Rock climbing the right way

Posted: Jun 29, 2011 6:01 PM by Bill Folsom
Updated: Jun 29, 2011 8:24 PM

"It was kind of scary I was kind of shaking, but it was mostly fun," says 11 year old Angel Mack. She just completed her first climb up one of the sheer rock faces at Garden of the Gods Park. The climb was supported by an instructor with Front Range Climbing Company.

The business is the only one working out of the park's visitor center. "One of the reasons we're working with the visitors center is they get so many questions-- People coming through the park seeing climbers and wanting to go," says Climbing Instructor, Isaac Hamilton.

One of the safety issues at the park is a lot of people don't work with an instructor. Instructors who are working at the park daily during the summer months see climbers doing it the right way and plenty of others putting themselves in danger. "All the time, we see people out here who don't know what they're doing," says Hamilton. Most common are hikers suddenly deciding to climb without climbing gear and not realizing it is often much easier going up than getting down. "And a lot of that is the people that end up getting rescued."

Safety is the first thing instructors addressed with Angel Mack. Her mother Phyllis says she's glad it is a lesson priority. "Safety's number one with her and I think after she went up there knowing how she was a little scared and excited at the same time she understood how it's important to be safe."