Looking for a healthy, fun, and exhilarating experience for the whole family to enjoy? Try climbing, says Sara Whatley
Many children are natural climbers, clambering around the park, up trees, and balancing on walls. So why not take advantage of this innate ability and take them climbing? From total beginners to seasoned professionals, this high octane and inclusive sport really is fun for all the family, even if you simply set climbing challenges in the park.
Climbing centres look instantly inviting with their brightly coloured holds dotted around the walls, the soft mats covering the floor and from what I have experienced, the kindly energy that fills the atmosphere.
There are loads of indoor and outdoor climbing centres in Sussex and beyond, but I decided to take my children, Mia, aged seven, and Jarvis, who is five years old, to visit Volume 1 Climbing, an indoor climbing centre in East Grinstead.
Once the kids had got their climbing shoes on, we had a safety talk and a run through of what the different coloured markers meant. Then we were directed to which climbs would suit us best, and the kids were off!
It was so interesting seeing their progress from the beginning to the end of the session –initially they both only climbed up a few holds then came down again, but once they had got the hang of it and warmed up,their confidence grew, and they were climbing up walls like mountain goats and zooming down the slide in the middle of the centre.
I was really impressed with their willingness to try lots of different climbs and walls, often watching other climbers and learning from their technique. I can only begin to imagine the huge cognitive benefits climbing has on children, from building their confidence, self-efficacy, resilience and ability to cope with fear and stress, to problem solving, spatial awareness and strengthening memory skills.
I spoke to Lewis at Volume 1 about the benefits of climbing: “Children love it here!” he said. “It’s bright and fun, it’s really social and it makes them feel fantastic. It’s so intuitive how the setters have placed the holds in the walls, children love doing a particular climb again and again until they have mastered it.”
There were lots of other children climbing, and adults as well. It was clear to me how supportive the climbing community is, as groups of climbers encouraged each other, taking turns at difficult routes and communally figuring out strategies.
When my children were too tired to climb any more we went to the café for hot chocolates. The smiles which had been plastered on their faces from start to finish were still firmly in place, and the entire journey home echoed with a constant refrain of ‘when can we come again?’ Enough said, we are hooked.
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