Recently we were tasked with choosing a harness that was state of the art and would fit most of our uses at Yamnuska Mountain Adventures – guided rock climbing, ice climbing and general mountaineering in the Canadian Rockies. No easy chore but an incredibly important decision.
We are always looking at gear and trying to get great value coupled with best features. Looking at what our guides would choose for their own personal gear, we use this information to provide our guests with the highest quality gear. As you know there is a multitude of climbing harnesses on the market and picking one is not the easiest task.
So what were we looking for when we went shopping for harnesses?
#1: Safety. We needed to have a strong harness that was made by a company with a stellar reputation in safety. No compromises for us in this criteria.
#2: Comfort. The harness needed to be comfortable for everyone, easy to put on and simple to adjust.
#3: Durability and utility. As a mountain school offering all types of climbing year round, we needed a harness that would withstand the rigors of a variety of different climbing situations.
So where did we go? Petzl climbing gear has a fantastic reputation for high quality, well made climbing and safety gear. The choice was obvious given the criteria we were looking for. The Petzl Corax harness comes in two sizes, although the size 2 seems to fit just about all adults. It has comfortable wide, supportive waist and leg loops. Lightweight, it’s easy to forget you are even wearing it. Each side of the waist has two gear loops stiffened to make racking ice and rock gear simple. The feature that I like the best is the double back buckles, which are easy to tighten and very secure. Slip the harness on and pull the straps and that’s it, ready to go, fast and foolproof.
And, I almost forgot to mention, it looks great as well!
Yamnuska Mountain Adventures choice of harness is the Petzl Corax. Five Stars for a great all around climbing harness.
Yamnuska was not paid by Petzl to do this review.
Dave Stark
YMA Director of Operations
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