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Greg Morgan

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September 15, 2021

On the Rocks

An amazing and exciting way to get outside and push your boundaries is rock climbing; as long as you don’t have a paralytic fear of heights. Climbing is a full body workout! Yes, your grip strength is put to the test and usually the first muscle group to fail on you, but it also requires a lot of back, leg, and core strength, and mental fortitude.There are several categories of climbing. Bouldering requires no rope and usually requires a lot of problem solving to figure out the best sequence of moves to reach the top of the climb. Varieties that require ropes are Top Rope where the rope is already through an anchor point overhead, Sport Lead climbing; where you have to attach the rope to fixed points as you climb, and Trad climbing; where you must also place your protection pieces into cracks or features in the wall then clip in the rope. Rope climbing requires a lot more endurance and the routes are typically much longer than a boulder problem.There are several indoor climbing gyms in Pittsburgh, all of which are super family friendly! The Climbing Wall (literally two blocks from Pittsburgh Fit), Ascend in the south side, and the most recent addition, Iron City Boulders in Lawrenceville.Everywhere I have been, indoor or outdoor, climbing is a strong community based activity as well. Most people are incredibly friendly.The South Western Pennsylvania Climbing Coalition (SWPACC) is a local organization trying to bring more climbing into the city of Pittsburgh. They are also involved in helping to maintain local climbing areas in South Western PA.You can learn more at http://swpacc.orgClimbing is also an activity that you can do anywhere in the country and the world! Many people travel specifically to climb and every region has its own specific geography to provide a wide variety of experiences, whether it be climbing the big granite walls of Yosemite, or the sandstone of Red Rocks out in Nevada.If you are interested in climbing there is a great website and app for finding climbing areas near you called Mountain Project.It’s an absolute blast to get out and climb on top of something. One of my crowning achievements in this life is successfully climbing a line called CCK in the Gunks in NY (see image). Plus the view from the top of the walls usually ain’t half bad. Greg Morgan 

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