Howdy all, I'm a 22-y.o. at a natural pause in the school/career rat race and I'm increasingly drawn to mountaineering/climbing. I want to explore it but I just don't know where to start, and everywhere else I look online is strangely devoid of actual, practical first steps (thanks, but "spend $500 on cams and nuts" probably shouldn't come first), so... where do I start? There isn't much more than regular hiking trails in my immediate vicinity near Sacramento. I'm more interested in trad climbing than sport, but I mostly just want to end up at the top of a peak with a great view feeling accomplished and proud of my own physical & mental abilities.

Second question, semi-related: I might be spending the next year or so as the gap year I never had time for before, and traveling through europe/asia/SA as cheaply as possible. I'm not saying I'm going to go summit the Matterhorn in 2 months but does anyone have advice for taking advantage of this travel? Places/peaks for someone in shape but with practically no technical training/experience?

Apologies if very basic questions like these are unwelcome here.

Welcome, beginners always welcome.

Most will say "enroll in a course", but disposable income is often an issue at 22yo.

Best advice: Network locally and develop friendships with those you can learn from. Does a college outdoor club exist from whence you came? Or near where you live? That's how I got started. They often welcome all (not just current students) on their trips. Take a few trips with those willing to share their expertise and you'll be amazed at how much you can learn in a short period of time.

90% of mountain climbing is walking uphill. It's a good place to start

There are a number of mountaineering clubs in California that are active that allow guests, sometimes with a sponsor. Meetup groups can be hit or miss but there some good ones out there. Before joining a trip ask some tough questions about the group and the leader and don't pay for anything more than permits. And there are many classes available: REI, Sierra Club Wilderness Travel Course (WTC) and various clubs and guide companies all provide training that can be free or cost $1000's. The Boy Scouts actually train rock climbing instructors in top rope rigging and it's an inexpensive way to learn knots, basic rope handling, climbing, belaying, rappelling and communication.

A natural progression (and one I generally followed) was day hiking, then backpacking, then rock climbing, then snow and ice. It's easy to find partners for these endeavors by becoming a regular at the climbing gym or networking at events and presentations at the local outdoor store. Mountaineering is based on fundamental camping skills. Once you have established outdoor skills expand your toolbox depending on your goals: snow and glacier, rock, alpine (all of the above). Progress from top rope to sport to trad if you think rock is your thing. Second a lot before your lead and study the placements before you remove them. Look for groups that may be getting together to do a snow skills "refresher" early in the season.

Mountaineering can be gear intensive. Acquire gear over time as you need it (I actually bought my ice axe and crampons on a super clearance a couple years before I really started using them). Look for sales and clearance. Join the American Alpine Club and take advantage of the benefits they offer. Buy the best and lightest gear you can afford.

I'm sure other will chime in, but most of all HAVE FUN!

Augustt wrote:I'm more interested in trad climbing than sport, but I mostly just want to end up at the top of a peak with a great view feeling accomplished and proud of my own physical & mental abilities.

Same -- I mostly just want to stand on top of big piles of dirt and rock.

In my experience, if you want to get out into the mountains a lot and push your limits, you have to do it mostly by yourself. Finding someone with similar goals, ability, and schedule is highly unlikely unless you are doing only weekend trips.

Be incremental and patient. When I first got into this stuff, I had endurance, a decent head for heights, and a bit of experience on "Colorado class 3." I started by doing mostly the Sierra 14ers, slowly adding more and harder scrambling, pushing my limits a little bit at a time. First the east ridge of Russell (intermittent 3rd class), then Middle Palisade (more sustained 3rd), then Norman Clyde (4th class), etc. You should be a bit scared, but not too much.

Make yourself do some sport/gym/boulder climbing. I spent some time in a climbing gym, and while I never really enjoyed it, it was useful for learning basic techniques and balance. It's training, just like your morning run, and much less boring than lifting weights.

If you're taking one full year, I suggest moving into your car and sticking to the western US and maybe Canada. You won't run out of new places to see or new things to do, and it will be cheap.

seano wrote:Make yourself do some sport/gym/boulder climbing.

