There is more to climbing than just going up. Once you reach the top of the cliff you’ve scaled, you will need to get back down. Rappelling, also known as abseiling, is a technique used to descend ropes. While walking down or lowering off can be much safer, knowing how to rappel is an essential skill in every climber's arsenal. Rappelling is sometimes the only way to get off a route. Unfortunately, rappelling is also one of the most dangerous activities a climber can undertake. A vast majority of climbing injuries and deaths occur due to human error while rappelling.