C
- Cairn
- A distinctive pile of stones placed to designate a summit or mark a trail, often above the treeline.
- Cam
- A spring-loaded device used as protection.
- Campus
- The act of climbing without using any feet.
- Campus board
- Training equipment used to build finger strength and strong arm lock-offs.
- Carabiner
- Metal rings with spring-loaded gates, used as connectors. Usually oval or roughly D shaped. Also known as crab or biner (pronounced kar-uh-bee-ner).
- Chalk
- A compound used to improve grip by absorbing sweat. It is actually gymnastics chalk, usually magnesium carbonate. Its use is controversial in some areas.
- Chalk bag
- A hand-sized holder for a climber's chalk that is usually carried on a chalkbelt for easy access during a climb.
- Chicken head
- see bollard, horn.
- Chimney
- A rock cleft with vertical sides mostly parallel, large enough to fit the climber's body into. To climb such a structure, the climber often uses his head, back and feet to apply opposite pressure on the vertical walls.
- The process of using such a technique (chimneying).
- Chipping
- Improving a hold by permanently altering the rock. Widely used in the '80s and early '90s, but now considered unethical and unacceptable.
- Chock
- A mechanical device, or a wedge, used as anchors in cracks.
- A naturally occurring stone wedged in a crack.
- Choss
- Loose or "rotten" rock.
- Classification
- See Grade.
- Clawing
- Use of front points of crampons, ice axe pick and ice hammer pick to climb a slope.
- Clean
- To remove equipment from a route.
- A route that is free of loose vegetation and rocks.
- To complete a climb without falling or resting on the rope. Also see redpoint.
- In aid climbing, abbreviated "C", a route that does not require the use of a hammer or any invasive addition of protection (such as pitons or copperheads) into the rock (see protection).
- Cleaning tool
- A device for removing jammed equipment, especially nuts, from a route. Also known as a nut key.
- Climbing area
- A region that is plentiful with climbing routes.
- Climbing command
- A short phrase used for communication between a climber and a belayer.
- Climbing gym
- Specialized indoor climbing centres. See gym climbing. (Usually just called a 'climbing wall' in Britain).
- Climbing shoe
- Footwear designed specifically for climbing. Usually well fitting, with a rubber sole.
- Climbing technique
- Particular techniques, or moves, commonly applied in climbing.
- Climbing wall
- Artificial rock, typically in a climbing gym.
- Clipping in
- The process of attaching to belay lines or anchors for protection.
- Clipstick
- In bolted climbing, an extendable pole which is allows the climber to reach the first bolt from the ground, thus making the route safer and less committing. Ethically dubious.
- Col
- A small pass or "saddle" between two peaks. Excellent for navigation as when standing on one it's always down in two, opposite, directions and up in the two directions in between those.
- Cord lock
- a lock or toggle used to fasten cords with gloved hands. Used on most mountaineering gear.
- Cordelette
- A long loop of accessory cord used to tie into multiple anchor points.
- Corner
- An inside corner of rock, the opposite to an arête (UK). See Dihedral.
- Cornice
- An overhanging edge of snow on a ridge.
- Couloir
- A steep gully or gorge frequently filled with snow or ice.
- Crack climbing
- To ascend on a rock face by wedging body parts into cracks, i.e. not face climbing. See jamming and chimney.
- Crag
- A small area with climbing routes, often just a small cliff face or a few boulders.
- Crampons
- Metal framework with spikes attached to boots to increase safety on snow and ice.
- Cramponing
- Using crampons to ascend or descend on ice, preferably with maximum number of points of the crampon into the ice for weight distribution.
- Accidentally piercing something with a crampon spike.
- Crank
- To pull on a hold as hard as possible.
- Crash pad
- A thick mat used to soften landings or to cover hazardous objects in the event of a fall. See: Bouldering mat
- Crater
- Hitting the ground at the end of a fall instead of being caught by the rope.
- Crimp
- A hold which is only just big enough to be grasped with the tips of the fingers.
- The process of holding onto a crimp.
- Crux
- The most difficult portion of a climb.
- Cut-loose
- Where a climber's feet swing away from the rock on overhanging terrain, leaving the climber hanging only by their hands. Also known as "Cutting feet."
- Cwm
- (Welsh) A hanging valley, or cirque—a steep-walled semicircular basin in a mountain—sometimes containing a lake; also known as a corrie.
Read more about this topic: Glossary Of Climbing Terms
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