When lead climbing, the lead climber wears a harness tied to one end of a rope. The leader's partner provides the belay, paying out rope as needed, usually with the aid of a belay device, to catch the leader in the event of a fall. The lead climber ascends the route, periodically placing protection for safety in the event of a fall.

Bouldering is a form of rock climbing that is performed on small rock formations or artificial rock walls, known as boulders, without the use of ropes or harnesses.

Speed climbing is a climbing discipline in which speed is the ultimate goal. Speed Climbing is done on rocks, walls and poles

Ice climbing is the activity of ascending inclined ice formations. Usually, ice climbing refers to roped and protected climbing of features such as icefalls, frozen waterfalls, and cliffs and rock slabs covered with ice refrozen from flows of water.

• Hands: Chalk • Athletic taping
• Feet: Climbing shoe • Approach shoe • Mountaineering boot • Crampons • Ice cleat
• Rope: Dynamic rope • Static rope • Kernmantle rope
• Rope control: Belay device • Figure 8 • Self-locking device • Ascender • Sling
• Harness: Climbing harness
• Connectors: Carabiner • Quickdraw • Maillon
• Protection devices: Hex • Nut • Spring-loaded camming device • Tricam • Piton
• Permanent anchors: Anchor • Bolt
• Training: Campus board • Climbing hold • Climbing wall
• Ice: Ice tool • Ice axe • Ice screw
• Miscellaneous: Helmet • Bouldering mat • Webbing • Portaledge • Rock climbing hammer • Copperhead

A man climbing a palmyra palm

Tree climbing is a recreational or functional activity consisting of ascending and moving around in the crown of trees.

A rope, helmet, and harness can be used to increase the safety of the climber. Other equipment can also be used depending on the experience and skill of the tree climber. Some tree climbers take special hammocks called "Treeboats" and Portaledges with them into the tree canopies where they can enjoy a picnic or nap, or spend the night.

Some tree-climbers employ a mixture of techniques and gear derived from rock climbing and caving. These techniques are also used to climb trees for other purposes: tree care (arborists), animal rescue, research, and activism. (Full article...)

Canyoning in Gitgit, Bali, Indonesia

Canyoning (canyoneering in the United States, kloofing in South Africa) is a type of mountaineering that involves travelling in canyons using a variety of techniques that may include other outdoor activities such as walking, scrambling, climbing, jumping, abseiling (rappelling), and swimming.

Although non-technical descents such as hiking down a canyon (canyon hiking) are often referred to as canyoneering, the terms canyoning and canyoneering are more often associated with technical descents — those that require abseils (rappels) and ropework, technical climbing or down-climbing, technical jumps, and/or technical swims.

Canyoning is frequently done in remote and rugged settings and often requires navigational, route-finding, and other wilderness travel skills.

 (Full article...)

Caving in a muddy section of Black Chasm Cave in California

Caving – also known as spelunking in the United States and Canada and potholing in the United Kingdom and Ireland – is the recreational pastime of exploring wild cave systems (as distinguished from show caves). In contrast, speleology is the scientific study of caves and the cave environment.

The challenges involved in caving vary according to the cave being visited; in addition to the total absence of light beyond the entrance, negotiating pitches, squeezes, and water hazards can be difficult. Cave diving is a distinct, and more hazardous, sub-speciality undertaken by a small minority of technically proficient cavers. In an area of overlap between recreational pursuit and scientific study, the most devoted and serious-minded cavers become accomplished at the surveying and mapping of caves and the formal publication of their efforts. These are usually published freely and publicly, especially in the UK and other European countries, although in the US, these are generally private.

Sometimes categorized as an "extreme sport", it is not commonly considered as such by longtime enthusiasts, who may dislike the term for its connotation of disregard for safety. (Full article...)