How to Clean Top Rope Anchors

Although cleaning top rope anchors is a fairy straight forward task it still leads to many close calls and accidents every year. In this video learn the foundational skills to clean top top anchors and be lowered off of a single pitch climb with help from the American Mountain Guides Association.

The issues of when to lower or when to rappel is a complex one and has no perfect answer. The most common way to get off a crag pitch is to lower and many crags have been set up with lowering in mind by installing easy to replace rings or twist links. That being said many crags have a local ethos of rappelling whenever possible and this is certainly a best practice when anchor wear is a concern.

[Marauder]

Very good videos. No long introduction, no music, no bullshit. I stay tuned.

[woody]

In the second technique I had never thought to attach the rope to me with a figure of eight on a locking carbiner, I always clove hitch and attach to a gear loop just to stop myself from dropping it, but having it set up as an additional safety on belay makes so much sense!

[wayneeshelor]

Maybe the best climbing video I have seen in several decades

[Joekool]

Great, informative and concise!

I liked how they added 'Better to have the quickdraws clipped under the chains' at 0:50.

[MetsD]

Two golden rules:
1. Always be under tension
2. Never un-clip anything under tension

🙏

[seaotter]

Very well done. Clear and concise. Excellent visualization. Thanks

[arnoldkotlyarevsky]

The second half of this was super helpful. I ran into a snag at an anchor this past weekend when I got to the top and I couldn't pass a bight through the chains. I ended up fumbling at the anchor for what felt like 10 minutes because I weighted my PAS on top of the quickdraws and couldn't figure out how to clean... It was so embarrassing. Thank you so much for this.

[IdRatherNot]

Thank you for this! I’ve been tying cloves to a spare biner to keep the rope from falling. Never thought to do an overhand or figure 8 on a bight to a biner. Seems much more efficient. Also never thought to run a bight directly through the chains. This should save a lot of time.

[jrodsports]

the best video on how to clean a top rope I have seen.

[jamesancona]

This is the best video I’ve found so far for cleaning an anchor. Thank you

[cheesewhiz]

Best video I have seen on this so far, the two methods were great!

[ericswenson]

Thank god. I thought everyone else was an idiot, but you have restored my faith in the climbing community. Rappelling is dangerous AF. Who reppells when there is this obvious save easy way to avoid it? I have always used a figure 8 on a bight because it unties easier but other than that, method 1 is the way I have been doing it for decades.

[sebastianbennett]

Thank you for the tips! Greatly detailed and explained very well. Helped me lead my first 5.10c!

[Rycamcam]

Superbly clear instructions, thanks! I agree with one of the other commenters on here that method 2 (timestamp 4:44) is superior because you don't have excess rope dangling next to you while you're being lowered. Wastes less rope and doesn't get in the way unlike method 1.

[hhandszer]

Best cleaning video I have found yet. Thanks!!

[MrCorndiver]

Why unclip at 2:20? You can thread the bight through the rings and clip to your harness while still being on belay the whole time. Then unclip draws.

[MattKuka]

Extremely informative in a clear fashion. Now I gotta gain enough experience to climb outdoors and remember these tips!

[Drugio]

THis is the best ive seen, you can also replace the quickdraws with sling, and you can add a russic for redantancy

[rocksarepeopletoo]

Reading through the comments here I see a lot of people mentioning the value of the top bolt below the anchors as a secondary protection point during the process. However many of the same people are suggesting that it's only available when you lead and not when you top rope.

What I see most climbers missing, both here and at the crag, is that top ropers can easily regain the benefits of the top bolt by simply re-clipping it to the belayer's side of the rope on their way up. This should be standard practice.

Keep in mind that the most unreliable part of a system like this is the one between your ears. The beauties of the top bolt secondary protection point are twofold: 1. Your belayer can usually inspect it from the ground. 2. It's far enough away from your meddling hands that you can't inadvertently disconnect it until you are truly ready to.

[StevenLilley]

Thank you, I've only trad climbed before and friends want to take me sport climbing. Very clear instruction that makes me feel more confident :-)