Question from Noob

[New Mexico]

Just wondering what I should take on our first canyoneering trip. Along with all our gear I will have a 200' imlay static rope but I was wondering if I should take along a 6mm pull cord and a 8mm rescue rope. The length I was thinking on the pull cord and rescue rope would be 120'. I will also have 80' of webbing in case as well.
Any information would help.

[jhillock]

I think it depends on what canyon you are doing.

[oldno7]

A little more info would help a lot. Most of us adjust our gear list for every trip and every canyon.

[New Mexico]

Sorry about that. Our first trip will be this coming weekend. We will do Little wild horse and Bell canyon on Friday and Ding and Dang on Saturday. According to what I've read we should'nt need any tech gear for these canyons. On Sunday we would like to do a technical canyon in the area but I'm just not sure which one. Hope this give you all a little more info.
Thanks

[moab mark]

As OLDNO 7 asked do you have any idea what techincal canyon you want to do?

OLDNO 7 by the looks of your new picture you better step away from the buffet.

[oldno7]

OLDNO 7 by the looks of your new picture you better step away from the buffet.

HUH??? Thats just more to love.............

Can you say MEAT anchor

I'm wondering now if I should have got a bigger boat.

[tanya]

A woman of course. That's the most important thing to ever take along.

[New Mexico]

That's true and I have one going along.

[tanya]

[Scott P]

Along with all our gear I will have a 200' imlay static rope but I was wondering if I should take along a 6mm pull cord and a 8mm rescue rope.

Personally, I would say that of you are new to the sport, I wouldn't plan on using a pull cord for anything other than emergency use (bringing it along for emergency use wouldn't hurt). I would suggest rappelling double strand on all raps; regardless which canyon you are planning on doing.

[New Mexico]

Yes we are new to the sport and are planning on rappelling double strand with an autoblock. All the practice we have been doing has been double line and for now I think thats what would be the safest for us. I was thinking more for retrieving my webbing anchors with the pull cord.
We are planning on Doing Blarney for our first tech. canyon. Any info would be great.

[trackrunner]

Yes we are new to the sport and are planning on rappelling double strand with an autoblock.

some would argue an autoblock isn't a newbie friendly technique. too much on your mind to rappel, friction, rigging, etc. you'll need to consider and train what to do to release a stuck or jammed autoblock.

it's a great tool to know, practice regularly and use when appropriate.

[AJ]

Sorry about that. Our first trip will be this coming weekend. We will do Little wild horse and Bell canyon on Friday and Ding and Dang on Saturday. According to what I've read we should'nt need any tech gear for these canyons. On Sunday we would like to do a technical canyon in the area but I'm just not sure which one. Hope this give you all a little more info.
Thanks

For your Little Wild Horse/Bell and Ding/Dang plans, as you said, you shouldn't need a rope. Some are a little sketched by the traverse in Ding and Dang; and on the remote chance that the canyon has changed, you might consider taking your rescue rope (your 120.)

As Scott mentioned (and you concurred), if you are new; might not plan on using the pull. However, if you know how to do a rope/pull setup (it's just a clove hitch around a biner; not too big of a deal - just make sure your biner can't pull through the anchor rapide/quicklink/chainlink/biner) - you gain twice the rappel distance, and carry less weight than another full line. Just be careful, take it slow, inspect, and double check before sending anyone down. You should be fine if you feel comfortable that you know what you are doing...

As for Blarney, the longest rap in left fork is 15m; so your 120 will will fine. There are only 2 raps listed (second one at 10m); so you should be fine with your 120 if you are careful with your anchor and pull. (Make sure your lines aren't twisted, make sure the anchor is over the edge, etc.) Many people (myself included, usually carry enough rope where I could finish the rest of the canyon if one rope got stuck. That is, if there was a 150' rap, 70' and 60'; I'd take a 180' 8mm line, and a 180' 6mm pull; as well as an 80' 8mm line. (My available rope lengths are 50, 80, 100, 120, 140, 180, 200, 220 and 300.) (I'd assume I could at least retrieve enough pull cord to use if my main rope got stuck; or could patch something together from my webbing, emergency cord in my survival kit (which has 100' of parachute cord), etc.))

You can make your own decisions on how much backup/emergency rope you want to carry. However, carrying too much isn't good either, as it can slow you down, tire you out, cause more damage to your pack (if it's heavier, it will get scraped up more), etc. There is definitely a sweet spot of not too much, but enough to get you out if the fit hits the shan...

Hope that helps,
A.J.

[New Mexico]

A.J.
Thanks for all the good information. I will study the canyons alot closer so I can make sure I have the right gear, now that I have something to go by. We are looking forward to our first trip and excited about the others we will do.
Thanks again.

[AJ]

My pleasure. Feel free to ask more questions, or ping me sideband if you want. Happy to help...