Nuts (aka Stoppers)

Unless you are climbing totally parallel cracks in Indian Creek or something similar, then you will want to bring 1-2 sets of nuts along when you trad climb. They are easy to place, bomber and relatively lightweight.

I use the Black Diamond stoppers, but other people I know use Wild Country Rocks. The main differences between brands are the shape of the nuts as well as the sizing. One brand versus the other isn’t as important as knowing how to properly place them. Once you get used to one brand you’ll probably stick with that.

Camming Devices (aka Cams, SLCD’s, Friends)

Unlike nuts, camming devices are heavy, expensive and vary widely from brand to brand. They are also a very important part of your rack, so make sure to choose wisely when you start assembling a rack. In general, it’s easiest to have a rack of all one brand of cams, but people generally mix it up a little, especially when buying really small or really big cams. I prefer the Black Diamond cams, but also own some Metolius and CCH Aliens. Wild Country offers the largest cam on the market, so if you’re into burly offwidth climbing, you’ll want to get one or two of those. You will want to get 1-2 cams of each size within a size range that you find necessary. For Black Diamond cams, this is probably everything between the 0.3 and 3 sizes in the C4 line. Check your guide books for recommended racks and find people who will lend you some cams when you start out so you don’t have to throw down too much cash right away. CCH Aliens are hard to find, but are great for placing in small cracks since they have a single stem. Besides the stem design, the number of lobes on a cam can vary, with 4 lobes being the most popular and stable.

Other Protection Devices

There are also many other different kinds of protection that people have invented over the years. Some of this gear is specialty equipment that you will need on certain climbs, while others are just different styles that you can adopt according to your preferences. There are other kinds of protection available that aren’t listed here, but they are mainly specialty pieces that are used rarely or only for aid climbing.

Tri-cams

Tri-cams are probably the most popular type of protection aside from nuts and cams. They operate in a few modes and are able to act as an oddly shaped nut or have a camming action, similar to a Hex (introduced below). They often provide solid protection in places where neither a nut nor a cam will fit very well. Due to this versatility, many people like tri-cams and I encourage you to learn how to use them.

Hexes

Hexes are old school gear that have mainly been replaced by cams. They look sort of like enormous stoppers and sound like cowbells. Their main advantages are their extremely low price compared to cams as well as their lack of moving parts. Cams have springs and wire triggers that sometimes need replacing, while hexes are much simpler.

Big Bros

Trango Big Bros are for people who are into crazy wide cracks that are too big for cams. If you’re into offwidth climbing, then chances are you might pick up a Big Bro or two.

Other Gear Required

In addition to the protection devices described above, you will need an assortment of other gear that will make sure you ascend the rock in style and safety.

Slings

Slings with two non-locking carabiners are often used as ‘alpine quickdraws’ when trad climbing. If you get the ones that are about 2 feet long, then you can shorten and extend them easily to adjust for the often traversing nature of traditional climbs. For example, when the route goes left or right a good amount, you will want to use longer slings to reduce rope drag. I generally bring about 12-15 slings with me on a trad climb, but it can vary widely depending on the pitch length.

Non-locking Carabiners

Non-locking carabiners are essential as you will use two of them with a sling to make an alpine quickdraw. You’ll need about twice as many carabiners as slings plus one more carabiner for each cam, so you can attach the cams to your harness or gear sling.

Wire gate carabiners are very nice to have, check my guide to choosing quickdraws for more info about non-locking carabiners in general.

Locking Carabiners

You will need enough locking carabiners to build 2 anchors, as well as tie in to those anchors. It’s always a good idea to have a few extra lockers just in case you need to connect something else securely to your harness or the anchor. I avoid auto-locking carabiners since they sometimes catch (and don’t lock).

Cordalette

A cordalette makes anchor building easy, quick and safe. For info on how to safely build anchors, learn from an expert and read Climbing Anchors. Get two cordalettes so you can set up two anchors on a multipitch climb.

Gear Sling

A gear sling will help you keep your gear organized and allow you to move some weight off your harness. Also, they will allow you to quickly give your partner the rack. For trad climbing, the single shoulder sling is best.

Nut Tool

A nut tool will help you remove nuts and sometimes even cams when you are following a pitch. Always keep one with you and attach it to your harness with a long sling so that you can’t drop it.

Climbing and/or Approach Shoes

When trad climbing, you will definitely want comfortable shoes that you can wear all day. I prefer the La Sportiva Mythos, but check my guide to rock climbing shoes for more details.

Books

A great guide to trad climbing and all other styles of rock climbing (plus loads more useful info) is Mountaineering: The Freedom of the Hills. I highly recommend you pick this up, but don’t let it replace an expert who can properly teach you safe rock climbing skills.

