Andrew as in my climbing partner? 😉 If so, how are ya dude? Sounds like Swedes are fussier than us then…

Cleaning to some degree accompanies all Mt quarry lines.

I use a few tools regularly. A 1m pinch bar to leverage blocks, a hand held sledge hammer (1.8kg) to sound the rock, a nut key to remove small flakes, wire brush for mud and dust pan brush for dirt.

Start at the top and work down leveraging obvious blocks and tapping flakes, brushing mud etc.

Some blocks move slightly (rock) with a pinch bar but are safely held due to their shape. Some blocks are ok initially but become loose when lower blocks are removed.

Take care around drill stems – they will have very clean rock around the top section and will typically end at a shattered ledge. The ledge will probably contain a few large loose blocks interspersed with totally shattered material. A mattock is a quick way of getting rid of this fractured material. Sometimes it’s preferable to leave these ledges intact (of course get rid of the obvious loose blocks) traversing onto them to gain the clean rock above.

A spade is also useful – if a quantity of dirt is at the top and it is clear that rain will bring it down the line.

Be careful of your rope. Don’t drop rock onto it! Have someone at the bottom pulling the free end of the rope clear and attaching tools as required. For large blocks coil the rope over your shoulder to make sure that it’s out of the trajectory.

Some very large blocks are precariously poised. I have removed refrigerator sized blocks with a few kicks.

Always assume loose rock and a gob smacking line underneath.