EP 152: Fundamentals — How to Go on a Climbing Trip

Fundamentals (Part 1 of 6) — In this episode, Jesse and I each share our top tips and pitfalls for going on a climbing trip. Whether you are planning your first-ever climbing trip, or are a seasoned climber, we think you’ll find some helpful nuggets here. We learned these lessons the hard way. Hopefully, you won’t have to.

Listen to more Fundamentals episodes!

thenuggetclimbing.com/fundamentals

Jesse’s Original Episode:

EP 127: Jesse Firestone

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Show Notes:  

thenuggetclimbing.com/episodes/fundamentals-part-1

Nuggets:

(00:00:00) – Intro

(00:02:53) – Jesse’s story of breaking his toe in Thailand, and my first-ever bouldering trip to Bishop CA

(00:06:28) – Lessons from our first failed climbing trips

(00:09:11) – Jesse’s Tip #1: Set the tone for the trip early

(00:12:11) – Jesse’s Tip #2: On a week-long trip, always rest the second day

(00:13:58) – Patience, and taking a week or two to acclimate on longer trips

(00:17:55) – Steven’s Tip #1: Be open

(00:21:48) – Steven’s Tip #2: Climb some easy things

(00:23:47) – Bonus Tip: Pay some attention to what your climbing values are

(00:24:10) – Steven’s Tip #3: Go look at tons of stuff

(00:25:51) – Jesse’s Tip #3: Minimize the decisions you have to make right after climbing

(00:27:24) – Try to avoid survival mode

(00:29:09) – Steven’s Tip #4: Measure the success of the trip in experiences, and not in sends

(00:31:28) – Bonus Tip: Set process-oriented goals rather than achievement-oriented goals (and scrap the tick list)

(00:34:12) – How complicated it is to climb well on a trip

(00:37:34) – Jesse’s Pitfall #1: When people recommend climbs to you, keep in mind that they almost always recommend climbs that they had good experiences on, not things that are objectively good

(00:39:11) – My first trip to The Red, Jesse’s first trip to Hueco, and thoughts on training for your first trip to a new area

(00:41:55) – Jesse’s Pitfall #2: Don’t train right up until the trip, and don’t try to cram your training in at the last second (show up rested)

(00:45:10) – Steven’s Pitfall #1: Spending the entire trip on one climb

(00:46:07) – Steven’s Pitfall #2: Climbing way too much

(00:47:21) – Bonus Tip: Be genuinely interested in other people’s climbing

(00:49:01) – Bonus Tip: It’s ok to climb a lot on a trip, but be sure to rest appropriately afterward

(00:52:39) – Jesse’s Pitfall #3: Wrecking your skin

(00:54:47) – Steven’s Pitfall #3: Not getting the intensity right

(00:57:52) – The sunk cost fallacy on a trip

(00:58:57) – Jesse’s Top Tip: Set the tone early in the trip

(00:59:37) – Steven’s Top Tip: Be open

(01:00:31) – Wrap up