Marielle Cabanas

A Guide for Beginners in Rock Climbing Have you been searching for a new adventure? Then, you might want to consider rock climbing. Rock climbing will surely satisfy your thirst for the thrill and the fun as it makes your heart skip its beat while you’re torn between not looking down and holding onto another rock for dear life. However, you don’t want to go into a battle unprepared. As a beginner, you must be ready to face the challenges that goes together with rock climbing. Here are the things you need to prepare before experiencing this heart-pumping adventure: 1. Choose between an indoor or outdoor climbing. There are gyms near your area which offer indoor climbing. Indoor climbing is built with routes which seem realistic. These routes’ difficulty level varies from easy to strenuous ones. Nevertheless, the goal is still the same, to reach to the top. On the other hand, nothing can compare to the thrill in outdoor climbing. When a wonderful scenery is waiting for you when you reach the top, and you feel the texture of rocks, the weather, and the chill to your bones. 2. Safety gears. Reaching the top may sound too easy, but hold your horses! Rock climbing is never as easy as it may seem. This sport requires you to have the gears of high quality which can support you throughout the climbing experience. Some of these gears are all-around shoes, safety helmets, draws, strong ropes, gloves, harness, carabiners, protection devices, belaying devices, chalks, and more. Each gear entails a specific use while on your way to the top. 3. Tying knots. Different types of ropes are vital gears when you go rock climbing as these ropes will help you carry your weight while reaching the top. Therefore, as a climber, you must know the different ways of tying these ropes into knots. Each knot serves a general or specific purpose. 4. Clear communication. A number of accidents are reduced when clear communication is practiced when climbing in groups. There are specific command terms which climbers take note. Knowing these terms will broaden your knowledge on rock climbing. Then, you’ll be able to respond accordingly. Some say that rock climbing is a dangerous sport. Indeed, it is. However, great rewards and experiences await when you step outside of your comfort zone. With the proper safety measures, you can turn this adventurous sport into a fun-filled lifetime adventure. So, go out there and experience this adventure! Life’s too short to say “no” to rock climbing.