Intro to Belaying (South Boston)

Reviews

• Robert C.

  "We Belay" Climbing Session (South Boston) September 6, 2016

  Really gonna miss this place, been climbing here all summer and made a lot of friends. I love the culture here, its so social: climb, chat, climb, help others, hang out, go get some 50 cent wings or $1 oysters nearby.

• Sean G.

  "We Belay" Climbing Session (South Boston) April 30, 2016

  Cozy environment. Went on a Saturday at 11:00am and felt like I had the place to myself. There was a birthday party of 4-7 year olds, but they stuck to the auto belays and area near the slide.
  
  Despite their being belays and auto belays, this is place is primarily a bouldering gym. The top rope routes aren't more than 15-20' high.
  
  Routes were fun. Wish I had he stamina for the traverse challenge. Other climbers were friendly and polite. No egos or judgements. Pure positivity and smiles on literally every single person there, including the staff.
  
  Will be back to join the Wall of Champions (traverse challenge)

• T A.

  "We Belay" Climbing Session (South Boston) March 28, 2016

  I've only been rock climbing for a few months now and I enjoy bouldering more than top roping. For bouldering, this would probably be the best place I've been to. But, if you're into top roping, there really isn't much here.
  
  The environment and people are awesome at Rock Spot.

• Laura D.

  "We Belay" Climbing Session (South Boston) February 26, 2016

  Before last night, I had only ever been rock climbing once at Central Rock Gym in Worcester, so in comparison it seems like Rock Spot is smaller and has lower climbs.
  
  I started off with the auto belays, which I'd never used before, and I began feeling safe-ish after a few climbs. Definitely more of a learning curve than traditional belaying IMO. ROOKIE TIP: I don't suggest switching from auto belay to bouldering--do the opposite instead. I made the mistake of getting used to the security of the auto belay and then being all the more terrified of falling when I was bouldering (free-climbing).
  
  Very cool that they have a slide/playground vibe in the corner of the beginner bouldering wall. However, almost every other time someone goes down the slide there is a loud metal clanging sound. I kept thinking someone was hurt! Something to get used to if you like climbing in that area.
  
  Also, it gets pretty crowded in the auto belay and beginner bouldering areas, which isn't helped by/may be due to the fact that the auto belays are so close together (and interspersed with traditional belays?). Something to be aware of because when people come down they can be slanted--I saw a few minor collisions (and almost collided with someone). EDIT: I agree with Ellie that people should be told to be more aware of not veering off of the path of the auto belay before dropping as this seems to cause more unpredictable trajectories.
  
  Free parking in a lot down the street, but there's seemingly a good amount of non-metered street parking outside.
  
  They have changing rooms, a unisex bathroom, and single sex bathrooms as well. Also, a water bubbler! Score. Staff were very nice, too!

• Alyssa B.

  "We Belay" Climbing Session (South Boston) February 26, 2016

  Novice climber here, so excuse my lack of proper lingo. I've been wanting to get to one of the Boston area climbing gyms for a while now, so when a Yelp Fit Club event at Rock Spot popped up, I rose to the challenge!
  
  As many other reviewers noted, this is more of a bouldering gym with a limited availability of top roping. Of the top ropes routes, they were mostly auto-belays. I learned in my first visit that I prefer top roping, but as a beginner I had no problem keeping busy even with the limited options.
  
  TBQH, I might not have even tried bouldering had there not been a slide to zip down upon completion. Totally a motivator! I don't trust myself very much - I trust the auto-belay a helluva lot more! - so the thought of climbing up a wall without a harness or ropes definitely scared me. But where there is a slide, I (apparently) will climb! And despite what it may look like, the slide is super fast and fun :)
  
  All in all this was a great experience! Easy to get to by public transportation; clean, spacious and well-lit; helpful, friendly staff; all the amenities you need in a gym. Two callused thumbs up! Also, it's on ClassPass so I'll definitely be back - yay!

• Joseph L.

  "We Belay" Climbing Session (South Boston) November 23, 2015

  The good: Tons of bouldering. Wide open spaces. Cool slide after you top out. When I was here, there was a nice little top-roping class exhibit. The staff are SUPER friendly and energetic, I loved that! 5/5
  
  The bad: There's almost no top-roping at all. In terms of wall-climbing space, this place has probably 1/3 to 1/2 of what Brooklyn Boulders Somerville or MetroRock have. The ratings are set pretty high. 2/5
  
  I think this place would be great for climbers who focus on bouldering, like me. But definitely not for top-ropers. Overall the experience was fairly pleasing, and it's always fun to check out a new gym.

• Ellie W.

  "We Belay" Climbing Session (South Boston) April 21, 2015

  This is probably one of the few bouldering spots in Boston I've been to that's really pedestrian-accessible for those who don't want to have to drive (there's MetroRock in Everett, and Brooklyn Boulders in Somerville), which is a major plus.
  
  The drawback, on the other hand, is that it's not nearly as big as MetroRock or Brooklyn Boulders. There just isn't the same huge space, but that's not to say you won't get a workout here. The majority of the space is dedicated to bouldering, with a handful of belaying walls with a combo of auto-belays and the belays that require a partner. You'll see women and men alike, swinging around like Spiderman on a Costco pack of 5-hour-energy, ultra-stealth, let me tell you.
  
  I had only been bouldering once, and have probably negative upper body strength, if that's possible, so was a bit intimidated at first, but finally made it up the bouldering wall to slide down the slide (yes, there's a slide that's a) your incentive and b) your reward for making it up that wall). I don't think I had mustered the guts to go up until I saw a 10 year old do it. Ok...it was a 6 year old, but who's counting.
  
  While the location and space is great, I can't say the same for the orientation I got. He basically made me go up 5 feet on the auto-belay, jump down, and called it a day. Which left me not knowing how to do much else aside from putting on and taking off the auto-belay. Flash forward 20 minutes later, and as I'm coming down, my foot gets caught on the partner-belay rope next to me, I'm swinging upside down, and slamming into the wall. WOOPS, I guess he had forgotten to tell me to ensure your path up isn't remotely to the left or right of the auto-belay above you. Maybe that should've been intuitive, but also a critical point in orientation for someone who's never belayed before, I'd think. So in my mind, a total fail in ensuring safety here. And I have the scar on my side and a pretty roughed up ankle to prove it.
  
  There are also a ton of birthdays and kids here on the weekend, so there were a few times when kids would be running around as I belayed down, and I was afraid I'd knock them over as I landed. I'm all for kids having a blast and getting an intro to climbing at any age, but I just found it pretty annoying that I had to try to avoid knocking over children at the same time as trying to get a workout in. Weekdays are probably a lot more peaceful, so just an FYI if you're planning a weekend climb.
  
  Overall, a good rock climbing gym, but not without a few drawbacks that will most likely having me heading to other gyms instead.