Death in Birch Hollow

[Deathcricket]

To me it sounds like it had to be at the first big dryfall. That's the only drop that's close to 120 feet. There is a pretty well defined trail around it. I think most people bypass it because of the rock fall potential.

If you go to the right, there is a 40' rap with a better start as well. That's the route I've always taken.

Damn I hadn't thought of that, very good point. I thought everyone went to the right avoided that loose rock scary ass place. But if they were using outdated beta as mentioned I could see that happening. I wouldn't want to belay from down there either. Totally makes sense. Of course we are all speculating though. I was thinking it happened at the 2nd rap, isn't that a 120' also? I'm sure a got a video.... Uhhh... ahh yes, skip to 1:40ish, maybe there? Actually no need to even watch the video, it's in the thumbnail I see.

[blueeyes]

Condolences to the family and friends of this young woman.
The book On Rope has a diagram of a bottom belay that recommends having one arm up towards the rappeller, the rope then goes behind the belay person and into their other hand. Always maintaining a sturdy grip on the rope with both hands. I like the palms down tip by blueeyes.

I like that think I will incorporate this into what I do.

[Mountaineer]

Of course we are all speculating though. I was thinking it happened at the 2nd rap, isn't that a 120' also?

The first rap, at the rocky ledge is ~120'. Some betas recommend avoiding that and walking around. There is one other rap (at a tree) that is ~100'. All the others are shorter.

[ratagonia]

The first rap, at the rocky ledge is ~120'. Some betas recommend avoiding that and walking around. There is one other rap (at a tree) that is ~100'. All the others are shorter.

The first rap, in the watercourse, where the accident occured, is about 120 feet.

The second rap, also a limestone edge rap, is about 100 feet. This is the first rap, when coming in via the logging roads (recommended by me, at least).

Later in the canyon is a rap down the chute off a tree to the side, about 100 feet.

Tom

[Stray]

I am saddened by this tragedy. My condolence to family, friends and everyone involved.

I discovered the horrible news by reading the Tribune article. Because this site was down, I mistakenly read the comments. I was mortified by the discussion.

Next I came here to be rewarded with a reasonable discussion containing real compassion and real concern for helping others. I have learned things I will take on my next canyoneering trip.

Thank you!

[Scott P]

I'm saddened but not shocked that everyone is piling on to this poor women's partners for not providing a fireman's belay.

I don't know if people were really piling up on her, but were saying that the accident probably was avoidable. Most backcountry accidents are. Kind of think of it, most other accidents are as well (home, workplace, vehicle, etc.).

None of us are perfect and I think most of us can think back to at least one time when we made a mistake that could have been fatal, had the circumstances been different.

I give my condolences to the family and friends.

[tjdowling]

4) In my experience, most canyoneers don't know how to perform an adequate fireman's belay anyway. I can't count how many people I've seen giving these sorts of belays incorrectly. It's rare that I've seen it done right. Check out this photo, from a website of a Zion-based company offering canyoneering courses, which illustrates how most people give these belays. Note that she is making at least three technique mistakes that I can see, each of which inhibits her ability to perform an adequate fireman's belay. Any guesses?

I'll take a stab at it:

1. She isn't looking that the person on the rope.
2. Too much slack in the rope.
3. She isn't ready/isn't in a body position to pull. Arms should be up.


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[Brian in SLC]

I'll take a stab at it:

1. She isn't looking that the person on the rope.
2. Too much slack in the rope.
3. She isn't ready/isn't in a body position to pull. Arms should be up.

I'd guess that her palm up hand position might not be optimal too. Although, I have a fairly diminutive climbing partner who belays that way and has caught quite hard falls with no issues. I'd trust her more than most saavy male partners I climb with...

