The Great Outdoors Stack Exchange is a question and answer site for people who love being outdoors enjoying nature and wilderness, and learning about the required skills and equipment. It only takes a minute to sign up.
Sign up to join this community
I was inspired by the question "What should one do when climbing if someone above you yells ROCK?" to ask what the equivalents are around the world.
So, what would I shout to warn someone below me of falling rocks?
Equivalently, what word should I react to when I hear it shouted?
I've created an answer as a Community Wiki to accumulate knowledge from everyone; please contribute to that.
"ROCK!" (pronounced /rɒk/)
"ROCHE!" (pronounced /ʁɔʃ/)
"CAILLOU !" (pronounced /ka.ju/)
It's French but also sometimes used by non-francophone climbers and hikers in the Alps. This word is used to warn when a hiker (or a goat!) up the trail loosens a rock that crosses the trail lower down. Fun fact: Literally it means pebble.
"STEIN!" (pronounced /ʃtaɪn/)
Used in German speaking regions. Exact pronunciation varies in between regions due to dialects, but should be recognisably similar.
"BELOW!" (pronounced /bɪˈləʊ/)
Used in climbing and in caving; amongst others (e.g. scramblers), knowledge of it is variable.
"STEN!" (pronounced /ste:n/)
Mainly used in climbing and caving.
"Loose rock!"
and/or
"Watch out!"
