Had a talk with a old school climber that made me rethink my rope setup

I met this guy Bob at a local arborist meetup in Portland last month. He's been climbing since the 80s and still uses a Blake's hitch on a 16-strand rope. I was telling him about my new mechanical prusik and how it saved me time. He looked at me and said "you ever had that thing fail on you in a wet tree?" Made me realize I never really tested it in bad conditions. I've been relying on gear that looks cool but might not be as dependable as the old ways. Bob has a point about keeping a backup plan simple. Now I'm carrying a friction hitch setup in my bag as a spare. Has anyone else had a mechanical device let them down at a bad moment?

3 comments

3 Comments

brooke_murray2d ago

Yeah I had a prusik lock up on me in the rain once and nearly fell out of my tree.

nancyramirez2d ago

But dont you think the old school stuff has its own problems too? Bobs Blake hitch can be a real pain to adjust when your gloves are wet and youre trying to get it loose quick. Ive had old knots jam up on me way more often than any mechanical device.

brian_hart2d ago

Man I was the same way, totally bought into the hype until I saw a mechanical fail on a wet limb last spring. That one moment made me dig out my old cordage and practice my hitches again.