Best College for climbing

I spent a year at Brevard College in Brevard, N.C. It was the bomb. Looking Glass is 10 minutes from campus and there is an abundance of other great areas within an hour or so. I was in the Outdoor Experiential Education program, which is one of the best in the country. Nothing like whitewater kayaking on the Green for P.E.!

Purdue U, in indiana, hands down.
Because you'll hate it so much that you will drop out and go climb full time.

Will S wrote: I'm a GaTech alum, and wouldn't wish the SE on any college kid who wants to climb rock.

Really? I guess you didn't think about the University of Alabama. Sandrock and Horse Pens are just a little over 2 hours away! Yeah, UA for sure if all you want to do is climb!

Tim Davis wrote: Really? I guess you didn't think about the University of Alabama. Sandrock and Horse Pens are just a little over 2 hours away!

A litle over 2 hours away? Now your WAAAYYYY off track
You've already past 5 world class climbing venues in CO within 2 hours. Nice try though!!

Will S wrote: And you actually have to live in the 'Noog, which no offense, is a shithole decaying rustbelt kinda town. I'm a GaTech alum, and wouldn't wish the SE on any college kid who wants to climb rock.

Chattanooga kicks ass. When was the last time you were here? We have a faster growing economy than pretty much any of the cities you mentioned. We have the Ocoee, Nantahala, and Hiwassie rivers, and our city government is incredibly invested in outdoor rec.

Stephen Berwanger wrote: A litle over 2 hours away? Now your WAAAYYYY off track You've already past 5 world class climbing venues in CO within 2 hours. Nice try though!!

I couldn't slip one past the goalie, huh? Sorry, I didn't mean to be taken seriously. My comment was an attempt (evidently a poor one) at sarcasm. Living in Tuscaloosa, I think I might be in the running for MP'er with the farthest drive to a crag, or a mountain for that matter. U of A is definitely not the place to be for climbers. While I love 'Bama, the sheer variety of climbing out west boggles my mind.

Colorado Mountain College, Any Campus but I'm at Leadville and it keeps me active. The only thing is long long winters but I find skiing is also pretty fun!!

Stephen Berwanger wrote: A litle over 2 hours away? Now your WAAAYYYY off track You've already past 5 world class climbing venues in CO within 2 hours. Nice try though!!

Which 5 venues in Colorado are "world class"?

Monomaniac wrote: Which 5 venues in Colorado are "world class"?

Eldo, Lumpy, RMNP, SPlatte, Unaweep, The Black,.....are all world class because I don't have to fly or drive a whole day to get there.

Evan Simons wrote: Eldo, Lumpy, RMNP, SPlatte, Unaweep, The Black,.....are all world class because I don't have to fly or drive a whole day to get there.

and most are world class period.

cstorms wrote: and most are world class period.

I count 3, and only one of them is within 2 hours of Boulder (and that doesn't include approaches, which brings the number to zero).

Eldo is not world class because of the quality of the rock, or the quality of the climbing. It is called "world-class" because world class climbers climbed there. That's like saying a Huffy is a world class bike because Lance Armstrong rode one once. Of course, Eldo is not to the Valley what a Huffy is to a Bianchi, let alone a truly world class bike. Eldo isn't that bad. It just ain't world class either. What makes the Front Range so popular to climbers is the shear volume of climbing, and year-round good conditions.

Lets be honest here, world class means significant numbers of people fly in from other parts of the world to specifically climb there..

World class in NA.. Yosemite, Moab/Indian creek, Bugaboos, maybe Squamish too. Hueco for bouldering. Period.

Boulder = over-run; CO = over-rated.

This is actually starting to be a really interesting discussion. I would argue that none of those areas are "world-class". Despite common misconceptions, Colorado actually has no "world-class" climbing. What we have is a ton of B+ rock climbing that combined with the access to good jobs and other outdoor activities makes for one hell of a place to live.

Yosimite, Céüse, Majorca, Indian Creek, Bishop, Hueco, Railay, Chamonix, The Red, ect. are "world-class."

Eldo, Lumpy, RMNP, SPlatte, Unaweep, Rifle, The Black are all great, but I think deserve a place on the next tier down.

Hueco is world class and the Black is not ..... huh? Ask Layton, or maybe Donini and see what they say.

"B+ climbing"

YDPL8S wrote:Hueco is world class and the Black is not ..... huh? Ask Layton, or maybe Donini and see what they say.

The Black is super loose, dirty, dangerous, run-out, rarely splitter, and as such I just don't think you could call it world-class. Don't get me wrong, I love climbing there but it's intense adventure ethic bars it from being considered top-shelf in my humble opinion.

shortguy wrote:Lets be honest here, world class means significant numbers of people fly in from other parts of the world to specifically climb there.. World class in NA.. Yosemite, Moab/Indian creek, Bugaboos, maybe Squamish too. Hueco for bouldering. Period. Boulder = over-run; CO = over-rated.

"World-class" is an objective measure of an area's quality. It doesn't depend on how many people travel there (let alone the method of travel)--that's a measure of popularity, not quality, and may depend on factors like size, weather, proximity to major cities or other amenities, etc. that don't have anything to do with rock quality.

The issue is how many areas can be world-class--10, 25, 100?--or, put another way, what is the crappiest destination that still qualifies.

I don't think any Colorado area is in the top ten, or even the top 25 world-wide destinations. But there are Colorado areas in the top 50.

Other North American venues that are top 50: Gunks, JTree, Needles (California).

Ahhhhh I see, intense adventure precludes something from being world class. So then, why would such world class climbers such as Ueli Steck, Steve House and Kelly Cordes waste their time on "intense adventure" climbs. Maybe you're looking at it more from the viewpoint of someone like Sharma, who is also world class.

Edit: I've said too much already, just a difference of opinion, which is something I wholeheartedly support.

YDPL8S wrote:Ahhhhh I see, intense adventure precludes something from being world class. So then, why would such world class climbers such as Ueli Steck, Steve House and Kelly Cordes waste their time on "intense adventure" climbs. Maybe you're looking at it more from the viewpoint of someone like Sharma, who is also world class. Edit: I've said too much already, just a difference of opinion, which is something I wholeheartedly support.

I'm not sure what KC is doing in the same sentence as Uli Steck and Steve House, so I'll just set that aside. Do either of those guys (Steck and House) climb in the Black?

I knew that was going to be the next question, I was just trying to make a point about the comment of "intense adventure" climbing barring an area from being world class. In light of that, Kelly has climbed some pretty rotten stuff but I agree he's not in the same class as the other two. Like I said, I've already said too much.

Peace

Unity College in Maine. Small environmental school, several climbing areas within an hour. Camden, Clifton, shagg cragg, acadaia natinoal park. Its got mountains and ocean! and lottsa ice around. Not as big as outwest, but its good shit