Climbing guide books will show you the way
You’ve grabbed your equipment and are now heading straight to a crag to go rock climbing, assuming you’ll get a climbing guide book once you get there... but oh no, they’re all sold out. Now what? If you don’t want to end up in this situation, then you should always get a climbing guide book before heading out to climb! There’s nothing more frustrating than being surrounded by beautiful crags and not knowing what the best route is. Even when you’re still at home, you can get a lot of info from climbing guide books to plan your trip.
Climbing guides for sport and alpine climbing
What may be slightly annoying in sport climbing can quickly become outright dangerous in alpine climbing. It’s very important to plan the route in detail with the help of a climbing guide. Good climbing guides not only show you the correct route and prevent you from taking the wrong one, but they also show you the crux, the ascent and descent, and they provide information on safety and about the character of individual routes. They’ll ensure you have a great time and will help you avoid dangerous routes.
What types of climbing guides are there?
In addition to the sports and alpine guide books mentioned above, there are also bouldering guides and special ice climbing guides. Climbing guides for boulderers are partially integrated in regular sports climbing guide books. However, every major bouldering area has its own bouldering guide showing all the boulders and problems.
Climbing guides for ice climbers typically don’t show any precise routes, they only indicate the difficulty rating. Unlike rock walls, ice constantly changes, so it’ll never be the same two days in a row. As a result, such climbing guides often offer more ascent and descent sketches than detailed route topos.
So, whether you’re a sport climber, a boulderer, an alpinist or an ice climber, you need a good climbing guide to find the right route.