Getting a grip

I tried out a small climbing wall whilst on holiday in Center Parcs. It was a 15 minute session, which ended up being 10 minutes after the safety talk, and getting harnessed up. Even so, it was lots of fun. Since getting back from that holiday, I've often thought about trying some more climbing. So I searched for a local climbing wall, and found a place about 12 miles away with loads of climbing walls and boulders.

I was talking to a friend of mine, who went climbing several years ago. He liked the sound of it, so we headed across to the WestWay sports club to try out their 2 hour taster session. It started off really quickly, with a quick demo of how to tie the right knots, before being sent up the wall, with my friend holding on to the other end of the rope, taking up the slack as I climbed. It was awesome fun. I can highly recommend it.

We tried 3 different vertical climbs of anywhere up to 15 metres high. We also tried some bouldering, where you climb without ropes, but you never get more than a few feet off the ground. It sounds easy, but you start off almost as if you're inside a cave, and climb across the ceiling to get out and round. Very cool.

By the time the session had finished, I was exhausted. My grip had completely gone. It took a couple of days after that before I could grip a pen properly! Only problem now is that I can't wait to go back and try it again. Think I'll go for the beginners course next.