Interesting that On Rope shows in the "bottom belay" sketch what I'm guessing is a hip belay, and, the belayers top hand is palm up. Another technique referenced which I thought was pretty interesting was to clip the rope through a carabiner anchored at the base of the rappel, and then, attach the rope to the back of the belayers harness. If the person on rappel loses control, then, the belay runs away as fast as possible. This is suggested in an area with a loose rock danger from above. Sounds like the time honored "Stone Mountain Belay", which, is purportedly put into effect at that location when a partner falls on one of the horrendously underprotected face routes (the belayer eyeballs a path through the woods should the partner fall, and, runs pell mell down it should the lead climber pop off).

Anyhoo, back to Mike's pic, yeah, way too much slack and not focusing on the rappeller. I'd be up against the wall, hand up the rope aways, nearly no slack, and, ready to yank down including hitting the ground if need be. I've bottom belayed by taking all the slack out of the rope too, with inexperienced partners. Once they are over an edge or awkward spot, and, look smooth, then relax and step back a bit.

[mdd]

I'll take a stab at it:

1. She isn't looking that the person on the rope.
2. Too much slack in the rope.
3. She isn't ready/isn't in a body position to pull. Arms should be up.

Yes, these are the three I noticed. The palm-up position that others have mentioned isn't ideal, either.

I look at fireman's belay like a hip belay. In the right circumstances it can certainly hold and save you, but it's not foolproof. I ask for a fireman's on occasion but I have no illusions that it will save me if I fall. I ask more for psychological reasons if it is a particularly scary rappel or if I'm fatigued.

There are so many variables involved that people don't think about - does the rappeler have their friction set right for the rope diameter and rappel length? Will I notice they are out of control in time to stop them? When I notice, will I have time to remove slack and slow their descent (this is NOT easy, esp. if they've picked up some speed, which happens fast)? Will the flailing out of control rappeller dislodge rocks that could hit me? If I can't catch them in time, will they land on me, potentially injuring both me AND the rappeller? The list goes on...

One other point worth mentioning, that photo came from a web page advertising canyoneering classes. Vet your teachers well!

M

[burley]

A recent and relative experience: We were doing Englestead this summer on a 300' Imlay 8mm with only one canyon worth of use on it. We lowered the first guy (me, everyone else wanted the real deal) and had two rap down without any troubles. Though it was their second canyon ever they were both climbers and both rigged plenty of friction.

The fourth guy down used a Pirana and had on leather gloves. About halfway down he went to add friction around the lower and upper horn at the same time and missed. He was unable to recover and lost control. I was belaying and not paying as much attention as I should have. He (pretty calmly) yelled down for a belay. I gave a first tug and it didn't seem to do anything so I really pulled hard (I also had on gloves), nearly falling to the ground with the stretch in the rope. It probably took 40 ft from the time he requested a belay until I stopped him, and add another 10-20 for an inattentive belay. Shook us a bit, and surprised me at how long it took me to stop him...I had stopped him on other rappels several times before just messing around and it was almost instantaneous.

A few lessons learned, your experience may vary:

1. It's a good idea to switch up the belayer, especially on a long rap with a large group. I was less attentive because my neck was strained from looking up for so long.
2. Make sure you know how to use your rappel device in the situation you face (in this case a long rap with a skinny rope). Though slightly awkward, it would have been safer if he had added the lower horn earlier and then added the upper horn.
3. If you are going to provide a firemans belay (and why wouldn't you?) do it right.

[ratagonia]

A recent and relative experience: We were doing Englestead this summer on a 300' Imlay 8mm with only one canyon worth of use on it. We lowered the first guy (me, everyone else wanted the real deal) and had two rap down without any troubles. Though it was their second canyon ever they were both climbers and both rigged plenty of friction.

The fourth guy down used a Pirana and had on leather gloves. About halfway down he went to add friction around the lower and upper horn at the same time and missed. He was unable to recover and lost control. I was belaying and not paying as much attention as I should have. He (pretty calmly) yelled down for a belay. I gave a first tug and it didn't seem to do anything so I really pulled hard (I also had on gloves), nearly falling to the ground with the stretch in the rope. It probably took 40 ft from the time he requested a belay until I stopped him, and add another 10-20 for an inattentive belay. Shook us a bit, and surprised me at how long it took me to stop him...I had stopped him on other rappels several times before just messing around and it was almost instantaneous.

