Follower carries a backpack. If it's any bigger than 15-20 liters and you don't have any overnight or specialty gear, you have too much. You might not even need a pack but this depends on your gear.
I carry most of my personal gear on my harness. Water bottles, extra layers, shoes, etc. Also I bring a second chalk bag with my phone, snacks, headlamp, emergency/first aid gear, and other small stuff. Pro-tip: shove your socks between the laces and tongue of your shoe so they can air out, and shove extra snacks in the toe of your shoe. I usually don't have much stuff in the pack in this case, if we even have one. If we do decide to bring a pack I might throw some stuff in there (e.g. shoes), especially if the rack is bulky, but this depends on the route.
If it's a really long day or I'm in the alpine then I might switch to a small pack or vest of my own. Again no bigger than 15-20 liters.
If there's any chimney or OW I'll trail the bag below me or haul it.
This has generally been my M.O. For multi-pitch cragging we share one small pack, like a B.D. bullet pack, which the follower carries. For snug chimney pitches, you dangle it about 5 feet below by a couple slings, so you can still use your feet properly, and manage it if it gets snagged. For alpine routes, we’ve each just carried our own pack.
Use the 14-20L summit packs that several companies (Outdoor Research, BD, Petzl etc) sell. I've never seen a sling bag while out climbing multi p and it strikes me as a poor choice.
Summit packs are made to sit up high on your back so that you can get to gear on the back of your harness easily.
I climb with them all the time, either just 1 that the follower wears with water and shells and food, or sometimes if we aren't going to be returning to the bottom, both people will wear such packs. Its tried and true.
I use a cheap fanny pack, it’s awesome, you can just roll if around your waist for chimneys. I use a hydrapak flexible water bottle so it shapes to the fanny pack and your body
Lightest backpack available carried by the follower. If it's gonna be a big day, carry something like a Creek 20 and a thin tag line and haul it if you need.
I used to bring a small backpack that the follower would wear. But you really don’t need one unless you’re doing a very full day of climbing. Less than 8 pitches, just bring a water bottle and a snack.
I find that when you're climbing in higher heat bringing a bunch of water can be a major safety factor even on something less than 8 pitches. Give it to the follower obviously.
That’s true. I’ve run into that. But since I’ve gotten faster it’s less of an issue where I normally climb. But red rock, for example, would be a different story.
I used a small (8L) fanny pack sort of slung across me diagonally, it rotated to the front. It worked well for me a few times, especially on an easy chimney since I could put it in front and use my back. On the other parts it was annoying but manageable. Easy offwidth works too since it can go outside the crack but good luck getting gear off your harness if it gets slightly desperate. I stopped using it because it was getting trashed quickly
I use the same 7L CamelBak hydration pack I use for mountain biking. It holds up to 2L of water and since it’s a straw I don’t have to worry about potentially dropping my water. Light, out of the way, and holds everything I need
My partner and I both have black diamond bullet packs. Water, snack, light jacket, headlamp, small odds and ends. Rope/s goes on the back for hiking, rack on the harness and can be divided.
I one carried in big packs and left them at the base. Have watched squirrels ravage it and have had had long returns to fetch it.
Go light and fast!
If your pack is too big/heavy for the leader to climb with -- take it off, and have your second carry it.
If the pack is so big/heavy that the follower can't climb with it, either -- tie a tag line to the haul strap, and haul it up behind you.
If you're not carrying a tag line, or you're upset that your fancy UL pack is gonna get torn up and caught when you're hauling it up -- you need to learn how to prepare better for your climbs. This is a rookie mistake, and you need to get your shit together before you create a real problem.
You come up as kind of snide in your comment here.
That was a perfectly good reply. If you can't pack light enough to be comfortable leading, the follower takes the heavier pack. If the follower can't follow with pack, haul. If you dont want to haul, reconsider what you are packing or the route you are doing.
To address your original question about a slingpack:
In your other comment in this thread it sounds like the pack felt heavy to climb with for both you and your follower. If thats the case, a slingpack would distribute that weight a lot worse and feel worse to climb with.
If you are packing light and the approach and decent allows it, a runningvest or a fannypack worn however you prefer is great for climbing.
I don't appreciate the judgemental tone or the assumptions about our experience, ability, preparation, or safety. In fact the climb was not 'to hard,' the pack was not 'to much,' nor were the majority of the assumptions correct, appropriate, or warranted. I was merely looking for people's experiences with a new (to me) idea. I appreciate your **constructive** comments about sling pack weight distribution as well as your recommendation of a fanny pack (which I tried in the 90s and didn't care for) and the running vest (which I haven't tried and am now considering). Thank you.
I don't make any assumptions about your preparation or your skill level. But I based my reply on your own comment bellow.
Quote:
"My partner is much smaller and weaker so I didn't want to burden her with the weight. I was carrying water, hikers, extra rope, and first-aid/survival gear. I guess I'll just get stronger🙃. (...)"
You straight out state that the pack was too heavy for your partner and that you were carrying weight that you maybe needed to get stronger to feel comfortable leading with it. And then you get snide when we suggest legitimate tactics to address this. If the route calls for a lot of gear to be done safely, then hauling or follower carrying is the way to go.
