First of all, this is not the correct question to be asking. Do you think that rock climbing was invented in a gym? Absolutely not. The proliferation of indoor climbing gyms is a relatively new phenomenon. I have read some outrageous statements on forums and overheard some conversations about how you need to be able to climb “insert arbitrary grade” before going outside, which is completely bs. Climbing is a sport meant to be enjoyed outside. Pulling plastic in the gym is great practice, not the main event.
Now am I saying you and your equally new friend should go buy a rope and head to the crag right now? No. You should ask yourself a different question. Rather than asking “am I good enough?” You should ask “can I do it safely?” This is a whole other ball game. I will do another blog post later talking about the exact differences in safety requirements between indoor and outdoor but that is for another time. I will post some key videos links below but, for right now, you can try to tag along with a more experienced friend who is happy to teach you the ropes (pun intended.)
That being said, every crag is going to be different. This is not going to be like your local gym where you are guaranteed a full spread of grades to choose from. Unless you are happy giving belays all day, there is not much point going to a crag that has 7a warm ups if your best in the gym is a 5+. There are some great tools available online for you to scope out the distribution of grades before you go. Below are some of my favorites:
- Mountain Project
- UKC Log Book
- Rockfax App (though this is becoming paid subscription)
You can use these resources to see if crags have enough routes in your grade but local guide books will always have more information. If you are in the Southern UK, a great place to start is Godnor North, has a bit of a rock scramble approach, or the Cuttings in Portland. A fantastic easy route in Godnor North is a route called Tombstone.
Get out there and become rock climbers.
btw the article picture is a lame selfie I took at the top of my first outdoor climb in Siurana, Spain.
