We decided to try some top-rope climbing at Planet Granite today. Roped climbs seem to be more popular than bouldering at this gym, and on a typical weeknight, the top-rope/lead climb walls are usually teeming with people. On the weekends, the gym is overall less crowded, making top roping a more pleasant experience.

The top-rope setup at Planet Granite is pretty cool, much better IMO than Vertical Hold, the climbing gym we used to frequent while in San Diego. At Planet Granite, climbs are designated with like-colored holds rather than tags. So a particular climb might have, for example, all red colored hand and foot holds. This makes it much easier to determine which holds are part of your climb. No more “Is that hold mine?” questions.

All the top-rope setups use Grigris as the belay device, and the Grigris are numbered. On the wall, a little sign indicates the corresponding Grigri for belaying that particular climb, the level of the climb, and a short checklist with additional details (e.g. arete on/off, sit start, date the climb was set, etc.). Each rope is wound around its own bar at the top, and each bar is only about one foot wide so you don’t have to try to pull the rope over to one side or the other.

Finally, the climbs are a good deal higher than the ones at Vertical Hold. We did several climbs, and although it was fun, I think we still prefer bouldering. We will, however, try to get some top-rope climbing in every now and then just to mix things up.

Posted by Roger at 9:53 am.