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View Full Version : Mystery with a 120 ft rope + pull cord?


cookiecutter
08-30-2015, 03:56 PM
Hi everyone, I've got a buddy down in Zion just giving me a call wondering about rope lengths. Him and his wife has mystery permits and have a 120 foot rope and a pull cord. He asked if this would be sufficient. I've done the canyon a few time but always had at least 200 ft rope. Tom has it at 120 ft for longest, other beta I see has it at 130. My other canyon buddy thinks it was longer than 130. So now I'm all confused. Can you make it through mystery with 120 and a pull cord?
dougr
08-30-2015, 06:38 PM
I can't answer definitively as I've always done it with a 200'. But that said, it's foolish to not have a backup. Plain and simple. Please emphasize that to him.
Iceaxe
08-30-2015, 07:30 PM
Sounds like someone needs to invest in better beta. The longest rappel in Mystery is the last one and it's exactly 115'. The Mystery Springs rappel is 113' but that can be split into two rappels as there is a set of bolts under the giant chokestone. Just make certain your rope is really 120' as ropes shrinking 10 to 15% is not uncommon.

Climb-Utah.com

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cookiecutter
08-30-2015, 09:50 PM
Thanks Iceaxe!
qedcook
08-31-2015, 10:01 AM
I can't answer definitively as I've always done it with a 200'. But that said, it's foolish to not have a backup. Plain and simple. Please emphasize that to him.

I would usually agree, but I think Mystery is straightforward enough that as long as I knew the rope well (ie, it was a sturdy rope), I would be comfortable doing the canyon without a backup rope.
nkanarik
08-31-2015, 11:36 AM
I've done Mystery a couple of weeks back with 120' and 150' ropes. We used the 120' for rappel (and 150' for safety/guided rappel for newbies). the 120' had ~5' extra...on the last and longest rappel.
ratagonia
09-01-2015, 03:26 PM
I would usually agree, but I think Mystery is straightforward enough that as long as I knew the rope well (ie, it was a sturdy rope), I would be comfortable doing the canyon without a backup rope.

Even experienced people get the rope stuck from time to time. The Mystery Springs rappel in particular is prone to catching ropes if not pulled carefully.

Tom