The books is also full of descriptive photographs.
Most of the knots in the book are explained as they are introduced; the ones that aren't are explained in the appendix number 2.
I really enjoyed the section on climbing physics. Of course it's a very high level view, but it provides the reader with a basic level of understanding on where the forces in a leader fall are distributed. There are a few good lines on fall factors and UIAA rope testing as well.
Buy this book as a substitute to an anchor building or trad climbing course, or use it as a self study manual to carefully practice the techniques in a controlled environment before using them in practice.
If you are looking for a book that goes over the proper sequences to be used in trad and multipitch climbing, this is not the book. This book only focuses on anchor building and placing gear.
December 7, 2011
This book is a great resource in addition to taking a class or having a mentor teach you first hand for those just starting out. Plenty of advanced information and setups make this a solid reference for those with more experience as well.
June 22, 2009
Easy to understand text. Accompanying diagrams/photos are great. Would highly recommend to fellow climbers. Tradelicious!
April 1, 2014
good coverage of gear, placement, and how to build anchors. rope anchor with master point and triplettes not covered in book.
May 20, 2016
Real world anchors
Less theoretcal than Long and Gaines. More on simple setups and consideratons you will race making the stance. A worthy hook on the subject.
Less theoretcal than Long and Gaines. More on simple setups and consideratons you will race making the stance. A worthy hook on the subject.
October 17, 2013
awesome for reference, beginners and beyond
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September 1, 2015"Good book"
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December 30, 2014Good book
Displaying 1 - 14 of 14 reviews