I’m still pretty new to canyoneering, but I’ve been getting into more each summer for the past few years. I always just use my old climbing rope which is heavy, bulky, and just feels excessive at this point. Any recs on ropes or diameter, length etc.? I know I am looking for something waterproof and static but I feel like I am overthinking the length. Would 30m-40m be enough or would 60m be better or is that still too short?? I am primarily out west UT/AZ/CO. Any brands that are anyone’s favorite?
Agreed. If you're just doing dry canyons mostly, the imlay canyon fire's pretty good for its cost. It'll still perform fine in wet though. Note that ropes will often shrink up to 10%. Some brands will give you extra rope expecting that to happen, but it really just depends. Aka: measure your rope, and plan on some shrinkage.
It's actually a good idea to soak and dry the rope to shrink it a bit and have it tighten around the core.
My current wet workhorse has been my Sterlin CIV, but i've heard it's not as good anymore? I'd probably look at Glacier Black next.
My two main ropes are a 70m Glacier Black in 8.0mm, and an Imlay Canyon Fire 8.3mm. I prefer the Glacier Black in super wet environments, but honestly I mostly just go by length. Between those two I'm pretty set unless I'm doing something really wild. Imlay Canyon also does sales on odd cut ropes, you can often find a sweet deal that way.
Ce4y makes the best ropes on the market IMO. 60-70m is a good starter length for the desert southwest.
Eventually you'll probably want a 100m, and you'll get a core shot or wear and can cut old ropes down into shorter 80-150' working ropes for canyons with shorter drops
I think of 100m ropes as a specialty piece of gear, akin to a sandtrap. You won’t need it or want it for every canyon, but there are some places it’s more or less mandatory.
Yep, exactly. It's not something I would buy right out the gate as a beginner, but eventually OP will probably want one.
Along with potshots, a fiddlestick or 2, a sand trap, maybe a water anchor, a hook or 2, etc.
Super-solid advice, totally agree!
I think just about everything has been covered by other posters, but ill add my 2 cents.
For your Colorado Plateau goals, I think the Imlay Canyon Fire 8.3 is a great starter rope. Its durable, cheap, and light. Sure there are lighter and more durable ropes, but they'll cost you. Get a 60M rope. you'll find that it will get you through 95% of canyons assuming you have some sort of pull cord as well. I tend to always buy 200's which naturally get core shots, and fill in any requirements I may have for shorter ropes. I have a few longer ropes that only come out for the special canyons that require them.
After doing this sport for a while, you may find yourself looking for a more specific type of rope. Something that floats in water, resists cutting against sharp/hard rocks, has better hand feel, or pushes the boundaries for weight/size. There really isn't a perfect rope out there that i've found, but a lot of ropes that will fit for mission specific goals. Avoid getting lost in all that noise, and get yourself a good reliable all-arounder to start.
Best of luck
Glacier black egress or trident plus they’re priced really well compared to other ropes.
I like my canyon fire in dry and wet conditions, it stays quite dry. As for length, 200 ft is the gold standard for a reason. Once I started guiding I upgraded to a canyonero thinking I'd get more durability, but it still got core shot pretty quick. Now I have 200 ft imlay canyon fire for guiding, a 300 ft Sterling C-IV for personal use (I got 300 ft because I wanted to do a 230ft rap). I also have a 200 ft pull cord for both fiddlestick ghosting and big raps.
If you are in Utah, the Canyon Fire 60m rope is the bees knees.
If you like swiftwater I recommend the Glacier Black Newt 60-70m
200ft is the baseline standard. Which particular is like asking what’s the best sports car (or best anything) each will have their own favorite and it’s based on personal likes and also particular conditions and/or canyon features.
Edit to add: waterproof is not a thing for canyon ropes. You’re maybe thinking of ropes that float?
Ropewiki has a comparison
https://ropewiki.com/Rope_comparison
For your first canyoneering rope, I’d recommend one of the many less expensive, less exotic options out there. Good luck!
Contrary opinion: Canyon Fire is at best an okay rope. I don't want to incur the wrath of Tom Jones, but production on it has been uneven over the years. A group of us did some dry canyons a month ago, and among the ropes in the group were my 210' Canyon Fire and a brand new 330' Canyon Fire for the ultimate rappel (250'). The last rope sequence (90' done on the 210 and then the 250) took damn near forever - even on a 0 friction setting on a Pirana, I was having to feed rope on each rappel. And I'm not light - with a pack, close to 200 pounds. The girl I was with, using a Sterling ATS, was having an even worse go of it (she's lighter, and the minimum-friction mode of an ATS is still more than a Pirana).
Now, they'll last a long time, the dude who sells them is involved in the canyoning community a great amount, and they're not particularly heavy (due to the wiriness, they do consume a lot of volume).
As far as everything else in my rope locker - I've got Sterling Canyon Prime (which is a magnificent starter rope, and can occasionally be obtained, as from Backcountry or the like, at 60 cents a foot when they have things like Memorial Day sales), Maxim Canyon Elite (spool ends of 60 and 30, and also my 330' is this rope), some spool-end 8mm Prusik cord (Technora over Vectran) that's actually pretty good for rappelling. I don't get particularly dogmatic about ropes (if you go with a group, just expect that you'll get to try out a lot of ropes and hear everyone's preferences). I tend to prefer the hyperstatic ropes just because ascending and pulling on ropes with even a 2-4% static elongation means yeeting out 8' of rope when doing a 200' rope pull. If you're in a narrow/confined space, that can be difficult/annoying/exhausting.
All that said, the newb recommendation: Sterling Canyon Prime if you like sales. Glacier Black (any of 'em) if you have a good rappel device (those are fast ropes). OnRope Canyoneering's rope (CST, I think?), which, albeit slightly heavy, is also really great. Ropewiki has a great comparison of the different rope options by weight and static elongation.
200’ is the standard work horse rope in Canyoneering. Which specific rope is highly dependent on what type of canyons you’re doing. For me, I love my canyon pro dual sheath by bluewater. It’s an 8mm rope that’s on the lighter side of things. The glacier black newt or egress are both quality ropes as well, and the newt at least floats.