Basic Sport Climbing Equipment

Lastly, of course you will need a basic climbing equipment that you would use while sport climbing. This includes a climbing harness, shoes, chalk bag, chalk, helmet, and daisy chains. Check my guide to sport climbing equipment for tips on how to choose that gear. Just don’t try to do a multi-pitch trad route in your super aggressive and tiny sport climbing shoes!

Conclusion

This guide covers all the gear you will need for a trad climbing adventure. Just make sure to be safe and learn the proper skills before you go off on your own. Practice placing gear on the ground and start out on easy terrain! If you live in California, a great place to learn how to trad climb is Yosemite. Read my Beginner’s Guide to Rock Climbing in Yosemite for information about some intro climbs there. For other kinds of rock climbing gear check out the other articles on this website.

Quickdraw Features

• Carabiner Gate Type

  The type of gate on carabiners makes a big difference in quickdraws. There are three major types of carabiner gates: basic straight gate, bent gate and wire gate. Straight gate carabiners are the most basic style and least expensive. Bent gate carabiners are bent so that they are easier to clip the rope into. They tend to be a little more expensive than carabiners with standard straight gates. Wire gate carabiners are the most expensive type, but make the lightest carabiners. They are very easy to clip and are surprisingly even stronger than the other carabiner gates. I recommend them unless you don’t want to spend the extra money.

  Note: some quickdraws come with a straight gate carabiner on one side of the sling and a bent gate on the other side. When you use those, make sure to clip the straight gate into the bolt or protection on the wall so you can clip the rope into the easier bent gate.

  Straight Gate Carabiner

  Bent Gate Carabiner

  Wire Gate Carabiner

• Sling Length

  The length of sling between the two carabiners affects how much rope drag can occur on a route that traverses. The longer the sling, the more traversing allowed before rope drag will increase. Standard quickdraw lengths are between 10 and 20 centimeters. For sport climbing, I prefer shorter slings since they are lighter and you can always take the carabiners off the short sling and put them on long slings for trad climbing.

• Sling Width

  Newer quickdraws often come with narrow slings that are lighter than wider ones, but just as strong. I prefer the narrow ones, but the wide ones may last longer and also tend to not twist, which can be annoying.

  Wide Sling on Petzl Spirit

  Narrow Sling on Black Diamond Quicksilver

• Rubber Sheath

  All quickdraws should have this feature: a rubber sheath on the carabiner meant for clipping the rope into. The sheath will keep the carabiner from turning upside down or shifting around while you clip the rope into it. Note that if you make alpine quickdraws from your own slings then you won’t have this feature and should be prepared to spend a little more time clipping in.

• Overall Weight

  When making a final decision on which quickdraws to buy, make sure to take weight into consideration. Saving a pound or two can make the difference if you are pushing yourself on a tough route. Each quickdraw can weigh between 70 and 120 grams, which is a big range in total weight when you are carrying 10-20 of them.

How many to Buy

A minimum set of quickdraws is 12. I prefer to have 15-20 and it really depends on where you will be climbing. I have been on long sport pitches in El Potrero Chico in Mexico with 19 bolts on the pitch, while some sport routes at Red Rocks, Nevada have only 4. Remember to keep 2 extra quickdraws or slings for the top of the climb. Often if you buy a set of 6 or more of them you can get a discount.

My Picks

The Wild Country Helium’s are so light that they should be looked at if price isn’t a major consideration. And the Petzl Spirit’s are a solid, but pricey, all-around quickdraw. Also, check out the Black Diamond Quicksilver’s for a more economical quickdraw.

Wild Country Helium's

Petzl Spirit's

Black Diamond Quicksilver's

Sport climbing at Red Rocks, Nevada, USA

If you are starting to lead sport climbs, here’s what you’ll need:

• Climbing Harness - Your climbing harness connects you to the rope and is also where you clip your quickdraws and other gear. Look for harnesses with adjustable leg loops, 4 gear loops and comfy padding.
  
• Belay Device with Locking Carabiner - You will need to have a belay device to belay your climbing partner as well as for rappelling. GriGri’s can be great auto-locking belay devices if you use them well, but you will also need a basic ATC for rappelling.
  
• Rock Climbing Shoes - Get some good shoes that fit well. If you need some pointers, check out my guide to rock climbing shoes.
  
• Climbing Rope - You will need either a 60-meter or 70-meter dynamic climbing rope. Being able to find the middle of the rope easily is important for safety as well as useful when coiling your rope, so I recommend bi-pattern ropes, which simplify that greatly. Before you get on a climb, check the guidebook to make sure your rope is long enough and always tie a knot in the end in case it is too short.
  
