This 3-Day course is for the intermediate climber wanting to learn how to place traditional rock gear for lead climbing the right way: from the ground up. Learn how to do it safely from our professional mountain guides. The course runs three consecutive days. Please note that you will only see the START date for the course when you are booking. If the date shows 0 open spots, the course is sold out and you may opt to join the waitlist for that course.
2024 Course Dates:
Sport climbing is one thing, placing gear on lead is another. The act of placing protection while lead climbing is a skill set in itself and can test one's mental strength. In this course you'll be introduced, very systematically, to the progression required to become a safe trad climber, including gear placement, anchor building, and multi-pitch efficiency. The course has you place all kinds of gear on top rope, on mock lead, and on real lead. You will learn to trust your own work by falling into the gear you placed in mock lead situations and you will get a chance to hang into belays that you just built in the vertical arena.
Venues for the course are condition-dependent, with days one and two near North Bend if the weather is good. Day three will often be at Index, although Mount Erie and Vantage are great alternatives if needed.
Overall Difficulty: moderate
Skills Required: prior sport climbing experience
Fitness level: good physical fitness
Course Curriculum
Introduction to Gear
Anchors and belay techniques
Leading on trad gear
Multi-pitch Climbing and Station Management
Rock rescue skills
Although tipping is not a requirement, it is considered standard practice in the guiding industry and is appreciated by our guides. We generally recommend roughly 10%-15% of your course or trip cost or a flat amount that you are comfortable with.
You should be able to confidently lead outdoor 5.9 sport. Some familiarity with crack climbing is also good, but not a requirement.
The abundance of climbing in Washington means we can most likely find a dry crag on any given day of the trip. If there are no dry options, we'll work with you to schedule a make-up day.
If you have your own trad gear, it is best to bring it as different brands of cams and nuts will look different on your harness and feel different when you place them. However, your guide will have a full rack available for you to use, or to supplement your own gear as needed.
