| Abseil |
Descent (where it is impossible or inconvenient
to climb
down) by means of a doubled rope round belay or through a loop of
cord attached to piton |
| Arete |
A narrow ridge |
| Bealach |
A pass (Gaelic) |
| Belay |
securing the party by means of a projection: bollard
of
rock, piton, etc. The projection itself |
| Bivouac |
Voluntary or involuntary encampment without tents |
| Bwlch |
A pass (Welsh) |
| Carabiner |
Metal snap-link for attaching rope to pitons, running
belays, etc. |
| Carry |
(noun) The act of carrying a stretcher |
| Chimney |
Fissure wide enough to admit climber's body |
| Col |
A pass |
| Cornice |
Overhanging wave of win-formed snow on a ridge |
| Coire or Corrie |
Normally a high bowl-shaped valley |
| Crampon |
Metal frame with spikes to fit on boot for use on hard
snow or ice. To move wearing crampons |
| Creag Dhu |
A select group of hard Scottish climbers |
| Cwm |
(Welsh) Hanging valley |
| Difficile |
Trés Difficile, etc.: grades used to assess
the general standard of a route on the Continent |
| Difficult |
British climbs are graded Easy, Moderate, Difficult,Very
Difficult, Severe, Very Severe, Exceptionally Severe. Difficult is
not the same standard as the French Difficile but much easier |
| Duvet |
Padded jacket, trousers, etc., filled with eiderdown |
| Etriers |
Miniature rope ladders with three or four metal rungs
used in artificial climbing |
| Gabbro |
Very rough rock of Black Cuillin on Skye |
| Glissade |
Controlled slide down snow using ice axe as brake |
| Gully Axe |
A type of short axe with hammer head instead of adze,
for use in confined spaces and on steep ice. No ferrule or spike. |
| Ghyll |
Gully |
| Lead Clean |
Climb without a top rope |
| Lead Through |
Lead alternately |
| Lochain |
Small lake |
| Lower |
(noun) The act of lowering a stretcher |
| Moraine |
Accumulation of stones and debris brought down by glacier |
| Nails |
Nailed boots |
| Neve |
Old hard snow or ice |
| North Wall Axe |
Similar to gully axe but with longer shaft and having
ferrule and spike, normally used on alpine climbs |
| Pendule |
Pendulum |
| Pitch |
Section of climb between belays |
| Piton |
Peg or metal spike with ring or hole in head which,
used in conjunction with carabiner, can be used to safeguard the rope
between climbers, or as a belay |
| Prussik |
(knot, loop) A sliding knot |
| Pup Tents |
Two-man tents |
| Runner |
Running belay: intermediate belays on pitches where
a sling and carabiner are slipped over a projection and the climbing
rope run through the carabiner. |
| Run-Out |
The amount of rope used on a pitch |
| Sling |
Short loop of rope or line. Webbing loop on axe |
| Solo |
Alone, unroped |
| Stance |
Standing or sitting space by belay |
| Sweep |
Search line of men abreast spaced out at intervals,
each leg of the operation being parallel and adjacent to the last |
| Tigers |
The best climbers |
| Top Rope |
Rope from above |
| Tricouni |
Boot nail |
| Two Star Red |
Distress signal. The pyrotechnic used to show the site
of the accident |
| Verglas |
Veneer of black ice on rock |
| Vibrams |
Moulded rubber boot soles. The boots themselves |
| Windslab |
Wind-blown snow which peels off in slabs when disturbed |
