Portaledge

Last updated
A5 Portaledge PortaledgeSketch.jpg
A5 Portaledge

A portaledge is a deployable hanging tent system designed for rock climbers who need to spend multiple days and nights on a climbing route suspended from a sheer rock face while big wall climbing. A fully assembled portaledge is a fabric-covered platform surrounded by a metal frame that hangs from a single anchor point via carabiners and has adjustable suspension straps. A separate cover—called a stormfly—covers the entire system to give protection in the event of bad weather. The first portaledges were created for climbing in Yosemite.

Contents

History

Hammocks were used by climbers before portaledges were developed. Tom Frost - Tenement flat - 1964.jpg
Hammocks were used by climbers before portaledges were developed.
Lying on the 1986-2016 portaledge design Lying on the portaledge.jpg
Lying on the 1986-2016 portaledge design
The 2017 D4 Portaledge re-invention supersedes the prior state of the art as published in the 1996 "Simply Stormproof" sketch. SimplyBombproof2017.jpg
The 2017 D4 Portaledge re-invention supersedes the prior state of the art as published in the 1996 "Simply Stormproof" sketch.
D4 Delta2p, the 2020 Middendorf design D4 Delta2p.jpg
D4 Delta2p, the 2020 Middendorf design

1950–1960

Rock climber Warren Harding slept on natural ledges during his first ascent of El Capitan in Yosemite in 1958. [1]

1960–70

The multiple-day routes on El Capitan pushed climbers to invent structures for sleeping. They began securing traditional two-point hammocks to cliff walls. Warren Harding invented the first hammock suspended from a central point, which he called a B.A.T. (Basically Absurd Technology) Tent. Central suspension facilitates deployment, prevents the tipping that occurs with two-point hammocks, and has since been integrated into every significant big wall sleeping structure. Harding almost died during his 1968 attempt on Half Dome in Yosemite after being trapped in a three-day storm, where his B.A.T Tent was filled with freezing rain and snow. Single-point hammocks allowed little sleep because they offered no weather resistance and crushed climber's shoulders. [1]

1970–1980

During the early 1970s, climbers Billy Westbay and Bruce Hawkins created the first portaledges by re-appropriating steel and canvas cots stolen from park lodges in Yosemite. These were a vast improvement from single-point hammocks with regard to comfort, but they were not collapsible and weighed up to thirty kilograms (almost three times the weight of today's models). During this period climbers also used Submarine Ledges, made from U.S. Navy aluminum tube cots that had been purchased from army surplus stores. [1]

In 1972, the climber brothers Gregg and Jeff Lowe designed the LURP, a highly innovative portaledge prototype. The design's collapsible frame allowed the Lowes to climb without the bulk of a cot. Every significant portaledge since the LURP has had a collapsible frame. Another pioneering feature of this design was its nylon fly tent, which provided an enclosed shelter from the elements. Fly tents quickly became a standard element of portaledges. Jeff Lowe used the LURP on the first winter ascent of Yosemite's Half Dome. Although the prototype was never sold to others, the brothers included it in their catalogue of climbing products, which circulated widely among climbers. [1]

By the late 1970s, the term "portaledge", which combines the words "portable" and "ledge", had become the common name for the typology. The originator of the term remains unknown to this day. Mike Graham, a famous American climber, founded his climbing gear company Gramicci in 1977. Over the next five years Graham sold over five hundred of the first commercially available portaledges, called Cliff Dwellings, to climbers in California and Europe. Graham made his Cliff Dwellings using equipment that he carried in his truck, and would set up his shop in friend's garages and basements. Graham's frame tubes slotted into each other at their corners, which allowed the frame to collapse into the smallest bag possible. His minimal corner connections were an important innovation, but they also made the Cliff Dwelling vulnerable to structural failure under extreme forces of nature. For an expedition to Patagonia in 1979, Graham designed the Fortress, the first portaledge large enough for two people. This model was constructed with ballistic nylon, a fabric strong enough to deflect small pieces of falling ice and rock. During the same year Graham made, but never tested, a prototype of a Windshield: a tent, suspended below the Cliff Dwelling that would deflect upward winds away from the portaledge. [1]

1980–1986

The first portaledges used in Yosemite were non-collapsible cots purloined from Housekeeping Camp, a Yosemite Valley campground that featured primitive metal framed bunks for the campers.[ citation needed ] These heavy cots were used on multi-day climbs on granite monoliths like El Capitan, and then sometimes tossed off the summit for later retrieval. Mike Graham is credited with the first collapsible portaledge models available for retail purchase under the name of his company, Gramicci Products based in Ventura, California. The Gramicci Portaledge appeared in the very early 1980s and revolutionized multi-day big wall comfort. There were a few minor manufacturers that also dabbled in portaledge design in the early 1980s but could not get any traction in this niche market and soon faded from sight. In 1985 a small California-based company called Fish Products, founded by Russ Walling, started to manufacture one-person single portaledges. Other early Portaledge manufacturers were Fig, Frog (Ray Olsen), Lowe (never commercially available), and C&S Engineering.

