So, just in case you didn’t think I could possible cram myself anymore into the Flagstaff stereotype mold…
…I finally got around to joining the local climbing gym.
*Shocked Pikachu Face*
A FULL DISCLAIMER: I’m talking about two local businesses here but NOTHING on this page is sponsored or paid for. This is just me, talking about my hobbies, interests and life. I get zero kickback if you join the Flagstaff climbing gym and nobody’s paying me to say anything here. There are a few minor affiliate links at the end, but I received no money from anybody to write this. Cool? Cool.
Yeah. I know. As if my Birkenstock-wearing Jeep-driving yoga-instructing tent-owning trail-hiking dog-toting bullshit wasn’t enough, I’ve donned a tiny pair of colorful shoes and have started spending evenings and weekends (and the occasional work afternoon, shoutout to agency-delegated wellness hours!) at the local climbing gym.
In my defense, it was only a matter of time.
The local climbing gym, Flagstaff Climbing, has two locations — a downtown crag and a 24-hour bouldering gym located a few miles away from the city center on Route 66.
A membership not only gets you unlimited access to both of those locations… but also unlimited classes at Northern Arizona Yoga Center.
See why I said it was only a matter of time?
I’ve been kind of slow to dive into the yoga scene here in Flagstaff, mostly due to COVID. However, because mask restrictions are easing, capacity limits are lifting, I’ve been vaccinated since winter, and most of my friends here have been vaccinated, too, I’ve been trying to integrate myself into the Flag community, finally.
So, while NAYC was on my list of places to check out, I didn’t really ever get around to going.
However, my friend Jody is BIG into climbing. Honestly, you could probably call her obsessed and she wouldn’t argue.
She mentioned being into it one day while we were hanging out, and I said I’d like to give climbing a try. My university had a wall that students could use, but because I was busy heavily drinking doing other things during college, I never really got too into it short of a freshman year visit.
However, from what I remember, it was fun.
I told her it was a little intimidating (Flagstaff can be a little intense if you’re new to certain rec activities), and she basically told me to shut up and meet her at the gym.
Soooo I did.
The gym outfitted me with rental gear and Jody taught me how to tie knots, climb and belay. She was super patient and wasn’t condescending at all, which was so, SO nice. I swear, nothing turns me off of a new community more than gatekeeping.
(Or, gateJeeping, hint hint northern Arizona Wrangler snobs.)
Needless to say, I was hooked.
She sold me onto joining her membership (a single-person membership is $70/month and a two-person membership is $100/ month, which honestly makes SO much sense because every climber needs a belay) and I ended up buying myself a harness (yes I got the men’s version), climbing shoes and a REAL NERDY chalk bag after one of the gym employees was patient enough to walk me through everything and try things on with me.
Soooo that is that! My hands will be perpetually blistered and my knees will be perpetually bruised for the duration of my time here in Flagstaff.
Are you super into climbing? If so, feel free to leave gear reccs, online resources, technique tips and other cool non-mansplainy suggestions in the comments cause I’d love to check them all out!
This post contains affiliate links. For more information, please read my disclosure policy.
