Solo climbing

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Solo climbing or soloing is a style of climbing in which the climber climbs alone, without somebody belaying him. There are three ways to climb solo:

• lead climbing with a self-locking device which is used to arrest a fall. One end of the rope may be anchored below the climber with the coils of rope in a bag on his back, or for single-pitch climbs the device may be secured at ground level, and the climber tied into the end of the rope.
• top-roping with a self-locking device: this is a form of aid climbing if the climber puts his weight on the rope during the ascent.
• without any rope or other forms of protection, in which case it is called free solo climbing (or no-rope soloing).

The first two cases are known as "roped soloing".