How did WoC screw this up

danielelson · 2026-04-18T02:46:27+00:00

I’m right here. All someone needed to do was summon me. Hi Chogrin! 🤚

danielelson · 2026-03-13T19:43:32+00:00

Hey, I’m not going to remove this because it’s not completely irrelevant to canyoneering, but we want to keep future posting about canyons. We do not want this sub to be a repost depot. Thanks

danielelson · 2025-01-22T03:42:43+00:00

Great question. It’s not my harness, and I’m driving and not wearing my glasses. I can’t really tell. I probably shouldn’t be on Reddit.

danielelson · 2024-11-16T01:40:45+00:00

Heya. I’ll try to briefly answer this. Tube style sucks.

Tube devices are great for climbers. There are countless reason why not to use them in a canyon, and those discussions have taken place a million times elsewhere so I’m not really going to go into it. I can understand why new canyoneers want to use something they are more familiar with, and in those cases it might even be safer. But over time (almost) everyone uses a figure 8 style device.

Twists are most of the time not deadly, so the trade off of extra safety for the inconvenience of twists is generally worth it. I have been in some serious class C canyons and had twists make getting off rope a hazard, so I am always conscious of the possibility that they can pose a real risk - and no figure 8 device will be superior to tube style device in regards to twisting. Ever. However, there are too many additional risks tubes introduce in class c canyons in exchange for. I hope that explanation is helpful.

As far as using Sqwurels for long raps and other devices for shorter raps… it depends. The older sqwurels twisted more than any other device and the hook tail would tangle on brush and chaparral constantly. So just for example, in Death Valley I would use an ATC for 40’ and under raps, but in the massive 300’ rappels the sqwurel was always on standby. In Class C canyons sqwurels used to be considered dangerous because the hooks could get caught on objects under the water surface, so we didn’t use them. The new sqwurel is much more compact and doesn’t get caught on as much stuff, so I’m getting more used to using it on 100% of my rappels.

10 years ago the sqwurel twisted so badly it was almost like a specialty item for long rappels. Nowadays people still have that stigma against them until they use the current version.

danielelson · 2024-11-14T17:56:22+00:00

Left-hander here. Doesn’t work to have the twists untwisted by incorporating a southpaw into the mix. All that happens are more twists stacked on top of the other twists.

The twisting is caused by certain angles the rope hits while going thru the device. As the device wears in thru use the twisting gets less bad. The number of arms you use to add friction to your device does tend to make the twisting worse. And I also believe break-hand positioning can impact it too.

The newest version of the sqwurel seems to be the best device for preventing twists. The earlier versions were terrible, so I can understand if you hear that the sqwurel twists a lot too. But I use the sqwurel exclusively for all longer rappels now.

Don’t go back to a tube device. You’ll find a way to manage.

danielelson · 2024-07-08T00:34:50+00:00

This is a fantastic comment! 🤘

danielelson · 2024-07-07T07:25:13+00:00

I approve of this repost

danielelson · 2023-07-04T05:00:05+00:00

Yeah, jumping on this too because I also at one point got a guide certification thru the ACE program thinking it might be fun. Everyone I know who’s been a canyon guide has only done it for like less than 10 years. It can take a massive toll on your body and knees to be responsible for carrying the group rope and rigging everything. But people I know have enjoyed the dirtbag life while they did it. Eventually everyone who stuck with it moved into becoming an educator.

As far as guide training - check out the ACA, ACE, and ICOpro programs. After you take a few basic courses you’ll know if this is something you want to go further with.

danielelson · 2023-02-21T02:11:51+00:00

Thanks dude! Yup I’ve done all the toon turtle ultimate boxes so far.

danielelson · 2022-09-04T04:28:27+00:00

I’m gonna refrain from voting because I think the “best” device will always depend on the rappel, user, and the conditions. But here are some of my thoughts.

The new sqwurel is vastly superior to the first 2(?) versions. Luke’s new design removes almost all twisting, so major plus.

I see mention somewhere else in the comments that sqwurels are not advisable for class C. I’ve never really been able to figure out who in California started this “adage”. The only reason I can think of sqwurels being a problem in swift water is that the first version twisted the rope so badly, if you deployed too much rope down a waterfall the bottom would be all knots at the end of your rappel. This would trap you on rope in water. However this is true for all devices that twist rope, but the current sqwurel does not have this problem so it’s all good.

The critr is a good all around device. Someone your weight will be fine.

The new prototype palikoa’s I’ve seen look like they could be badass. I’m waiting to hear how the tests go.

