Basic Rock Climbing Course

Introduction courses teach absolute basics—how to belay, tie knots, and climb easy routes. Basic courses build comprehensive skills over multiple days including advanced belaying, anchor building, rappelling, more challenging climbs, and movement technique refinement. After the intro, you can participate in supervised climbing. After the basic course, many students are prepared for simple independent outdoor climbing with properly trained partners.

If you have equivalent experience (several indoor gym climbing sessions or outdoor climbing with experienced friends), you can start with the basic course. We'll discuss your background when you book to confirm you have the prerequisites. Complete beginners should start with introduction courses—trying to compress too much into a basic course leads to overwhelming information overload and poor skill retention.

After completing the basic course, most students have the skills for simple independent outdoor climbing—specifically top-rope climbing on routes they can easily access and set up. However, judgment and decision-making develop with experience. We recommend practicing skills with a knowledgeable mentor or guide before venturing out completely independently. Lead climbing and multi-pitch require our advanced course plus significant practice.

Basic courses involve 2-3 days of sustained climbing and learning. You'll climb multiple routes each day with breaks for instruction and rest. Most people finish each day tired but satisfied. You don't need elite fitness—moderate aerobic conditioning and upper body strength are sufficient. The mental challenge (remembering systems, managing fear) is often more demanding than physical exertion. Proper rest between course days helps with learning retention.

We maintain 2-3 students per AMGA-certified instructor for basic courses. This ratio allows hands-on instruction, individual feedback, and adequate climbing time for everyone. Each student gets personalized coaching on technique, plenty of practice on varied routes, and the chance to ask questions without waiting long. Larger ratios mean less individual attention and slower skill development.