• 15-20 Quickdraws - Before you get on a climb, make sure that you have enough quickdraws, including two for the top of the climb. It’s also a good idea to carry a few extra with you in case you drop one. I recommend quickdraws with wire gates. They are the lightest and easiest to clip, without sacrificing strength.
  
• Helmet - protect your head while climbing. Helmets are also good to wear while you are belaying in case the climber dislodges loose rock.
  
• Chalk Bag with Carabiner - keep your hands dry so your hands don’t slip. Many bags come with a waist belt, which is great for bouldering, but I prefer clipping my chalk bag to my harness for sport climbing.
  

That gear will be enough for most sport climbs out there. For more info on other climbing gear, check out my other guides to rock climbing equipment.

Basic Climbing Shoe Features

• Support - Climbing shoes can have varying amounts of bottom foot support built in. Shoes with more support are generally more comfortable, but can have trouble gripping small edges.
• Laceup/Velcro/Slipper - Laceups are very adjustable and comfy but take longer to put on and take off. Velcros are moderately adjustable and quick to get on and off. Slippers are the least adjustable, but are very quick to get on and off. With slippers you need to be the most careful about fit because if the shoes stretch too much they can become too loose and there’s not much you can do about it. However, some resolers can add/subtract 1/2 a shoes size if necessary.
• Synthetic/Leather - Synthetic shoes are less expensive, but tend to breathe less than leather shoes. Watch out for very stinky synthetics!
• Rubber Type - There are a number of different types of rubber on the market. My favorite is the Five Ten C4 rubber; it’s really sticky. I find that budget climbing shoes often come with inferior rubber and the type of rubber is generally the same for a given brand.
• Camber - This is the angle the shoe makes your toe point. Shoes that point your toe down are more aggressive for small edges, while shoes that keep your toes flat are more comfortable and suited towards crack climbing.

Entry Level Shoes

If you are just getting into climbing, then you should save your money and buy a cheaper all around climbing shoes. At that level, you won’t necessarily know what style of climbing you will like the most. Once you are committed to climbing more, then another pair of shoes specialized for the kind of climbing you will be doing will be a good investment.

Entry level shoes are generally comfortable laceup shoes with a flat bottom and good support. They can be either leather or synthetic.

Here are a few recommended entry level shoes to get you into the sport:

Bouldering/Sport Climbing Shoes

Bouldering and sport climbing demand aggressive shoes that allow edging on extremely small footholds. These shoes are usually down-cambered and come with little or no support below your feet. They are often slippers or velcro so you can easily take them on and off. Generally, they fit tighter than other types of shoes so your feet won’t move around in the shoes (for precision), which is why you will want to be able to take them off easily after a boulder problem or climb. Don’t kill yourself with tight shoes though, it’s not worth it and can be distracting.

A few of my favorite bouldering/sport shoes, the 5.10 Anasazi’s and La Sportiva Miura’s being my favorites:

Trad Climbing Shoes

Trad climbing often involves long multi-pitch routes with crack climbing techniques required. For this you will want a comfortable shoe with a nice toe for crack jamming. Make sure the shoes fit well since you will often have to wear them for long periods of time. I prefer leather shoes in this case since they breathe better. They will also often have support under your foot and keep your toes pointing flat against the sole.

My all-time favorite trad climbing shoes are the La Sportiva Mythos, but there are plenty of other good ones out there.

Approach Shoes

Approach shoes are a newer phenomenon in rock climbing, but a great one if you can take advantage of them. Basically, these are shoes that you wear while hiking to the base of a climb and then climb in them too! They have a decent sole on the bottom of the shoe for hiking, but the bottoms are made of that awesome sticky climbing rubber with a nice grip. These shoes are perfect for experience climbers doing easy multipitch trad routes outside. You don’t want to get on anything hard with these unless you know what you’re doing, but used well they can lighten your load by a pound or two.

These shoes are also great on slabby approaches or descents where you want to cover some ground and want to be extra surefooted.

Here are a few great ones:

Big Wall Boots

If you are headed up El Capitan, Half Dome or another big wall, then you may want to invest in big wall boots. These hybrid boots are similar to approach shoes in that they come with sticky rubber soles for climbing, but they are stiff boots that will keep your feet comfortable during long aid climbing leads. Aid climbing pitches can often have short sections of free climbing, so they can be really useful for those moves without sacrificing comfort.

Check out a bunch of different big wall shoes at Mountain Tools.

Conclusion

Choosing the right rock climbing shoes can both improve your climbing and make the experience much more enjoyable. If start climbing a lot, then you will probably end up with a few pairs of shoes. To reduce costs when the rubber on your shoes wear through, make sure you resole your shoes. I prefer Yosemite Bum. Once you’ve bought your shoes, make sure to check out the other best rock climbing equipment.