Thinking Allowed: Climbing the walls

We have some good friends visiting here in Las Palmas; they're also traveling with their kids for a year-plus adventure, centred around rock climbing. It's been a fun week, with many of the kids in surfing camp, and yesterday Aurora, Sophia, Tova and Zadie all got to try outdoor rock climbing for the first time. We went out to El Guincho, a bunch of cliffs only a short walk from the ocean, and gave it a go.

The girls really liked it - the climbs were 6a+, so: very smooth for Aurora, just about right for Sophia and Tova (who managed all four routes) and a heck of a stretch for Zadie. I didn't think she would make it too far off the ground, but she bravely stuck it out and made it to the very top of her first route. The progress she's made over the past three months in courage and agility is incredible; she was trembling a bit from the adrenaline when she came back down, but seemed super happy and climbed it a second time.

The climbing gym near us, IndoorWall, has been an even bigger part of our time here. The 40-minute walk through an industrial area has become very familiar indeed, as we've gone three or four times a week. Over time, we became part of the community there; the girls climbed with Irish, Hungarian, Polish and of course Spanish kids. The staff were super friendly and offered tips for the trickier climbs. The gym itself had a great mix of auto-belays, tough bouldering, a kids section with zip line, and Slanty Wall, with which Zadie had a most complicated relationship.

We must have gone at least 50 times, and it's made a visible difference in how the girls climb. Tova has developed way more stamina and a unique style of climbing with big, dramatic swings and lunges. Sophia got into the hangboard and seemed to manage something new almost every time we went; she's also got the biggest streak of stubbornness, refusing to give up on some climbs that are just out of reach and usually managing them (sometimes at the cost of a few tears.) Aurora was already the most seasoned climber, but seemed to really enjoy taking on the larger, dynamic bouldering routes. We went for the last time today, and on her final try she managed a particularly scary problem, and was euphoric for the next hour. And Zadie has gone from messing around on the kiddie wall to being a remarkable 6-year old climber: traversing the overhang wall, racing her sisters up the auto-belay, and developing a quiet confidence and pride in herself.

Thinking back on the hours spent in the gym, a few things really helped it work well. Positive reinforcement and just being there was biggest: I know very little indeed about climbing, but mostly kids just want you to cheer them on and console them when they can't manage stuff. Giving them challenges was important to keeping it interesting: especially Zadie climbed much more thanks to stories about picking berries and apples in the upper holds, chases across the kiddie wall "krokodile-challenge", hidden pennies to find in the holds. Bribery, in the form of babyccinos, smoothies, the occasional Powerade, and Moomin stories on the way back, always helps. Little pushes, like suggesting a short 5-minute workout at the very end of our visits, letting them do whatever drills they wanted. And, finally, there just being enough time for them to feel comfortable and start pushing themselves: Sophia on the hangboard, or Zadie on the Slanty Wall, had everything they needed inside themselves to make progress. There might be less climbing for the next few months, but I'm hoping the girls get another two-month block at some point to keep finding their own style and connection with climbing.

Mini baby update: Levi's a month old, and doing great; she got the same cold that tore through the rest of us a fortnight ago, but is gradually getting less snotty and coughing less. Sick newborns are such a sad thing, but then when they get all fussy and demanding again it's a cause for celebration!