Instructor: Ben Lawes
" Lowering off at the top of a bolted route and retrieving your rope without leaving any kit behind can be a potentially fatal manoeuvre. The following procedure allows you to remain connected to the rope, and thus belayed throughout. Also you can't drop the rope."
Step 1
Use a 4ft sling larks-footed through the stitched belay loop of your harness. Clip it using a screwgate carabiner to one of the lower off bolts. (Clipping the higher bolt will draw you in closer to the system).
Step 2
Pull up a loop of slack from your belayer, making sure you remain on belay, and thread it through the higher bolt and then the lower bolt.
Step 3
Once the bite has been passed through both bolts of the lower off, tie a fig of 8 in it. (An overhand will do but may be difficult to undo after lowering). Use a screwgate to clip the fig of 8 on the bite back into the stitched belay loop of your harness.
Step 4
Having now clipped into the bite of rope, and done the screwgate up, untie the knot you climbed on. Pull the tail through the bolts (effectively the tail of the knot on the bite). Check the belayer is paying attention and has you locked off, or is holding the dead end. Remove the 4ft sling and screwgate and hey presto you are ready to be lowered.
A
B
Remember!
Make sure you remain on belay throughout.
Check you haven't clipped the bite into any of the gear loops, a potentially fatal error!
Practice procedure on terra firma substituting a couple of carabineers for bolts.
Earn bags of money working as one of many British Cycling Recreation Education Tutors. Find out more on our jobs page.
Discount Mountain Leader Training Places For Snowdonia Society Members.
A great opportunity for local residents to enjoy some affordable non-residential mountain leader training.
Summer Ale Unveiled
We have just introduced the fourth real ale in our range
'Lush Summer', a light refreshing real ale flavoured with well-sucked limes.
Snowdonia Uncorked
Our latest offers include a return for this walking and wine tasting weekend this April
Jonathan Conville Memorial Trust Subsidised Alpine Courses For Young People.
Dates out now. Fill in your application form and grab yourself a bargain.
Discounted Courses For BMC Members
HIllwalking, Navigation GPS and even Scrambling. The BMC have arranged a series of BMC member special courses at Plas y Brenin
UKClimbing Alpine Festival
We have teamed up with UKClimbing to bring you a weekend of information-rich Alpine workshops.
Kitchen Assistants Wanted
We're on the look out for some assistants to help out in our busy kitchens
Top Tips on Lowering off a Bolted Route
Ben Lawes gives you his top tips on how to get down from the top of a bolted route.
Rack em up!
In our Top Tips section Ian Boorman offers a few of his tips on racking your gear for multi pitch climbing
What's Cooking?
Find out what makes our award winning catering department so special in our latest departmental overview
Outstanding Facilities
We make sure everything at the National Mountain Centre is maintained at the highest standard. Check out our facilities page here.
Bunkhouse Gets a Makeover
Moelwyn Bunkhouse has been refurbished and it looks great! You could be one of the first to take advantage of this superb on-site facility.
Check Out The Enviro Diary!
Our staff bring you snippets of the great environment we live and work in diarised in photographic form. Essential viewing for all nature lovers - Now with over 230 pages of content.
Think you know your stuff?
Find out how much you really know in our new interactive quiz area