The Wake

As I walked into the St. Paul Gymnasium, I was second-guessing my choice to do this story. The only experiences I’ve had with heights is with ladders, bungee jumping and a ropes course. I had never really climbed anything of significant height before. But I decided to give it a whirl. Here is what to expect the first time taking on the St. Paul climbing wall.

After checking in at the front desk and paying $4 for the climbing wall, day pass, I started my walk to the course. Upon arrival, I introduced myself to the college-aged girl whom would eventually be my wall climbing assistant. I asked her what seemed like logical questions: “Has there been any kind of equipment failure in the past?” She laughed a little and replied no. Then she had me sign a waiver, the standard do-at-your-own-risk type, and helped me find the necessary equipment: a harness and pair of shoes that fit. The shoes were narrow, with little support: obviously meant for climbing. I struggled to put the harness on; I don’t think anyone gets it correct on the first try.

Once I had the harness and shoes on, I was ready to be roped up. I learned the acceptable way of tying a figure-eight knot as well as some other type of knot that I can’t remember. The rope was knotted in two spots to my harness, then went to the top of the wall, came back down to my assistant and was strapped to her as well. I felt pretty safe, but it seemed a bit sketchy that my 200-pound frame would be supported by a girl 80 to 90 pounds lighter. Thankfully, I remembered how pulley systems worked from physics class, which calmed my nerves. After talking about basic climbing strategy with my assistant for a couple minutes, I was ready for my first climb.

I decided to scale the easiest side of the wall, which was relatively flat. It had fairly large places to put my hands and feet but nevertheless it challenged me. I made my way rather swiftly and within minutes I was slapping the top of the wall. This was my high point of the afternoon.

Then I decided to try the medium difficulty section. I made it about two-thirds of the way up before I had no idea of where to go. Before plummeting back to the ground I had the climbing assistant take my picture — it is always a good idea to get your photo taken in a pretty difficult section so you look like a badass.

My helper then decided it would be a good idea for me to try the most difficult section to get a feel for it. This was intense; the places for my feet were between an inch and two inches long and about a half inch away from the wall. I struggled to get between six and eight feet up the wall before calling it a day.

My fingers were burning about ten minutes into the excursion and my arms shook frequently due to insufficient upper body strength. Overall, I had a blast climbing the wall and would recommend it to everyone. The only downside to the climbing wall is that there are treadmills facing the wall. So if you’re self-conscious, beware that people will most likely be watching as you try your luck at the wall.

Information about the Wall

The climbing wall in Saint Paul is 25 feet tall and has five top ropes; basically five different ropes to climb with. The climbing wall has more than 900 square feet of climbing surface. It costs $4 for a day pass at the climbing wall in St. Paul. There is also a bouldering wall at the St. Paul Gymnasium and at the Rec Center on the East Bank of the Minneapolis campus. A bouldering wall is more life-like without big, defined areas for a climber to put there feet and hands. For information about the climbing or bouldering walls, call (612) 625-8790.