Getting Started

[aella_irene]

I'm interested in learning to climb, and based in Central London. I'm just around the corner from West One", and a friend has recommended Castle Climbing as being excellent, and woman friendly. I am considering taking the introductory course at Castle Climbing, then going to West 1. (Castle Climbing's introductory course is significantly cheaper, but it is also a slog over there, while West 1 is two minutes away). Would this be considered rude? And are there other gyms which members would recommend? Has anyone heard anything about either gym?

Thank you.

Comments

[rydra_wong]

Another central London climber!

No, it would not be considered rude at all; climbing walls are used to people who take the introductory course, decide climbing isn't for them, and never come back at all.

And it's pretty common for people to go to more than one wall -- in fact, it's often recommended, so you don't get too used to the available angles and route-setting styles at a particular wall. No-one will complain if you're not wall-monogamous. *g*

I haven't been to the Castle, but there's at least one comm member who goes there and should be able to tell you about it.

West 1 is very central, but the downside is that it's very small, with one section of routes and a little bouldering room.

I have to throw in a plug for The Arch, where I'm usually to be found -- its downside is that it's bouldering-only, so obviously no use if you only want to do roped climbing. But the upside is that it's central, very chilled-out, with some very imaginative route-setting and extremely cheap espresso. They do not pay me to say this.

If you're near the Central Line, Mile End is only a bit further out, and very big, with some routes and a lot of bouldering. I don't like the atmosphere there as much as the Arch, but that may just be me.

There's also The Westway (which I haven't been to) in west London, and The Reach in the south -- the latter is a bit of a trek but I've been there a couple of times and found it worth the visit.

Basically, being in Central London means you get spoiled for climbing walls and deprived of actual rock.

Though even then, there's the Shoreditch boulder, Fairlop Waters (okay, not actual rock), and the southern sandstone is only an hour away by train (though some of us also have our doubts about whether that counts as actual rock ...).

[emperor]

Some friends of mine are very keen on the Westway.

[aella_irene]

Extremely central!

Good to know, thanks.

I didn't think that West 1 could be very big: I'm in the swimming pool there a lot, and I've taken yoga classes there, and I've seen most of the other rooms, and there is very little space left.

I think that I want to start with roped climbing, before moving onto bouldering, as I know people who have offered to belay, and, in one case, lend me a harness, but I will definitely keep the Arch in mind. Unless bouldering is easier than roped? Or is it not really comparative?

The Westway! That was the one I couldn't remember the name of. I will head over there some time.

[rydra_wong]

and there is very little space left.

I'm impressed by how they've managed to crowbar things into the space, and when I've visited they've had some excellent problems in the bouldering room.

But it is teeny, and that limits what they can fit in. So if you base yourself there, you might find that at some point you want to venture to some of the other London walls too.

[juliet]

I learnt at the Castle, and now mostly climb at the Arch.

The Castle is *lovely* - really nice vibe, lovely cafe, trying really hard to improve their environmental footprint (which is something that matters to me), and it's pretty huge. And I found it really friendly. They also have a good shop there if you want to buy shoes or a harness at some point. Unfortunately it's also a 45 min bike ride from me so I don't go there that often any more, unless I specifically want to do roped climbing.

Bouldering isn't exactly easier than roped climbing in & of itself, but it is easier in some practical respects. You need less kit (shoes and a chalk bag; no harness required) so it's a bit cheaper even if you're hiring. Most importantly for me, you don't need another person to come along with you, because you don't need anyone to belay you. For me, this means that if I'm bouldering, I can go along whenever the mood takes me and get a bit of climbing in, rather than having to find someone else to go along with me. I try to go a couple of times a week, and I think I'd struggle to get that in if I were having to find a partner every time. Bouldering is also a bit higher-intensity, in that if you spend half an hour bouldering, you can spend pretty much as much of that time as you like (subject to how many other people are also climbing at the same time) actually on the rock. With roped climbing, you kind of have to take turns; so half an hr of roped climbing is at most 15 min (more like 10 really with changeovers) of actual climbing. OTOH, roped climbing routes are longer.

But all of that depends on what you personally want to get out of it, and whether you're the sort of person who is more likely to go anyway with a friend, and so on & so forth.

The other thing I like about the Arch is that they open from 06:30 in the weeks, so I can go along before work & get a free coffee if I get there before 9 :) Also it's 10 min from my house. If you want to go climbing regularly, my experience is that the easier the whole thing is, the more likely you are to actually go...

Anyway: even if you do decide to do more bouldering than roped climbing, I'd recommend doing an introductory course that covers roped climbing, because then you know what you're doing with a belay device, which is a useful skill. The 4-session intro I did at the Castle also covered bouldering (though really the basics are the same anyway), so then I was set up for both.

I hope you enjoy it, whichever!

[aella_irene]

Thank you! (Sorry for replying so late.)

I'm doing the Castle's one session: I hope that that's enough to get me started, then I'll head to the Arch and try bouldering there. I've booked the session at the Castle, and I'm waiting with bated breath.

[rydra_wong]

Will you let me know what the Castle session is like? I've been bouldering for a few years, but am figuring I probably need to learn how to handle ropes at some point ...

[aella_irene]

Absolutely! I'm booked on the five hour course next Thursday. I'm currently trying to work out what to wear: t-shirt and leggings?

[rydra_wong]

Yeah, that should be fine. Basically, anything comfy that gives you a good range of motion, particularly at the hips.

I know from people who do roped climbing that you don't want stiff trousers that'll bunch up uncomfortably under a harness. And obviously, it should be washable, as it's going to get covered in chalk and sweat. Otherwise, no limits.

[jumpuphigh]

I second rydra_wong in stating that it is not rude at all. Most climbers that I know migrate from place to place over time. Some of it, at least here, is based on time of the year. Some of it is "so-and-so is in town and wants to climb here". Sometimes it is a major shift - ie Most of the serious climbing community switching to gym C because gym B pissed them off. Sometimes it is a minor shift - ie My favorite route setter is now working at gym A so that's where I'm going now.

[rydra_wong]

And there's a fair amount of too-ing and fro-ing, with people going back and forth between two or more walls.

For example, I know various people who do roped climbing at one of the other London walls, but come to the Arch to boulder.

Unlike ordinary gyms, you can generally pay to climb at a wall on a one-off basis (i.e. you don't have to pay for monthly or annual membership, though that'll be cheaper if you climb at one wall a lot). So you can pop into different walls as you feel like it, and no-one'll bat an eyelid.

[emperor]

...indeed trad guide-books are always full of ads for the nearby climbing walls, presumably in the hope that you'll drop in when it chucks it down with rain on your one climbing weekend of the year...

[aella_irene]

That's good to know! I thought it would be alright, but I was a little worried.