1986–1998

In 1986, John Middendorf, a Stanford-trained mechanical engineer, founded A5 Adventures. Previously, Middendorf and his companions Steve Bosque and Mike Corbett had nearly died due to portaledge failure during a three-day storm on the 2000-foot south face of Half Dome, prompting Middendorf to redesign the modern portaledge. [2] A5 portaledges were constructed of highly weatherproof fabrics and engineered to be structurally stable and strong. The company produced three models: the Single, the Alpine Double, and the Cliff Cabana. The A5 portaledges were the first that could withstand the severe weather conditions in remote areas such as the Himalayas and the Karakoram, enabling climbers to expand their horizons to the largest rock faces in the world. Middendorf himself used A5 portaledges on some of the hardest and remote big walls of the world, including during the first ascent of The Grand Voyage on the Great Trango Tower in 1992, the longest vertical big wall (1350m) in the world. The A5 Portaledge was sold worldwide.

1998–2016

The North Face (TNF) acquired the assets of A5 Adventures, including the A5 portaledge design, in 1998. Middendorf continued to steer the product for an additional two years at TNF before moving on to other pursuits outside of the climbing industry. The A5 portaledge designs were subsequently transferred to Black Diamond Equipment of Salt Lake City, Utah, who continue to produce the A5 designs with many added features. As of 2016, there were four major commercial suppliers of portaledges, making the following popular models:

2017

In 2017, John Middendorf introduced a new portaledge design, called the D4 Portaledge (82" × 47", 16.5 pounds with haulsack, fly, and flypole). Instead of block corners, which has been the de facto standard since they were first introduced, the new D4 Portaledge has rounded curved tubing corners, which offer more rigidity and are lighter than the traditional block corners. The D4 portaledge brings many more innovations, including a newly engineered hybrid diameter tube design, which provides strength and rigidity without the need for a spreader bar, a new integrated haulsack/deployment system, and a completely simple but new concept for the stormfly—a single vertical zipped opening which enables the quickest deployment while also allowing full opening between storms. Also around this time, Middendorf introduces the D4 "bullet-joiner" which is a simple yet effective way to create a joint with overlapping tube strength, and rounded nose for quick self-assembling joints. The D4 has been produced in several sizes and besides being lighter and stronger, pack smaller (29" × 10" for the full size D4) than previous designs of portaledges.

2020

Delta2p (a D4 Design). NEW DELTA2p Advantages.png
Delta2p (a D4 Design).

In 2020, Middendorf developed the "Delta2p" portaledge, a cantilevered design. Named for its delta shape and 2-person design, this design solved many longstanding issues with portaledges, including improved ergonomics and increased stability. The rigid six-piece frame design with curved corners and "D4 bullet-joiners" enables quick assembly, and folds compactly. Six prototypes which were sent to Yosemite and the Himalaya for testing, and an additional 42 Delta2p's were crafted in Tasmania in 2020/2021 and distributed worldwide; these weighed 6.5 kg. with haulsack and stormfly. Photos and open-source design notes available online: [3] See also: [4]

Other uses

Portaledges have been used by tree-sitters during anti-logging civil disobedience protests, [5] enabling them to remain aloft in trees for weeks, months, or sometimes years. [6] They are also used in recreational tree camping. [7]

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Half Dome</span> Granitic dome in Yosemite National Park, California

Half Dome is a quartz monzonite batholith at the eastern end of Yosemite Valley in Yosemite National Park, California. It is a well-known rock formation in the park, named for its distinct shape. One side is a sheer face while the other three sides are smooth and round, making it appear like a dome cut in half. It stands at nearly 8,800 feet above sea level and is composed of quartz monzonite, an igneous rock that solidified several thousand feet within the Earth. At its core are the remains of a magma chamber that cooled slowly and crystallized beneath the Earth's surface. The solidified magma chamber was then exposed and cut in half by erosion, therefore leading to the geographic name Half Dome.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Camp 4 (Yosemite)</span> United States historic place

