The Value of Finding Your "Home Crag"

Some of you may know that I spent a great deal of the 2014 season climbing in the Land of Giants: Bishop, CA. More specifically, I committed myself to climbing only in the Buttermilks, an intimidating and breathtaking place where I learned the value of perseverance and was often humbled by challenging, technical highballs that forced me to face my fears and build the mental fortitude to overcome them. And when I say that I only climbed in the Milks, I mean that – not once did I venture into the tablelands. Contrary to popular belief, my choice to stay in the Milks was not because I dislike the Happies or the Sads, but because I wanted to turn the Milks into my home crag, which is something I’d never had before. I wanted to learn all of its intricacies, to live and breath its history, to acquaint myself with a community of like-minded climbers, and to hone my skills in a place that is frequently described as world-class by the climbing community.

The Land of Giants - where the line between a free solo
and a highball gets a little fuzzy. Photo by Carlos Mason.

I can now safely say that after fully committing my climbing season to Bishop I have done all of these things and more. But what is the value of committing myself to one crag? Should everyone attempt to find their own climbing area to call home? The following may not appeal to everyone, but it represents what I found valuable in my experience.

The Benefits of Committing Yourself to One Crag

1. You Create Your Own, Personal Training Ground

I’m willing to bet that, if you’re big into climbing-specific training like I am, you rarely deviate from your weekly routine. This means you go to the same gym (or gyms depending on what training systems you’re using at each), run through your hangboard/campus board/system board workout, work on your project, and probably do a bit of strength training. You don’t hop around to new gyms every day wearing yourself out on different projects that you won’t come back to for a month. So why do that with your outdoor climbing? Choosing to go to the same crag every weekend allows you to familiarize yourself with the area to the point that you can create a training routine there that’s hyper-focused toward sending your projects there. It also allows you to judge and track your progress on a variety of climbs at and above your level so you can set realistic goals for the rest of the season (kind of like climbing on a Moon or other systems board does). For me, it got to the point that I could judge how my day was going to be based on how my warm up on Go Granny Go was going. If I was really struggling on it, I knew I’d need to take things slow that day and set expectations accordingly. If I felt amazing on it, it got me psyched to try all of my hard projects. Speaking of projects…

2. You Can Slowly Work On Your Projects

By that I mean you can make a pact to take 2-3 burns on your project each day and then walk away from it. Why is this valuable? Because you won’t physically burn yourself out for the rest of the trip, or get frustrated to the point that you mentally get burned out on the climb. It allows you the freedom to walk away and work on other things if you want to, or stay if you’re feeling confident on the climb that day. Plus, knowing that you’re coming back the next weekend to do the same thing is kind of comforting and has the ability to take the pressure off of sending Right. Now. And how much better do you climb when you feel like you can kind of zen out and take your time? Maybe this approach isn’t good for everyone, especially those that thrive under pressure, but if you’re anything like me and you need a more holistic approach to projecting, this may be good for you.

3. You’ll Make Real, Lasting Friendships & Gain The Support of Local Climbers

Need someone to project with? Need an extra crashpad for that sketchy landing? Need someone to camp with/grab dinner with/who can rescue you when you get a flat tire/to just generally support you? You’ll find all of that and more if you spend enough time at your home crag. During this last season our friend Dan Beall was working on his long-term project – now dubbed The Process, V16 – and the outpouring of support he received from local climbers (our friends and also complete strangers who learned about the climb) every night was quite literally astonishing. They helped us haul 20+ crash pads up to and back from the base of the boulder, lit up the climb during night sessions, and even placed and pulled a ladder for Dan so he could project the top portions of the climb every night. These folks were not just integral to Dan’s process (no pun intended), but they also became some of our closest friends. I camp and climb with them every time I’m up in the Milks, and we frequently spend nights and rest days just hanging out around town being goofballs or watching movies. And you better believe that we have each other’s backs in times of need, whether those needs are large or small.

Dan Beall and Dan Woods working The Process, V16 with the support of friends who hauled 20+ pads to the bottom of the
Grandpa Peabody. Such an amazing experience for all. Photo by the talented David Clifford.

4. You May Watch Local History Happen

Guaranteed that if you spend enough time at your local crag you’ll not only learn about the history of many of the climbs there, you’ll probably watch some FA’s go down yourself. Will they all be the most life-altering, astonishing things that ever happened? Not necessarily. But it’s nice to 1) watch your friends succeed, and 2) feel like you were part of something. And what better way to become part of history than by witnessing it yourself.

The (Possible) Cons of Committing to One Crag

You didn’t think I would pretend that everything was gravy, did you?  While there is inherent value in committing yourself to one climbing area, there are also some negatives to consider. Here are the potential cons I found.

1. You’ll Probably Adapt Heavily to Your Home Crag Climbing Style

This seems inevitable, but it’s no different from adapting to the climbing style at your local gym. If you spend all of your outdoor climbing time working on tall, technical, crimpy climbs on granite you’ll likely become really, really good at tall, technical, crimpy climbs on granite. Likewise, if you spend all of your time doing burly, compression moves on sandstone you’ll become better at that style than others. Does that mean you won’t be good at other styles of climbing? Absolutely not. I know people that crush in a variety of different styles. But they inevitably excel at the style of climbing they practice most.

2. Projecting Indoors May Start to Seem Tedious

Projecting indoors just doesn’t feel the same after you’ve become so familiar with an outdoor climbing area. I know that I frequently find myself zoning out and daydreaming about my outdoor projects while I’m projecting inside the gym. That’s why I’ve started to utilize climbing indoors as a means for working on my weaknesses (ie. Solving the problem you face in Con #1), as well as a means of practicing moves that are similar to the crux moves of my outdoor projects. Finding projects inside the gym that challenge me is fulfilling in its own way, even if it doesn’t compare to the rush of completing my coveted outdoor project.

3. You Won’t Get To Explore Other Climbing Areas as Heavily

This is obvious. The more time you commit to climbing at your home crag, the less time you’ll spend exploring others. And yeah, you’re probably missing out on some rad climbs in those areas that you could easily fall in love with. But does that mean you can never go to said other crag? Of course it doesn’t! Even I ventured out of Bishop a few times during the season to hit up Red Rocks, climb some of the classics, and then headed back home where I could resume my weekend Buttermilks routine. It was a blast visiting Red Rocks and being challenged in other ways. And who knows… maybe next season you’ll choose another home crag to familiarize yourself with. There are no strict rules here people. Enjoy yourselves.

Now that I've given you my perspective, and have given you something to consider - tell me your thoughts. What do you love about your home crag? If you don't have one, why not?