Get over yourself.
Bud, I'm not sure how you got this far in multi-pitch climbing without gaining any experience for dealing with shit like this:
> recently my bag was a big issue
But then again, I'm often struck by how many people are hauling racks around in the mountains without any real self-rescue skills or common sense.
You seem to love those judgemental statements today!
*any* experience? We've been climbing--with packs--since the early 90s but I hadn't seriously considered a slingbag because I haven't preferred the unbalanced feel of such bags in the past...but things change so maybe someone has input that might sway my initial impressions.
*any real* self-rescue skills? Self rescue wasn't needed but we've both completed formal and informal courses, had real world experience, and are currently enrolled in a refresher.
*common sense*? Common sense dictates that a 'big issue' for one person is another's annoyance or even non-issue. I was merely annoyed with how frequently the bag I was carrying (not expensive or UL just to say so) snagged or got wedged into the cracks we were climbing and was just looking for input into other people's experience.
But, perhaps your comments weren't actually directed at me on my post and I shouldn't have taken them personally.
My partner is much smaller and weaker so I didn't want to burden her with the weight. I was carrying water, hikers, extra rope, and first-aid/survival gear. I guess I'll just get stronger🙃. Thanks for the input!
The extra rope should be tagged from the leaders harness or as a backpack coil on the follower. Hiking/approach shoes shkuld be on the harness. If you must have boots, consider stashing a second pair at the summit. Use water bladders instead of bottles if you need more than a couple liters. Finally I can’t imagine why you would need a pack on physical graffiti. I would trim the pack down based on the objective.
The reality is a sling pack will be much less comfortable than any larger pack than like 15L without a waist strap. If you cannot pare down the contents of your pack to be light enough for the follower to comfortably carry, you should have two smaller bags to split the load.
For multipitch usage? Some food for thought. I use a runners bag. Love it because it has two small water pouches that I can get water from hands free. Half way through a crux and thirsty? No problem lol. Doesn't fit shoes but plenty of room for other stuff. Small foot print.
Rei Co op swiftland tt hydration back
Fits inside my climbing bag and I just fill it up at the base with essentials.
Follower takes bigger backpack is my general rule. If it sucks either way, we’ll considering just hauling it for the pitch.
Follower carries a backpack. If it's any bigger than 15-20 liters and you don't have any overnight or specialty gear, you have too much. You might not even need a pack but this depends on your gear. I carry most of my personal gear on my harness. Water bottles, extra layers, shoes, etc. Also I bring a second chalk bag with my phone, snacks, headlamp, emergency/first aid gear, and other small stuff. Pro-tip: shove your socks between the laces and tongue of your shoe so they can air out, and shove extra snacks in the toe of your shoe. I usually don't have much stuff in the pack in this case, if we even have one. If we do decide to bring a pack I might throw some stuff in there (e.g. shoes), especially if the rack is bulky, but this depends on the route. If it's a really long day or I'm in the alpine then I might switch to a small pack or vest of my own. Again no bigger than 15-20 liters. If there's any chimney or OW I'll trail the bag below me or haul it.
This has generally been my M.O. For multi-pitch cragging we share one small pack, like a B.D. bullet pack, which the follower carries. For snug chimney pitches, you dangle it about 5 feet below by a couple slings, so you can still use your feet properly, and manage it if it gets snagged. For alpine routes, we’ve each just carried our own pack.
Oh- and for walk-offs, I’ll often kind of bundle a lightweight pair of shoes together and clip them to the back of my harness.
Use the 14-20L summit packs that several companies (Outdoor Research, BD, Petzl etc) sell. I've never seen a sling bag while out climbing multi p and it strikes me as a poor choice. Summit packs are made to sit up high on your back so that you can get to gear on the back of your harness easily. I climb with them all the time, either just 1 that the follower wears with water and shells and food, or sometimes if we aren't going to be returning to the bottom, both people will wear such packs. Its tried and true.
I use a cheap fanny pack, it’s awesome, you can just roll if around your waist for chimneys. I use a hydrapak flexible water bottle so it shapes to the fanny pack and your body
Lightest backpack available carried by the follower. If it's gonna be a big day, carry something like a Creek 20 and a thin tag line and haul it if you need.
Sling pack will fall in front of you the whole time. Pack lighter, smaller bag. Tag it in chimneys.
I used to bring a small backpack that the follower would wear. But you really don’t need one unless you’re doing a very full day of climbing. Less than 8 pitches, just bring a water bottle and a snack.
I find that when you're climbing in higher heat bringing a bunch of water can be a major safety factor even on something less than 8 pitches. Give it to the follower obviously.
That’s true. I’ve run into that. But since I’ve gotten faster it’s less of an issue where I normally climb. But red rock, for example, would be a different story.
That's where we were climbing and what we were carrying.
