Definition of abseiling

Sliding down a rope using a friction device and harness.

The friction device (also known as a 'descendeur' from the French - to descend) I use is called a 'figure-of-eight' because it is '8' shaped. One end of the 8 is smaller, to attach to the harness (in my case some old seat belts made into loops for my legs!). The other end is where the rope passes through. It twists round the figure-of-eight a few times and continues down to the ground. When I am sitting in the harness, I have to hold onto the lower part of the rope (below the 8) with my hand. To start sliding down, I release my grip slightly, so that the rope can run through my hand and the figure-of-eight.

The purpose of abseiling is to descend quickly down a mountain side - it's great fun too! I use it to get down from my treehouse the easy (and more impressive) way. I have a special frame which I called the 'abseiling hanger' at one end of the treehouse. I use this as the point of attachment for the rope. The rope is not tied on, otherwise the purpose would be defeated - someone would have to climb up again to untie it. Instead, I have a rope twice as long as the height of the treehouse, so I can double the rope over the bar of the abseiling hanger. Then when I abseil down, I can release the 8 at the bottom, and pull one end of the rope to get it all back down again. This leaves no ropes hanging about that could help potential intruders get at the treehouse.

Note: You can see the figure-of-eight and harness beside the rope that I use, on my web site. If you go to the treehouse photograph page and look at the photo of the roof , you will see what I have been talking about.