rock climbing Rock climbing is a sport in which participants climb up, across, or down natural rock formations. The goal is to reach the summit of a formation or the endpoint of a usually pre-defined route without falling. Rock climbing is a physically and ...

, a bolt is a permanent anchor fixed into a hole drilled in the rock as a form of

protection Protection is any measure taken to guard a thing against damage caused by outside forces. Protection can be provided to physical objects, including organisms, to systems, and to intangible things like civil and political rights. Although th ...

. Most bolts are either self-anchoring expansion bolts or fixed in place with liquid resin.

Description

While bolts are commonplace in rock and gym climbing there is no universal vocabulary to describe them. Generally, a ''bolt hanger'' or a ''fixed hanger'' is a combination of a fixed bolt and a specialized stainless steel hanger designed to accept a

carabiner A carabiner or karabiner () is a specialized type of shackle, a metal loop with a spring-loaded gate used to quickly and reversibly connect components, most notably in safety-critical systems. The word is a shortened form of ''Karabinerhaken'' ...

, whereas in certain regions a ''bolt runner'' or a ''carrot'' describes a hangerless bolt (where the climber must provide their own hanger bracket and sometimes lock nut). A ''ring bolt'' has a loop on one end so it presents as a U-shape embedded in the wall. A

climbing rope A dynamic rope is a specially constructed, somewhat elastic rope used primarily in rock climbing, ice climbing, and mountaineering. This elasticity, or stretch, is the property that makes the rope dynamic—in contrast to a static rope that ...

is then clipped into the carabiner. Generally quickdraws or slings are employed between bolt hangers and the rope to reduce drag when ascending,

belaying Belaying is a variety of techniques climbers use to create friction within a climbing system, particularly on a climbing rope, so that a falling climber does not fall very far. A climbing partner typically applies tension at the other end of th ...

and

rappelling Abseiling ( ; ), also known as rappelling ( ; ), is the controlled descent of a steep slope, such as a rock face, by moving down a rope. When abseiling the person descending controls their own movement down the rope, in contrast to low ...

Use

Bolts are used in

sport climbing Sport climbing (or Bolted climbing) is a form of rock climbing that relies on permanent anchors (or bolts), permanently fixed into the rock for climber protection, in which a rope that is attached to the climber is clipped into the anchors to ...

as a backup to catch a fall, but not to aid ascent, whereas in aid climbing they can be used to aid ascent.

Lifespan

Bolts are subject to corrosion and stress and the combination tends to cause stress corrosion cracking. A bolt in an aggressive tropical climate such as

Thailand Thailand ( ), historically known as Siam () and officially the Kingdom of Thailand, is a country in Southeast Asia, located at the centre of the Indochinese Peninsula, spanning , with a population of almost 70 million. The country is bo ...

can fail in as little as 18 months. In more temperate regions, a lifespan of 10–15 years is typical. There is a lack of effective standards and maintenance in many places but new materials such as

titanium Titanium is a chemical element with the symbol Ti and atomic number 22. Found in nature only as an oxide, it can be reduced to produce a lustrous transition metal with a silver color, low density, and high strength, resistant to corrosion in ...

are now being used to improve the expected lifespan.

References

External links

Article about bolting

Access Fund and American Alpine Club Policy on Fixed Anchors

Arguments against bolting
{{Climbing navbox Bolt Caving equipment fr:Point d'ancrage

Description

Use

Lifespan

See also

References

External links