Practicing climbing by bouldering, gym climbing, cragging, etc., in addition to the previous observation that climbing is mostly walking uphill is pretty much the crux of most climbing. Add walking on glaciers, using an ice axe/crampons/crevasse rescue and you cover most of the rest of the mountains. Add in ice and mixed climbing and then nothing but your own desire to get fit, strong and technically proficient will stop you from climbing the biggest, hardest mountains on the planet.

I agree with all of the above but to kick start your introduction I'd recommend that you get some good hiking boots and catch a ride over to Yosemite. Climb the trail to the top of El Cap and soak up some history while you're there. If you're not careful you might catch the bug and never quit climbing once you start.

Bob

reboyles wrote: If you're not careful you might catch the bug and never quit climbing once you start.

I was exposed in college and have never recovered.

Through a course or trusted mentors, learn to build anchors, place gear, and climb solo. Doing that last one was the best thing I have ever done climbing-wise. It's a lot more work and there is an increased risk factor in several respects (self-extraction and self-rescue being the biggest ones), but once you know it, you never have to worry about a bad belayer, a partner bailing, or even needing a partner at all.

I've learned to do TR, sport, and trad solo, including multi-pitch for sport and trad.

On solo trad and sport, I stay one or two full grades below what I would lead with a partner, and that is because although my system works, unlocking it after a fall can be a hassle, so I stick with the "Don't fall" rule. When I climb alone, I want to be safe and have fun, not push my limits.

I would even argue that solo toproping is safer than TRing with a partner is. The best system is redundant in every way, even the climbing rope, eliminating any concerns about the belayer dropping you or the rope getting cut. The catch is you need to know how to get back down, or get up, if the route is too hard.

Have fun and be safe!

Augustt
You've gotten some sound advice. I would like to add one more bit of advice: Take a mountaineering course when you're comfortable with your general outdoor and camping skills. I know that it's expensive, but then life you save may be your own.

As others have said, go start hanging out at your local indoor climbing wall (many universities have them now) and practice technique there. You'll find it is not hard to meet people who are open to showing young pups the ropes. Take climbing courses through your university. I myself did a lead climbing course with my college outdoor recreation dept. up here in WA, there is loads of information to be learned this way and university recreation courses are usually much cheaper. Eventually the entertainment the indoor gym once provided will grow dull and at that point you'll know it's time to take it outside. Look up crags/peaks in the area and head out with some buddies. I would recommend against showing up lone wolf with a "belay six pack" asking to get on a rope. Trust and like your partners, the same for them unto you.

I also would suggest doing some backpacking before doing multi-day alpine climbs/hikes. It's nice to already have the backcountry camping skills and know how in low-risk environments instead of learning on the job in the mountains. And of course, good physical fitness will make your world a whole lot easier.

The closest mountains to you in Sacramento are the ones in the Lake Tahoe basin. Check out this page: http://www.summitpost.org/lake-tahoe-basin-highest-peaks/738032
Day-hiking peaks like Freel peak and Mt Rose seems like a good place to start. Long day-hikes are a great way to build fitness and endurance. Snowshoeing in the winter also. Initially I would just invest in suitable technical clothing and lightweight boots and/or approach shoes, climb these peaks and get experience in wilderness travel and navigation. Then you can acquire a suitable tent, sleeping bag, stove, etc and start developing camping skills if you don't already have them.
Come Spring, you are actually pretty well situated to reach a great mountain for developing snow climbing skills: Mt Shasta. There are lots of online resources to learn correct technique for using crampons and ice axe. As long as conditions are safe vis-a-vis avalanche and weather, Avalanche gulch on Shasta could be a reasonable goal, but I would try to hook up with someone who has done the route several times and who wouldn't mind doing the route with a newbie. You might reach out to clmbr http://www.summitpost.org/users/clmbr/37499 he leads lots of trips on Shasta. Check out some of his videos on line.

It's easy for one of SEANO'S best comments to get overlooked, especially if you've not started roped climbing yet:
"slowly adding more and harder scrambling, pushing my limits a little bit at a time" he writes. And so I started 62+ years ago with encouragement from an adult neighbor and guidebooks: pick a hike that has some exposure, then more and more of them until you're at ease on talus, scree, and class 3 and 4 slabs and faces. You may even meet some climbing mentor or two on the trails.