New To Massachusetts Outside Community

Hello!

I have been climbing in gyms since 2012-2013, I recently was taken outside and now I have the bug for sure! I live out in Somerville and my car is out in central mass. I am trying to do some of the easier to access stuff, for the time being, I usually top out at v3-v4 outside and 5.9-5.10a as well. I can do better in the gym, however, I am still getting the hang of real rocks.

If anyone has any tips or trips to recommend please do!!

Thanks in advance, and much love.

Courtney

Most people in your situation connect with folks they meet at the gym who will take them outside.  That has pros/cons - you know the people, you don't necessarily know if they are competent.  Next step up - most gyms provide outside trips - costs $$$ but they should be competent.  Or there are various meetups groups. I am involved with the AMC - you can check out my group's website - amcbostonclimbers.com - but we don't really have that many open trips.  What I would avoid doing is going with random strangers you meet on the Internet.

Hey Courtney, welcome to town.

MetroRock over in Everett should have copies of Boston Rocks for sale, it gives you the low down on climbing in the area and I highly recommend picking up a copy. You're more than welcome to join my friends and I next time we go, they're just getting into climbing so we've been doing some pretty easy top roping.

EDIT: Lol hi!!!

Hi Courtney! You've received some good advice. Big plus-one on picking up a copy of Boston Rocks. I caution you that there is a lot more climbing than what that guide has. Mountain Project is a wonderful resource for right around Boston. It's also worth noting here that within an hour of Boston the vast majority of climbing is granite bouldering. There are certainly lots of TR crags and a small share of trad climbs as well, but by sheer numbers...bouldering is king around here. Within 20-30 minutes of Boston you'll find excellent bouldering in Lynn Woods. Hammond Pond is a good spot if you find yourself on the Newton/Brookline side of the city in search of some good boulders. Cape Ann is about 45/50 minutes away but has high quality rock. Mostly boulders, but a few good roping-up cliffs as well. Redrock is a must-visit local crag and is host to some wild slab test-pieces. There are lots of other crags and boulders around Boston, and most are easy to access with the right info.

If you make your trip more like an hour (and maybe closer to your car?), you have Crow Hill in Leominster, which is a great regional roped-up destination. A bit further you can get to Farley which is fantastic roped-up climbing. All kinds of awesome spots to boulder out in western MA as well. Keep driving west and you'll get to the Gunks after a few hours (3?). Well worth the drive! a few hours (2.5?) north and you land in North Conway that has some of the best climbing in the northeast region. Up north a bit closer is Pawtuckaway that has excellent bouldering. If you drive south to RI, Lincoln Woods has excellent bouldering, and the cliffs of CT have all kinds of classic routes steeped in history.

Eric mentioned AMC Boston, but there are also a few other orgs that you can get involved with. SNECC (Southeast New England Climbers Coalition) and WMCC (Western Mass Climbers Coalition are the Local Climbing Orgs that have the missions of preserving our outdoor climbing areas. I'm involved with SNECC and we encourage meet-ups and getting outside. We are currently organizing a bouldering comp in Lynn Woods for this fall as a fundraiser for an access project that will hopefully open up hundreds of boulders in Peabody to climbing. We also have a Facebook page and email list that occasionally has folks organizing informal meet-ups, etc. Hit me up if you want to learn more or get involved. Besides that, Just get out, stay safe and have fun!

Feel free to hit me up with questions about areas/climbs as well. I have a high level of knowledge for the climbing in Massachusetts north of the Boston up into Cape Ann and get out multiple times per week year-round unless I'm injured. Ropes, boulders, whatever inspires.

Redrock in Cape Ann (Gloucester) and the surrounding area has some excellent topping, bordering, trad and some sport

Hello Courtney,

I'm pretty much in the same situation, been indoor climbing since 2014 and have recently been outdoors and got the bug! I bought all the equipment for top rope and sport climbing and have used it a few times with friends down south (I recently moved to Alabama). I'm up in Somerville for the next three weeks finishing up some work at MIT and am looking for people to do some light climbing with! I don't know the area, but I'm glad I hopped on this thread! I'm comfortable climbing 5.9+ to 5.10b climber, v2-3. While I'm comfortable setting up anchors I would like to refersh lead belaying before sport climbing with anyone new. Let me know if you/friends are interested.

P.S. Sorry for piggybacking on your thread but  – Spencer, do you have any trips planned for the next three weekends? I'm looking for people to climb with!

I'm sure MITOC will have some outings

Thanks Eric! I had already checked, unfortunately their trad class filled up the day it was posted! I guess I have to check every day.

Matthew DeCesare wrote: Hello Courtney,

I'm pretty much in the same situation, been indoor climbing since 2014 and have recently been outdoors and got the bug! I bought all the equipment for top rope and sport climbing and have used it a few times with friends down south (I recently moved to Alabama). I'm up in Somerville for the next three weeks finishing up some work at MIT and am looking for people to do some light climbing with! I don't know the area, but I'm glad I hopped on this thread! I'm comfortable climbing 5.9+ to 5.10b climber, v2-3. While I'm comfortable setting up anchors I would like to refersh lead belaying before sport climbing with anyone new. Let me know if you/friends are interested.

P.S. Sorry for piggybacking on your thread but  – Spencer, do you have any trips planned for the next three weekends? I'm looking for people to climb with!

If you have any availability during the week, afternoons or so, I'd like to do some climbing at Quincy Quarries. Otherwise I can let you know if I'm doing a crag day on weekends- rattlesnake rock looks promising and now that the snow has melted it should be nice before the spring bugs show up.

 What's your transportation?

wonderwoman is the truly the real deal.  What she said!  

Eric is also the real deal. He is usually a just a tiny bit more helpful and optimistic.  But his advice is good.  Just keep you BS meter finely tuned regarding heading outdoors with a gym hook up.  

Keep an eye on the WMCC website for a workday.  Show up, do some grunt work in the morning,  meet some great people and climb with them in the afternoon.  

When the Worcester AMC gets some weekend outings at Crow Hill scheduled I will give you heads up.  Good opportunity to do some top roping and follow some trad leads.

I'm involved with both the AMC and SNECC. AMC is a great community if you're involved in the rock program, which we offer in the springtime to train folks on basic outdoor climbing skills. I'd imagine it would be a bit tough to get your bearings without going through the program. SNECC is new and still pretty focused on bouldering, but really eager to get new folks engaged per Tim's note. WonderWoman's advice can't be beat (as usual). Somerville is really close to Metro if you have a bike or can get a ride. Plus it's got great route setting and a good vibe.