On Saturday afternoon we tried our hand(s and feet) at wall climbing!
Elizabeth received a gift card for Wallnuts from her sister as a birthday present last year and we finally got around to making use of it. We registered for the Learn to Climb course and since we were the only two people signed up for our time slot, we had a private lesson! Neither one of us had any substantial climbing experience so we were looking forward to learning more about it.
During our 45-minute lesson, we learned how to use our harnesses, tie knots to hook ourselves into the system (figure-eight loop), and complete safety checks. We also learned how to belay each other. For people who aren’t familiar with climbing, belaying serves as protection against a climber falling very far. One end of the rope is attached to the climber, then the rope passes through climbing protection at the top before coming back down to the belayer. The belayer applies friction to their end of the rope through a belay device, adjusting the friction and slack in the rope during the climb. Communication between the climber and belayer is very important.
During our 45-minute lesson, we learned how to use our harnesses, tie knots to hook ourselves into the system (figure-eight loop), and complete safety checks. We also learned how to belay each other. For people who aren’t familiar with climbing, belaying serves as protection against a climber falling very far. One end of the rope is attached to the climber, then the rope passes through climbing protection at the top before coming back down to the belayer. The belayer applies friction to their end of the rope through a belay device, adjusting the friction and slack in the rope during the climb. Communication between the climber and belayer is very important.
After we did some solo run-throughs to prove our worth, we were set free to climb/belay on our own! Unfortunately we were fairly tired by the end of the lesson (going skating right before climbing probably didn't help), so we just completed two more climbs each before calling it a day. It was lots of fun, but we were pooped by the end of it. Oh, and we both ended up with rope burn souvenirs from belaying. Yeah, we're amateurs.
We thoroughly enjoyed our time climbing and now that we have the training done, we can go back without having to hire anyone to belay us. Luckily, the Learn to Climb Package also includes free climbing and rentals for 7 days after you complete your training, so we’re going to make use of that!
For obvious reasons, we couldn't take pictures while we were climbing – safety first – so we didn’t end up with many photos. Although we’ll leave you with this one last one…
For obvious reasons, we couldn't take pictures while we were climbing – safety first – so we didn’t end up with many photos. Although we’ll leave you with this one last one…
...climbing shoes!
Until next week!
