On October 1st, 2025, a rising star of American climbing died in a rappelling accident. Balin Miller was at the top of a big wall route in Yosemite when his haul bag got caught.
Balin rappelled down the rope to fix the problem, but his rope didn’t reach the bag. Worse, he hadn’t tied a knot to close the system, and unfortunately slipped off the end of the rope.
Fred Beckey, the iconic climber that died in his 90s, was once asked if he had any advice for climbers. His response was, “always tie a knot in the end of your rope.”
It is common for climbers to be concerned about the rope getting caught on something when they throw it down. And this is a legitimate concern. The hazard of the rope getting caught can be mitigated by tying a loop knot at the end and clipping it to your harness.
There may be legitimate reasons not to tie a knot in the end of your rope. But perhaps the primary problem is that people often look for reasons to tie knots in the end, instead of looking for reasons not to. The ideal for climbers should be the opposite. We should be looking for reasons not to tie knots in the end.
This shift in thinking could save your life.