Crack climbing

In rock climbing, a crack climb is a type of climbing route that follows a system of crack(s) or fissure(s) that the climber uses to ascend the route. The width of the crack dictates the techniques needed, and crack-climbs are further differentiated by the body parts that can be 'jammed' into them, such as finger cracks (the narrowest), hand/fist cracks, arm cracks, and body (also called chimney) cracks. Off-width cracks are some of the most awkward, being too wide for the hands or arms, but too narrow to accommodate the body. The rarer top-to-bottom uniform-width crack is called a splitter crack.^[1][2]

Examples of crack climbing

Hand jamming

Laybacking

Arm jamming

Finger jamming

Crack climbing routes require a broad range of techniques, but most importantly emphasize the techniques of 'laybacking' and of 'jamming'. Laybacking requires the crack to be off-set (i.e. one side protrudes) or in a corner, to create the opposing forces needed for the technique.^[1] 'Jamming' is where the climber physically "jams" a body-part(s) into the crack which they then pull on to gain upward momentum.^[1] The type of rock has an important effect on the effectiveness of 'jamming', with the high-friction surface of granite being particularly suited to the technique.^[1] The friction needed for 'jamming' can wear the climber's skin, requiring medical tape or specialist gloves for long crack routes.^[3][4]

Crack climbs are particularly suited to traditional climbing as the crack can accommodate the protection (e.g. Separate Reality).^[2] The invention of spring-loaded camming devices in the 1970s revolutionised the difficulty of cracks that could be attempted by traditional climbers,^[2] and led to new grade milestones set on crack-routes such as The Phoenix in 1977, the world's first-ever 7c+ (5.13a), and Grand Illusion in 1979, the world's first-ever 8a (5.13b).^[5][6] While the advent of bolted sport climbing routes in the 1980s diverted focus to the blanker face climbs, crack-climbs continued to feature prominently in the development of multi-pitch and big wall climbs, and most notably on the giant granite cracks on El Capitan and its famous routes such as The Nose.^[7]

The early 2000s saw a resurgence in traditional climbing, placing crack-climbing back in focus. Swiss climber Didier Berthod 'greenpointed' the bolted crack line of Greenspit at 8b+ (5.14a),^[8][9] as did Canadian Sonnie Trotter on The Path,^[10] and Austrian Beat Kammerlander [de] on Prinzip Hoffnung.^[11] In 2006, new traditional-grade milestones were set on crack-climbs by Trotter on Cobra Crack at 8c (5.14b),^[10] and by Scottish climber Dave MacLeod on Rhapsody at 8c+ (5.14c).^[10] In 2008, American climber Beth Rodden freed the Yosemite crack-line of Meltdown at 8c+ (5.14c), becoming the first-ever women to climb a traditional route at that grade, which at the time was also the highest traditional grade climbed anywhere.^[12] In 2011, British crack specialists, Pete Whittaker and Tom Randall, climbed the world's hardest off-width crack, Century Crack at 8b (5.13d).^[13][14] In 2021, the same duo, climbed the world's longest roof climb, a 762-metre (2,500 ft) cement crack under the M5 in Devon, The Great Rift at 5.13 (7c+).^[15][16]