A few lessons learned, your experience may vary:

1. It's a good idea to switch up the belayer, especially on a long rap with a large group. I was less attentive because my neck was strained from looking up for so long.
2. Make sure you know how to use your rappel device in the situation you face (in this case a long rap with a skinny rope). Though slightly awkward, it would have been safer if he had added the lower horn earlier and then added the upper horn.
3. If you are going to provide a firemans belay (and why wouldn't you?) do it right.

Adding friction by tossing the rope around additional horns on a Pirana has proved unreliable for quite a few people. Not recommended.

http://www.canyoneeringusa.com/techt...-petzl-pirana/

The broken pelvis/near death experience in Illusions was because of this, though the glow of future YouTube stardom may also have been a contributing factor.

First rappel of the day often leads to less than clear-headedness.

Tom

[Mountaineer]

Adding friction by tossing the rope around additional horns on a Pirana has proved unreliable for quite a few people. Not recommended.

On method I've done with the Sterling ATS: carabiner in the leg loop for more friction, then grab the horn and go back down again for even more. Has allowed me to effectively add friction without going through an area of less friction dynamically. Full Z.

[ghawk]

I was recently rock climbing and a couple showed up to rappel. The girl was pretty nervous so I could tell it was her first time. We talked for a few minutes, they were getting ready for Orderville, and my group offered to give her a fireman's belay from the bottom because the guy wanted to make sure she was set up right. She came down fine.

Then the guy asked her to provide a belay while he came down. When he got close to the ground they "practiced' the belay by having her lightly tug on the rope. The guy said "see, you just have to barely tug on it." ` I looked over and yelled "actually you should put all of your weight on it and drop to the ground." His response was "well she's just a beginner, so little steps first." I could tell by his tone but he was trying to show off his climbing/canyoneering knowledge to his girl and was a bit peeved with me, so I didn't yell back that what he was teaching her was crap. I hope they both will remember what I said and not get someone hurt because they "barely tug" on the rope.

I've had to give a fireman's belay several times because people were new, or their friction wasn't set up as well as it could have been, or they were doing something stupid. In all cases I have dropped all my weight on the rope and pulled as hard as I could. All ended up okay and I have a lot of confidence in a solid fireman belay if the rappeller is hooked in properly. But, as has been mentioned, you have to be paying attention and you have to put a lot of force on that rope quickly because even with all your weight on the rope they will slide a good distance before stopping if they get out of control.

[hank moon]

Adding friction by tossing the rope around additional horns on a Pirana has proved unreliable for quite a few people. Not recommended.

Sometimes it works well...depends on the situation, especially the type and condition of the rope. Wrapping friction horns "on the fly" tends to work better with softer, larger diameter rope (> 9mm) that is relatively clean. Small, stiff, rope = less effective. In any case, feeding is often required to get moving. When feeding, I always block the rope from popping off the top horn with the free hand. A few rounds of quick feeding can sometimes generate enough momentum to get the rope sliding. But, sometimes not. YMWV.

DO NOT FEED w/o carefully blocking the rope from coming off the top horn!

[hank moon]

Fireman's belay:

Seems to be taking some hits here. Applied correctly and appropriately, it's a great tool. Not a panacea, but nothing is (apart from couch + Gilligan's Island).

Some points for an effective bottom belay:

- Rappeller's device properly set up with sufficient friction
- Belay commands are well understood and practiced by all in the group
- Belayer on bottom has stable stance, is out of rockfall zone but as close as possible to fall line, can visually monitor rappeller, has firm grip on rope with both hands, minimal slack in rope, is attentive and ready to apply tension instantly

Fireman's belay MUST be practiced by all team members. It is a deceptively simple concept, and thus it is easy to get it wrong. On all trips, get everyone to practice, with backup. Switching belayers for each rappeller (last rapper becomes new belayer) is a simple way to go. If there is any doubt (or not) about someone's ability to belay, back them up with one or more persons on the brake line. Avoid relying on one person to do all of the belaying. The entire team needs to learn and practice this important skill.

