page_title: Glossary of climbing terms
section_title: C
hierarchical_section_title: Glossary of climbing terms / C
caption_attribution_description: English: Reed&#39;s Creek - Tied off Chicken Head
context_page_description: This glossary of climbing terms is a list of definitions of terms and jargon related to rock climbing and mountaineering. The specific terms used can vary considerably between different English-speaking countries; many of the phrases described here are particular to the United States and the United Kingdom.
context_section_description: cam
  A spring-loaded device used as protection.
  camming
  A motion or position where rotation of a piece of equipment or body part presses it tight against a rock, creating friction and holding it in place. As in spring-loaded camming device, heel-toe camming, or knee bar camming.
  campus
  The act of climbing without using the feet.
  campus board
  Training equipment used to build finger strength and strong arm lock-offs.
  chalk bag
  A hand-sized holder for climbing chalk that is usually carried on a chalkbelt or clipped to a harness for easy access during a climb.
  chest jam
  Jamming the torso into a wide crack, especially in order to rest.
  cheese grater
  A sliding fall down a slab style climb.
  chicken head
  See bollard and horn.
  chicken wing
  A crack climbing technique where a hand is placed on one side of the crack and the shoulder on the other.
  chimney
  1.  A rock cleft with mostly parallel vertical sides, and 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 pressure on the opposing faces of the vertical walls.
  2.  The process of using such a technique (chimneying).
  chipping
  Improving a hold by permanently altering the rock, which is considered unethical and unacceptable.
  chock
  A naturally occurring stone wedged in a crack.
  choss
  Loose or "rotten" rock that makes for unpleasant, difficult, or dangerous climbing.
  classification
  See grade.
  clawing
  Use of the front points of crampons, the pick of an ice axe, and/or an ice hammer pick to climb a snowy or icy slope.
  clean
  1.  To remove equipment from a route.
  2.  A route that is free of loose vegetation and rocks.
  3.  To complete a climb without falling or resting on the rope. See also redpoint.
  4.  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.
  cleaning tool
  A device for removing jammed equipment, especially nuts, from a route.
  climbing area
  A region with numerous climbing routes.
  climbing command
  A short phrase used for communication between a climber and a belayer.
  climbing gym
  A specialized indoor climbing center. Usually just called a "climbing wall" in the UK. See gym climbing.
  climbing shoe
  A special type of footwear designed specifically for climbing. Usually well-fitting, with thick, strongly gripping rubber soles.
  climbing technique
  A particular technique or movement 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
  See stick clip.
  col
  A small pass or "saddle" between two peaks. Excellent for navigation, as when standing on one it is always down in two, opposite, directions and up in the two directions in between those.
  cold shuts
  Industrial hardware used to link or repair steel chains, occasionally adapted by climbers as rappel anchors. Cold shuts can be either open, shut or welded. Open cold shuts are the unaltered hardware, which is hammered closed and sometimes welded, resulting in more secure anchors.
  copperhead
  A small nut with a head made of soft metal on a loop of wire.
  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 of an arête (UK). See dihedral.
  cornice
  An overhanging edge of snow on a ridge.
  cowbell
  Another name for a hexcentric, due to the noise they make when hung together on a harness.
  crack climbing
  To ascend on a rock wall by wedging body parts into natural cracks in the rock, 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
  A pair of metal frameworks with spikes attached to boots to increase safety on snow and ice.
  cramponing
  1.  Using crampons to ascend or descend on ice, preferably with the maximum number of points of the crampon into the ice for weight distr
caption: Tied-off chicken head
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