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General Climbing Discussion

Topic Date User

Are guidbooks killing the adventure climb ? 27-Sep-2007 At 2:13:40 PM neverclimbed32

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The limited opportunities I get to go climbing these days, I find the guidebook most helpful in pointing out where we can climb within our abilities. Don't need to waste a day starting out on some "easy line" and then find ourselves out of our depth or having an epic. By the same token I don't have to know the whole route description and the position of every hold and piece of pro required. Just that its a grade within my ability.

To me it seems that many routes described in the various guides are contrived and only there to prop up the egos of would be hard men. Usually these short routes are nothing you would go out of your way to tick off. We have probably all done these sort of routes, on the walk in to a crag, to warm up or down, or to demonstrate/practice technique. The over supply of route discriptions of no quality in guides I would say is taking some adventure out of climbing.

Then again every route attempted outside the comfort zone, to me is an adventure.