Camp 4 is a tent-only campground in Yosemite National Park in the United States. It became notable after World War II as "a birthplace of rock climbing’s modern age." It is located at an elevation of 4000 ft on the north side of the Yosemite Valley, close to base of granite cliffs near Yosemite Falls.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Aid climbing</span> Type of rock climbing

Aid climbing is a form of rock climbing that uses mechanical devices and equipment, such as aiders, for upward momentum. Aid climbing is different than free climbing, which only uses mechanical equipment for protection, but not to assist in upward momentum. Aid climbing sometimes involves hammering in permanent pitons and bolts, into which the aiders are clipped, but there is also 'clean aid climbing' which avoids any hammering, and only uses removable placements.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Yvon Chouinard</span> American mountain climber (born 1938)

Yvon Chouinard is an American rock climber, environmentalist, philanthropist, and outdoor industry businessman. His company, Patagonia, is known for its commitment to protecting the environment. He was named one of the 100 most influential people in the world by Time magazine in 2023.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Royal Robbins</span> American rock climber (1935–2017)

Royal Robbins was one of the pioneers of American rock climbing. After learning to climb at Tahquitz Rock, he went on to make first ascents of many big wall routes in Yosemite. As an early proponent of boltless, pitonless clean climbing, he, along with Yvon Chouinard, was instrumental in changing the climbing culture of the late 1960s and early 1970s by encouraging the use and preservation of the natural features of the rock. He went on to become a well-known kayaker.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Warren Harding (climber)</span> American rock climber (1924–2002)

Warren Harding was one of the most accomplished and influential American big wall climbers and aid climbers of the 1950s to 1970s. He was the leader of the first team to climb El Capitan, Yosemite Valley, in 1958. The route they climbed, known as The Nose, ascends 2,900 feet (880 m) up the central buttress of what is one of the largest granite monoliths in the world. Harding made many first ascents in Yosemite, some 28 in all, including The Wall of Early Morning Light.

The Fly is a short 25-foot (7.6 m) schist sport climbing or highball bouldering route in the Rumney Rocks climbing area, New Hampshire, USA, at the Waimea Cliff. The Fly was bolted by Mark Sprague in 1995 as an open project but did not see a first free ascent until David Graham, an 18-year-old American climber from Maine, climbed it in April 2000, who graded it 5.14d (9a) or V14 (8B+). It was quickly repeated by his climbing partner, Luke Parady. At the time, these ascents were milestones for climbing in North America.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bivouac shelter</span> Improvised shelter

A bivouac shelter or bivvy is any of a variety of improvised camp site or shelter that is usually of a temporary nature, used especially by soldiers or people engaged in backpacking, bikepacking, scouting or mountain climbing. It may often refer to sleeping in the open with a bivouac sack, but it may also refer to a shelter constructed of natural materials like a structure of branches to form a frame, which is then covered with leaves, ferns and similar material for waterproofing and duff for insulation. Modern bivouacs often involve the use of one- or two-person tents but may also be without tents or full cover. In modern mountaineering the nature of the bivouac shelter will depend on the level of preparedness, in particular whether existing camping and outdoor gear may be incorporated into the shelter.

<i>Regular Northwest Face of Half Dome</i> Multi-pitch climbing route in Yosemite, US

The Regular Northwest Face of Half Dome was the first Grade VI big wall climbing route in the United States. It was first climbed in 1957 by a team consisting of Royal Robbins, Mike Sherrick, and Jerry Gallwas. Its current aid climbing rating is VI 5.9 A1 or 5.12 for the free climbing variation. It is recognized in the historic climbing text Fifty Classic Climbs of North America and considered a classic around the world.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">John Middendorf</span> American mountain climber and inventor (1959–2024)

John Middendorf was an American big wall climber and designer of climbing equipment.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">John Long (climber)</span> American rock climber and author

John Long is an American rock climber and author. His stories have been translated into many languages.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">History of rock climbing</span> Key chronological milestones

In the history of rock climbing, the three main sub-disciplines—bouldering, single-pitch climbing, and big wall climbing—can trace their origins to late 19th-century Europe. Bouldering started in Fontainebleau, and was advanced by Pierre Allain in the 1930s, and John Gill in the 1950s. Big wall climbing started in the Dolomites, and was spread across the Alps in the 1930s by climbers such as Emilio Comici and Riccardo Cassin, and in the 1950s by Walter Bonatti, before reaching Yosemite where it was led in the 1950s to 1970s by climbers such as Royal Robbins. Single-pitch climbing started pre-1900 in both the Lake District and in Saxony, and by the late-1970s had spread widely with climbers such as Ron Fawcett (Britain), Bernd Arnold (Germany), Patrick Berhault (France), Ron Kauk and John Bachar (USA).

