You haven't taken a gander at YOU TUBE lately? Just the 9/11 episode had so many just unclear as to what to do, so they filmed it with their phones. However, it IS the last thing I would think of doing.

I bring rope as well. It's useful in all sorts of circumstances, but if you don't understand how to use what type of rope you have it could lead you into some real trouble. It seems to me that this thread is heading in the direction of good decision making/risk assessment. I would love to hear from a lot of you on that topic, and I bet some of the newer backpackers would too. I'm thinking that both Jim and W_D would have something to say about that with a little thought.