I've seen the fireman's work 100s of times. Lots of potential injuries averted. Never seen it fail, though obviously it can (anything can fail). Note the caver report that MDD referenced: a very long drop (800'), a longer, redirected rope with a lot of stretch (100% nylon construction). These conditions are very unfavorable to the fireman's belay. Shorter drops (< 200') with less stretchy rope = very favorable in my experience.

[dougr]

I'm all for avoiding erosion on nasty trails, but, these spots look bad for rappelling with all the loose rock. Perhaps a reconsideration of eliminating these rappels in the future in route descriptions will help prevent a few accidents?

No. Emphatically so. It's a dangerous sport. Attempts to make it safer will make it more dangerous overall.

I repeat: attempts to make it safer will make it more dangerous overall. Think about that one.

[Slot Machine]

Attempts to make it safer will make it more dangerous overall.

I repeat: attempts to make it safer will make it more dangerous overall. Think about that one.

[hank moon]

No. Emphatically so. It's a dangerous sport. Attempts to make it safer will make it more dangerous overall.

I repeat: attempts to make it safer will make it more dangerous overall. Think about that one.

Please elaborate on what you mean. It is a given that the sport is dangerous; however, the truth of your statement is non-obvious. How is it that attempts to make canyoneering safer will make it more dangerous? Are you making a general statement here, or just responding to the specific situation re: Birch Hollow and bypassing the crum-bly raps?

[Aj84737]

I ran into a group of 3 in birch before with 2 of them being complete beginners. One of the beginners went down first got about 5 feet down and became stuck. She had an ATC double stand and some big bulky kind of autoblock. I give her probs for not panicking at all and for trying to explain what had went wrong. There were 3 groups there. The group with the suck girl a group of 2 then my group of 2. We offered our help and any equipment if needed. He said they were fine for now. He tried to figure it out from above but couldn't get her unstuck. He borrowed a rope went down next to her and tried to help. He however either didn't know how to tie off or in the moment of panic forgot how to tie off. But anyways he couldn't solve anything with just one hand free. His arm became tired quick and he ended up finishing the rap.

The lone member of there group at the top didn't even know how to hook up to his figure 8 let alone know how to help the stuck rappeller. So my group and the other group decided since she was only a few feet down and only a pretty mellow lip between us that the easiest solution was to just give her a tug up the cliff. She didn't even have a helmet so I lowered her mine and told her how to tie a knot in her rope just incase it came free. And we gave her a tug up and freed her.

I love love love my ATS so I've not to familiar with the ATC so maybe my hypothesis of what happened is wrong. But. To me it looked like the biner holding the ATC got flipped around and the skinny end of the biner wasn't letting the rope feed through the device. It was also really thick rope. Just guessing somewhere in the range of 10 to 11. Maybe one of you ATC lovers would know if that's possible??? The autoblock device which I have know idea what is was also appeared to have maybe got stuck too. It looked kinda like some massive remake of a grigri that was rigged up above the ATC on a teather to the belay loop.

Anyways idk where I'm going with this. But dsr's comment of trying to make things safer makes it more dangerous made me think of this.

[dougr]

Please elaborate on what you mean. ... Are you making a general statement here

General yes. The culture is such now that in an attempt to reduce risk, we invite laziness and complacency which increase risk.

Specifically with our sport, we'd see more incompetent canyoneers, not the same skill level in less risky canyons. We'd see self-appointed safety czars imposing their view of the safe route, which is inherently more dangerous overall than a well educated and experienced cadre of canyoneers who take it upon themselves to be safe ->out of absolute necessity<-. Nothing replaces the focus that comes from knowing you have to rely on your skill. Which includes beta and the experience of others, don't get me wrong.

An analogy would be the millions of wards of the state who literally cannot take care of themselves out of learned helplessness due to the attempt to remake life/school/work a risk free, angst free, worry free endeavor. It backfires due to human nature, as would the safety of canyoneering if the wrong ethos takes hold.