Rock-climbing gyms in Vancouver to unleash your inner monkey
With the gorgeous Rocky Mountains everywhere you look, Vancouverites are almost natural-born climbers. But it takes practice to scale a pitch and get to the top. Hone your skills at these rock-climbing gyms that offer the best in terms of challenge, fun, variety and price.
The Rock Wall Climbing Gym Inc
6-11455 201A St, Maple Ridge, BC V2X 0Y3This Maple Ridge climbing gym puts a strong focus on the social aspect of climbing. Because the sport can be a bit isolating at times, The Rock Wall has many programs aimed at bringing climbing enthusiasts together. Whether you’re headed there with your family, dropping off kids or going at it alone, the 55 top ropes, 25 lead routes and bouldering cave have challenges for every age and experience level.
Richmond Olympic Oval
6111 River Rd, Richmond, BC V7C 0A2It was originally built for the Olympics but once the show left for another city, the venue increased its sports program to include climbing. The climbing area is 6,500 square feet of Rocktopia climbing surface, which closely immitates scrambling up real rocky faces. There are 30 ropes and more than 40 routes you can test out, with the most difficult ones topping 5.13. Start off with a climbing course if you need a refresher.
The Edge Climbing Centre
2-1485 Welch St, North Vancouver, BC V7P 1B5At this North Van gym, the focus is geared a little more toward younger climbers, but with 15,000 square feet of indoor space, there’s a wall with everyone’s name on it. You can start off with courses like learning the basics or how to indoor lead/belay, take part in a climbing clinic, shimmy up a wall anytime you like or book the place for a private party. Along with walls, they also have boulders where you can practice technique.
Coastal Climbing Centre
202-7728 128 St, Surrey, BC V3W 1L3This Surrey gym offers a fantastic mix of skill, difficulty and fun. They’ve opened their doors to school and special interest groups to strengthen their place in the community, while also offering incredible challenges to climbers looking to take things to the next level. For example, students can enjoy big savings on Saturday night climbs, while serious climbers tend to congregate on weekday evenings and nights once climbing classes are finished for the day.
The Hive Climbing Gym
390 Industrial Ave, Vancouver, BC V6A 2P3You can find just about everything that exists in your climbing dreams at this gym, with its 10,000 square feet packed to the gills. There are boulders that rise more than 15 feet, 12-foot top-outs, walls that surpass V10+ in difficulty and even horizontal archways and roofs to really challenge yourself. Courses are available for all experience levels, and if you want to make climbing a regular thing, memberships are reasonably priced.
