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TIL from a 30-year climber in Boise: never trust a spur cut on a lead that's been dead over a year
He showed me a hemlock that snapped clean off the hinge 8 feet up because the wood was punky, and it nearly took out his groundie. Now I sound-test every dead lead with a mallet before I even tie in, so what's your go-to check for hidden rot?
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amygonzalez5d ago
A mallet and a year-old memory means nothing if the bark looks fine from the ground, and half those punky hemlocks I've cut in Payette held solid right up until the hinge broke anyway. Test the hinge wood by boring it, not tapping it, since sound wood lies way more than rot does.
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