to that of the belayer, among other things. Top Roping Belaying a climber from the top of a route, bringing them up to walk off or continue on to next pitch. A similarly safe system of climbing a route as top-roping, except the belayer has set the anchors at the top of the climb (normally after leading a route, in which case the climber is "seconding") to belay the climber either indirectly (belayer is part of the system and can be vulnerable when exposed to unexpected directions of pull and loading of the rope) or directly (belayer is not part of the system and belaying is done directly from the anchors using either an Italian / Munter Hitch or adapted use of a belay device), up the route from the top. If bolts have been clipped or traditional gear placements have been made, it is the job of the climber to collect and clean the route. Via ferrata A method of fairly easily ascending a route, heavily dependent on permanent protection rather than using natural rock features to proceed. Techniques Different types of rock require different techniques to successfully climb. Crack In crack climbing, the climber ascends a rock crack using specific techniques such as jamming, stemming, and laying back. Cracks can vary in size from smaller than the width of a finger to larger than human body size. Climbers may protect their hands from sharp-edged rock with tape. Face Face climbing is a type of climbing where climbers use features and irregularities in the rock such as finger pockets and edges to ascend a vertical rock face. Slab Slab climbing, also known as friction climbing, is classified by the slope of the rock. A slope for slab climbing is less than ninety degrees, and prioritizes footwork. It is also known as friction climbing, and although this might sound easy, slab is considered one of the more challenging types of climbing. Popular techniques for slab are smearing, maintaining a center of gravity, and high steps. Two of the most renowned locations for slab climbing are Joshua Tree and Yosemite, but the Looking Glass mountain and Moab are also great options. The hardest slab route ever climbed is Cryptography located in Saint Loup, Switzerland, and ascended by Alessandro Zeni. Simul Short for "simultaneous", simul climbing is when two climbers move at the same time. The pseudo-lead climber places gear that the