Sail Climbing

The Mill Trust has acquired a climbing rope, safety harness and some carabiner clips for use when the sails need to be climbed. A system is under development to ensure that volunteers can safely work at height when dealing with the sails. This system will need to be used whenever it is necessary to climb the sails, whether for maintenance or for setting the canvas on the common sails.

The principle of the new system is that the climbing rope is tied around the whip of one sail before the sails are turned 180 degrees and the other end is tied around the opposite whip. The harness is then attached to the climbing rope using a Prusik Loop. The loop can be slid up the rope when climbing up the sails. If the sail climber falls off the sail, the prusik loop will tighten and arrest the fall.

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