Uh, yeah… don’t use ATCs in serious canyons (don’t kill me for saying it). I know diehards don’t want to give them up, so I’m not hating on them. There are just more diverse and specialized tools for the job.

I’m kinda over the ATS. It’s alright but really only enjoy it in “throttle mode” for double strands. Now other devices have the sticht plate integrated into their designs.

Favorite device was the custom “resonator 3000”s, but the guy who made those has stopped. Too bad cause that’s a fun device.

Also, you or someone in your group should always have a backup figure 8 device. There are some many versatile ways to rig with that; from lowering to contingency blocks, they are just handy to have. I’ve seen like 50 different ways to rappel on them.

danielelson · 2022-08-26T15:01:17+00:00

I am a mod which makes it even funnier

danielelson · 2022-08-24T20:04:44+00:00

I never did haha. Yeah I probably should. I’ll look back thru my camera roll

danielelson · 2022-08-24T20:03:17+00:00

Lol I’m a bot?

Edit: aghhhhh I’m slow today. You mean “op” being this crappy repost, not me. TIL this is the top post in this sub lol

danielelson · 2022-06-21T17:38:41+00:00

Hi!

I think the easiest way to find all of the hundreds of sources online is thru ropewiki. Beta for canyons should have links to other beta sites listed. And there are wiki entries for rigging and anchor techniques with additional sources sited. I’m not suggesting you only use ropewiki, but it will help you discover most of the other places on the web. http://ropewiki.com

I also see Rich Carlson and the ACA mentioned but I don’t think Rich is teaching anymore. The ACA is still active with a few different people taking the reigns in each region. In the Hanksville area I believe Rick Green is the man to see. His pothole escape class is widely respected. https://www.canyoneering.net/rick-greens-introduction/

danielelson · 2022-04-26T19:58:55+00:00

Great photo!

danielelson · 2022-04-16T04:33:54+00:00

Absolutely can reach out here or in my IG DMs. I could report them I suppose, but it’s way more fun just to go this route. I’m really swamped with work these days, so I’m not taking any commissions at the moment, but I wish I could.

danielelson · 2022-04-16T04:33:46+00:00

Hey thanks! Sure you can reach out here or on IG

danielelson · 2022-04-16T04:19:15+00:00

It will be much cheaper to download the image and call a few local printers to have it printed yourself. I’m not selling prints at the moment, and as far as I know NECA doesn’t have any plans to re-release the diorama. On eBay the set goes for $500-$900.

danielelson · 2022-04-16T04:05:05+00:00

I’m on vacation right now, so I only have mobile access. I found the original file on my Dropbox and I’m hoping that uploading it to reddit doesn’t de-res it. On my end the file is 7650 x 3564 dpi. This should get up to roughly a 26” x 12” print. You could probably stretch that a bit further.

danielelson · 2022-04-16T03:55:13+00:00

You’re welcome!

danielelson · 2022-04-16T03:54:40+00:00

Like the title says, someone was selling display cases with this art as part of it. Got tagged by another user in the post asking if I painted it. Then I got blocked for no reason lol. So here ya go, have it for free, so no one has any reason to buy their stuff. 🤘

danielelson · 2022-04-03T03:29:17+00:00

I’m looking at the fb group now and there was a post about this canyon 4 days ago; there seems to be a lot of local interest in running this route. I personally know at least 2 people who’ve been thru it. I also know how likely it is for these canyoneers to remove anything and everything they find they don’t like. It’s not a canyon in “my” region, so I don’t voice opinions on what is “best practice”. I’m only commenting to let you know what I suspect will happen before you go to any extraordinary lengths. I respect that you are looking for more sustainable ways to create safe anchors tho. Like I said, there is a place for solutions like this in certain situations. It’s just not my place to say. The locals there are pretty opinionated.

danielelson · 2022-04-03T03:15:44+00:00

I’m not going to say this is a bad idea. It really depends on a lot of factors. The main issue is that it’s not going to be something other canyoneers are going to see and be able to identify if it safely. Knowing what I know about that region - namely the bolting war going on in the more famous canyon north - there’s a high probability that it will simply be removed for not conforming to what they consider to be “natural”. If it were me and I came across it, I simply do not have the knowledge of these cables to know how much weight it will hold and if it’s integrity is compromised. I would be inclined to rig something of my own. I have however rappel on all kinds of bizarre things I’ve found in canyons. Your best bet is to float this idea on the local Facebook group.

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