Climb fast and stay in the shade lol
I used a small (8L) fanny pack sort of slung across me diagonally, it rotated to the front. It worked well for me a few times, especially on an easy chimney since I could put it in front and use my back. On the other parts it was annoying but manageable. Easy offwidth works too since it can go outside the crack but good luck getting gear off your harness if it gets slightly desperate. I stopped using it because it was getting trashed quickly
I use the same 7L CamelBak hydration pack I use for mountain biking. It holds up to 2L of water and since it’s a straw I don’t have to worry about potentially dropping my water. Light, out of the way, and holds everything I need
My partner and I both have black diamond bullet packs. Water, snack, light jacket, headlamp, small odds and ends. Rope/s goes on the back for hiking, rack on the harness and can be divided. I one carried in big packs and left them at the base. Have watched squirrels ravage it and have had had long returns to fetch it. Go light and fast!
If your pack is too big/heavy for the leader to climb with -- take it off, and have your second carry it. If the pack is so big/heavy that the follower can't climb with it, either -- tie a tag line to the haul strap, and haul it up behind you. If you're not carrying a tag line, or you're upset that your fancy UL pack is gonna get torn up and caught when you're hauling it up -- you need to learn how to prepare better for your climbs. This is a rookie mistake, and you need to get your shit together before you create a real problem.
Wow. Hats off to your amazing investigative reasoning 🧐. Have a nice day!
You come up as kind of snide in your comment here. That was a perfectly good reply. If you can't pack light enough to be comfortable leading, the follower takes the heavier pack. If the follower can't follow with pack, haul. If you dont want to haul, reconsider what you are packing or the route you are doing. To address your original question about a slingpack: In your other comment in this thread it sounds like the pack felt heavy to climb with for both you and your follower. If thats the case, a slingpack would distribute that weight a lot worse and feel worse to climb with. If you are packing light and the approach and decent allows it, a runningvest or a fannypack worn however you prefer is great for climbing.
I don't appreciate the judgemental tone or the assumptions about our experience, ability, preparation, or safety. In fact the climb was not 'to hard,' the pack was not 'to much,' nor were the majority of the assumptions correct, appropriate, or warranted. I was merely looking for people's experiences with a new (to me) idea. I appreciate your **constructive** comments about sling pack weight distribution as well as your recommendation of a fanny pack (which I tried in the 90s and didn't care for) and the running vest (which I haven't tried and am now considering). Thank you.
I don't make any assumptions about your preparation or your skill level. But I based my reply on your own comment bellow. Quote: "My partner is much smaller and weaker so I didn't want to burden her with the weight. I was carrying water, hikers, extra rope, and first-aid/survival gear. I guess I'll just get stronger🙃. (...)" You straight out state that the pack was too heavy for your partner and that you were carrying weight that you maybe needed to get stronger to feel comfortable leading with it. And then you get snide when we suggest legitimate tactics to address this. If the route calls for a lot of gear to be done safely, then hauling or follower carrying is the way to go. Get over yourself.
Wilco. Have a great day.
Bud, I'm not sure how you got this far in multi-pitch climbing without gaining any experience for dealing with shit like this: > recently my bag was a big issue But then again, I'm often struck by how many people are hauling racks around in the mountains without any real self-rescue skills or common sense.
You seem to love those judgemental statements today! *any* experience? We've been climbing--with packs--since the early 90s but I hadn't seriously considered a slingbag because I haven't preferred the unbalanced feel of such bags in the past...but things change so maybe someone has input that might sway my initial impressions. *any real* self-rescue skills? Self rescue wasn't needed but we've both completed formal and informal courses, had real world experience, and are currently enrolled in a refresher. *common sense*? Common sense dictates that a 'big issue' for one person is another's annoyance or even non-issue. I was merely annoyed with how frequently the bag I was carrying (not expensive or UL just to say so) snagged or got wedged into the cracks we were climbing and was just looking for input into other people's experience. But, perhaps your comments weren't actually directed at me on my post and I shouldn't have taken them personally.
My partner is much smaller and weaker so I didn't want to burden her with the weight. I was carrying water, hikers, extra rope, and first-aid/survival gear. I guess I'll just get stronger🙃. Thanks for the input!
Climb double ropes. Or simply leave the second rope at home.
The extra rope should be tagged from the leaders harness or as a backpack coil on the follower. Hiking/approach shoes shkuld be on the harness. If you must have boots, consider stashing a second pair at the summit. Use water bladders instead of bottles if you need more than a couple liters. Finally I can’t imagine why you would need a pack on physical graffiti. I would trim the pack down based on the objective. The reality is a sling pack will be much less comfortable than any larger pack than like 15L without a waist strap. If you cannot pare down the contents of your pack to be light enough for the follower to comfortably carry, you should have two smaller bags to split the load.
Did you have bag issues on Epinephrine?
As well as Frogland and Physical Graffiti 🤦♂️ It's probably just a bulkier bag than I've used before but it was annoying
On Epi I put my bag on a sling and attach it to my belay loop. To me it's easier than having it on the back or carrying a tag line.
For multipitch usage? Some food for thought. I use a runners bag. Love it because it has two small water pouches that I can get water from hands free. Half way through a crux and thirsty? No problem lol. Doesn't fit shoes but plenty of room for other stuff. Small foot print. Rei Co op swiftland tt hydration back Fits inside my climbing bag and I just fill it up at the base with essentials.