Greg Child is an Australian-born rock climber, mountaineer, author and filmmaker.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dean Potter</span> American climber and BASE jumper

Dean Spaulding Potter was an American free climber, alpinist, BASE jumper, and highliner. He completed many hard first ascents, free solo ascents, speed ascents, and enchainments in Yosemite National Park and Patagonia. He won the Laureus World Action Sportsperson of the Year in 2003. In 2015, he died in a wingsuit flying accident in Yosemite National Park.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ammon McNeely</span> American rock climber (1970–2023)

Ammon McNeely was an American rock climber who specialized in big wall climbing and aid climbing, and who set many speed climbing records and made the first "one-day ascent" for many climbing routes on El Capitan in Yosemite. His other interests included BASE jumping and wingsuiting. McNeely was also a slackliner and pioneered many highlines throughout the US.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Big wall climbing</span> Type of rock climbing

Big wall climbing is a form of rock climbing that takes place on long multi-pitch routes that normally require a full day, if not several days, to ascend. In addition, big wall routes are typically sustained and exposed, where the climbers remain suspended from the rock face, even sleeping hanging from the face, with limited options to sit down or escape unless they abseil back down the whole route, which is a complex and risky action. It is therefore a physically and mentally demanding form of climbing.

<i>The Nose</i> (El Capitan) Multi-pitch climbing route in Yosemite, US

The Nose is a big wall climbing route up El Capitan. Once considered impossible to climb, El Capitan is now the standard for big wall climbing. It is recognized in the historic climbing text Fifty Classic Climbs of North America and considered a classic around the world.

<i>Royal Arches Route</i> Mountain climbing route on the Royal Arches wall in Yosemite Valley, California

The Royal Arches Route is a big wall climbing route in California's Yosemite Valley on the Royal Arches wall. The route is recognized in the historic climbing text Fifty Classic Climbs of North America. The route was first climbed Oct. 1936 by Ken Adam, Morgan Harris, K. Kenneth Davis. The route is moderate in difficulty and is frequently climbed. The first 4 pitches are along a west-facing dihedral. At Pitch 5, the route turns north and ascends the main face along crack systems. Pitch 10 can be free climbed at 5.10b however, most climbers use a fixed rope to pendulum to a long ledge. At the end of Pitch 15, begins the bolted rappel route. It is 18 rappels to the Valley floor. Some climbers prefer to continue to "The Jungle" at the end of Pitch 16. Beyond The Jungle is a 5.4 slab and 4th Class scrambling to the Valley Rim. The descent is usually accomplished by traversing northeast to Washington Column and descending the exposed North Dome Gully.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Alex Honnold</span> American rock climber (born 1985)

Alex Honnold is an American rock climber best known for his free solo ascents of big walls. Honnold rose to worldwide fame in June 2017 when he became the first person to free solo a route on El Capitan in Yosemite National Park, a climb described in The New York Times as "one of the great athletic feats of any kind, ever". Honnold also holds the record for the fastest ascent of the "Yosemite Triple Crown", an 18-hour, 50-minute link-up of Mount Watkins, The Nose, and the Regular Northwest Face of Half Dome. In 2015, he won a Piolet d'Or in alpine climbing with Tommy Caldwell for their completion of the enchainment of the Cerro Chaltén Group in Patagonia over 5 days.

Libby Sauter is an American mountaineer, rock climber, and pediatric cardiac intensive care nurse educator. Sauter and her climbing partner, Mayan Smith-Gobat, set the women's speed record climbing The Nose on El Capitan, in 2014. In 2017, she became the youngest woman inducted into the American Alpine Club Hall of Fame. In 2007, she became the first woman to walk the Lost Arrow Spire highline.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 Olivares, Jonathan (March 2008). "Living Vertically: The Evolution of the Portaledge". Abitare. 480: 66–67.
  2. "Rescue on Half Dome". bigwalls.net. Retrieved 2013-04-14.
  3. "Bigwalls.net". bigwalls.net. Retrieved 2020-05-23.
  4. "Big Wall Gear D4 Delta2p". Big Wall Gear. Retrieved 2020-05-23.
  5. "D4 Delta2P blocks cable logging". abc.net.au. Retrieved 2020-05-21.
  6. Martin, Joy (2018-10-03). "Portaledge Protesting In Tasmania". The Climbing Zine. Retrieved 2019-09-10.
  7. TREEfool (2019-01-05). "TreeFool's list of Tree Camping Shelters (2019)" . Retrieved 2019-09-10.