• Speaking of climbing. How does one recommend I begin? With a climbing class or with a bouldering class? REI run climbing classes which sound fun, but not sure if it makes more sense to learn about using your body etc via bouldering first? There's a shit load of good climbing centers here.

  • A mix of both? Most indoor walls have bouldering/climbing/auto-belay.

    I joined my local outdoors group and the local climbing wall knew him so were happy to let him teach me to tie in/belay/ 'be safe' rather than their own instructor.

    I'd get friendly with people you can meet regularly and climb with. You need to develop trust with the person on the other end of the rope.

  • Bouldering is the way to go for strength and technique. Sport climbing is great for endurance and technique. Both are great. For outdoor skills and safety it's probably best to join some kind of club or association.

  • I’d go to one of the shit load of good climbing centres nearby then. Ask about getting an induction to use their facilities, what training they offer, what clubs they might be linked to. I don’t think it’s as simple as choosing between roped climbing vs bouldering to start with, they both offer different things and different people develop different preferences.
    As someone else has said it’s crucial to be climbing (on ropes especially - although spotting when bouldering is very important too) with someone that you trust to be doing the right things. Learn what the right things are and then check your partner, you never get too experienced to do the basic checks.

About

Avatar for JB @JB started