Our tester is a dedicated climber who has used the La Sportiva TX4 approach shoes for three years, hiking hundreds if not thousands of miles in them, in all seasons and in several different mountain ranges. … More La Sportiva TX4 Long-Term Review
One of the most dangerous parts of transitioning from gym climbing to outdoor climbing is cleaning anchors. In the climbing gym, one simply clips the anchors and lowers. While lowering equipment is becoming more common across USA sport crags, it is far from universal, and any aspiring outdoor climber needs to know how to clean, … More Two Great Tools to Practice Cleaning Anchors For Sport Climbing
Gri-Gri or ATC? This is the biggest question a beginner rock climber will have to answer as she purchases her starter gear. There are pros and cons on each side, but to give you the Cliff Notes, we believe that a beginner climber is best served by learning to belay on a Petzl Gri-Gri. Although … More Buying Guide: GriGri versus ATC for New Climbers
Many gym climbers want to someday climb a mountain. But, for real mountaineering on glaciers, a gym climbing harness isn’t ideal – they are too heavy and bulky, One piece of equipment that every aspiring alpinist should invest in is a high-quality mountaineering harness. The Petzl Altitude harness is an excellent option for those looking … More Petzl Altitude Climbing Harness Review – Best Mountaineering Harness for Beginners
In recent years, dedicated ice climbers have discovered that the best glove for ice climbing may not be an ice climbing glove at all, but surprisingly, a work glove used by fishermen. … More The Fisherman Gloves for Ice Climbing
This is a fantastic helmet for certain types of users. … More Black Diamond Vapor Climbing Helmet Review
A review of some popular premium quickdraw options for sport climbing and lightweight trad climbing. … More Best Ultralight Quickdraws for Sport Climbing
After whetting their appetite sport climbing outdoors, many gym-to-crag climbers will eventually desire to get into trad climbing (AKA traditional climbing). Trad climbing gear is more complicated and varied than sport climbing equipment, leaving many beginner trad climbers overwhelmed with their purchasing options. Here, we will give a short list of trad climbing essentials, and … More What to Buy For Your First Trad Rack
The first thing a new rock climber learns in a climbing gym is how to top-rope, so it makes sense that the first activity a gym to crag climber would want to learn is how to top rope outside. After all, how do you set up a top rope when no one has done it … More Buying Guide For Top-Roping Outside
When you tell your mama you’re getting into rock climbing, the first question she’s going to ask you is: “do you have a helmet for this rock climbing?” And you better be able to answer her: YES!! Below you’ll find our guide to choosing a good helmet for sport climbing. Truth is, it’s not that … More How to Choose a Helmet for Sport Climbing
Gym to Crag 