For climbers moving between the crag, alpine rock and winter ice, an all-round harness needs to balance comfort, gear capacity and packability without becoming overly bulky.
Sooji Clarkson is a Black Diamond ambassador and NZMGA Assistant Climbing Guide with a passion for technical rock, ice and mixed climbing, ski mountaineering and exploring New Zealand’s mountains. She spends much of her time climbing, guiding and instructing, putting her gear through everything from long days on ropes to alpine missions and route development.
Here, Sooji shares her experience with the Black Diamond Solution Guide Harness, and why its balance of comfort, gear capacity, durability and packability has made it her go-to harness for everything from cragging to alpine rock and waterfall ice.
Review by Sooji Clarkson, Black Diamond Ambassador and NZMGA Assistant Climbing Guide.
Black Diamond Solution Guide Harness Review
I chose the Solution Guide as my all-rounder harness because of the balance between comfort, gear loops, weight and packability. It fills all uses for me except where an “alpine G-string” is more appropriate (such as glacier ski touring), where I’ll reach for the Couloir instead.
The belay loop is a seamless Dyneema ring (the "Infinity Loop”). With no sewn join, added flexibility and softer edges on the material, I can see how this aims to reduce wear spots. Worn belay loops have been the cause of retirement for every harness I’ve ever owned, so I’m really interested to see how it holds up to use and abuse over the coming years.
From cragging at the beach, to alpine rock, to waterfall ice…
I like the low profile design. Less “padding” in harnesses means less water absorption (particularly for ice climbing, and in notoriously wet New Zealand snow), more efficient packing, and gives a modern, sleek finish. Wide waist and leg loops distribute load well without the need for padding, and a tapered edge on the fabric reduces pressure points.
The gear loops are wide and roomy, significantly more so than on the Technician harness. Often on alpine routes, belay jackets, drink bottles and drybags of snacks jostle for room with your rack, or on longer trad routes your rack simply jostles for room with itself, particularly if you’re a wide crack/big cam aficionado....
I’ve worn it so far cragging, through long days hanging around on ropes while instructing, and bolting multipitch routes in Fiordland. Kilos of hardware hanging off the loops is a good pressure test of comfort, and the associated scrambling and scraping around on granite is a great trial of durability. I’m pleased so far with how it has performed on both.
I’m going to spend a bit of my winter teaching waterfall ice climbing. With ice clipper loops and adjustable leg loops (always appreciated in winter when my thighs are clothed in a few extra insulating layers), this is definitely the harness I’ll be taking.
Sooji's Verdict
If you’re carefully counting every gram and won’t be pitching much, or tackling a big wall with a triple rack, maybe it’s not the specialised tool for that job. However, for something that does a great job of everything else, it’s a solid choice.
