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learning to climb


bajema

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i'm gona be back in washington real soon (no mountains here in east texas, i'll be glad to be back) and i want to start climbing. i've done a bunch of hiking and some scrambling, but i'd like to start learning the skills for climbing stuff like baker, shuksan, etc. i guess i want to start out by learning all the ice axe stuff, knots, ropes, all that jazz. what are some good books for on this stuff? also, could there possibly be anyone willing to teach a beginner some of this stuff some weekend?

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While i would not go as far as to call it the "Climbing Bible". Theres some good stuff in there for what he is lookin to do. Self arrest, crevasse rescue etc. I would also go to the local library and see if they have the Illustrated Guide to Crevasse Rescue, though I guess being from Texas they probably won't.

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fleblebleb said:

catbirdseat said:

Start with the "Climbing Bible", Freedom of the Hills. Published by Mountaineers Books.

That book's outdated. The Mounties would be better off reading tradgirl and so would you.

 

C'mon Fleb,

 

Sure tradgirl and rec.climbing have good info, but if you're starting from ground up, you need grounding in fundamentals. Freedom of the Hills does a pretty good job of that.

 

Edited by Toast
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Freedom of the Hills is a great book to get a beginner started. I still refer back to it periodically to brush up on skills like z-pulley, ice-axe carabiner belay, weird knots, etc. I don't know of any other books that are as comprehensive.

 

There are several good classes you can take to get you started if you can't find someone to teach you.

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If you buy Freedom of the Hills you can lug it on your training hikes and read a chapter at the top. Bring it along when you go to practice crevasse rescue and use it to pad the lip. I bet if you showed up at the crag and started leafing through it, everyone nearby would either A) clear out for fear of having to rescue a newbie or B) helpfully answer any safety questions you might have. Either way, you win!

 

I prefer books because you can read them away from a computer.

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