WeClimb provides opportunities for youth to succeed on and off the climbing wall.

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By the community, for the community

WeClimb combines mentorship with rock climbing and other fun activities to empower underserved youth in our community.

How we're making a difference:

MENTORSHIP

Connecting youth with positive adult role models who support them through climbing and life beyond the wall.

COMMUNITY PARTNERSHIPS

Working with gyms, rec centers, and youth-serving organizations to create sustainable access and opportunities.

YOUTH RECREATION

Introducing youth to rock climbing while teaching core outdoor skills like LNT and environmental stewardship.

FOLLOW US @WE_CLIMB_CHATT

WE CLIMB NEEDS YOU!

No, we’re not asking for you to come to an event, volunteer with us, or even write your mama to tell her about how cool we are (though all of those things would be awesome, let’s be real)

We need cash. Cold hard dolla bills, y’all.

Why? Insurance. Gas. Snacks. Gym passes. Replacing missed or lost gear. All the things to keep these kids sending…or at least trying.

Why now? Typically, we host an annual event around this time of year to raise money for WeClimb, but between life changes, scheduling conflicts, the general chaotic state of the world, and keeping up with these growing youngins … we just don’t have the spoons to pull it off right now and rent is due.

What we do have is the stoke to keep mentoring this next generation of climbers. We’ve been getting out twice a month steady, going climbing, exploring nature, testing our physical limits, connecting with each other and our community. We’ve got a full line up of events this fall - from Blkoutfest to an outdoor WeClimb day, sending temps are in and we want to get out and enjoy them!

Do you have a dollar to spare? Can you double it by phoning a friend to throw down, too?

Our goal is to raise $1,000 by the end of the year to cover our costs for the year - and in the short term, we need $169 (you read that right) by November 15.

Can we count on our fam to get us there?

Show WeClimb some 🫶🏽 and leave a legacy for the future generations of climbers.

Donate at the link in bio.

As a celebration for the start of the new season of going outside to new adventures, here’s a snap shot of what this past spring (January-April). Don’t beat us up for not sharing, we were having too much fun and forgot to share. We’ve learned to stop and smell the flowers, and to play in the mud a a little bit. Be on the lookout for more posts showing our outings this fall, and more life lessons🤙🏾#outdoors #we #diversity #climbing #fun #love

We hope everyone was safe last month despite the fires, smoke, and storms. This month has been all about pivoting. A couple weekends ago we went to Synergy Climbing Gym (@synergyclimbingandninja), one of our local Chattanooga gyms. We were excited to go outside but the weather was less than ideal due to the prescribed burnings in Northern Georgia, which is great for forests but bad for climbing psych 😅. So instead of heading to Rocktown we made due by having fun at the gym 💪🏾.

Our big lessons that weekend was pivoting. Life, climbing, and the world is unpredictable so our actions and attitudes are the only things we can control. Even if we make the wrong decision at the time, how we adjust and recover is up to us. Despite not being able to go climbing outside we still enjoyed ourselves, created new memories, and continued building our strength and relationships.

If you’re interested in volunteering with us, reach out via email (weclimbtn@gmail.com) or dm to join our upcoming outings. And you can always support our cause by donating t the link in our bio. Your contributions help us pay for insurance for the unforeseen or food to keep the kids fueled.

#outdoors #diversity #fun #climbing

Hopefully this month has been great for you as much as it has been for us and that you’ve been getting outside as much as we have. This month, we’ve enjoyed seeing everyone out climbing and appreciating the community Chattanooga has built. A couple weekends ago we attended Boulderfest, a climbing competition at our home climbing grounds, the Boulders on Old Wuahatchie. The weather was perfect and the vibes were great. We won a few prizes, met new people, talked with old friends, and had goofy conversations, making it a great day for everyone.

One of the biggest lessons we learned this past weekend was balancing and juggling life, but making sure we enjoy the people who are in our circle when we get stressed out or overwhelmed. Life can get hectic, but with the right people surrounding you, we can laugh through this journey together and create great memories.

If you’re interested in volunteering with us, reach out via email (weclimbtn@gmail.com) or dm to join our upcoming outings.

#outdoors #diversity #fun #climbing

We’re back!!! We’ve been outside we promise, here’s an update on everything that we did this past month and a half. We attended the @lookoutwildff in January and watched some amazing films. Our friends who made and filmed @Climb.Malawi won the best Southeastern Documentary for the LWFF which means we can now say that we know some celebrities 💪🏾. We partnered with @seclimbers to attend Float the Boat and the Sickness this year. We had some old and new faces show up to create some new experiences while knocking out some V-weirds. Even on our non climbing days we enjoyed the snow a little bit.

Since we had multiple outings we’ll give you brief summaries of each lesson we learned. During the film festival, while watching 109 Below, we learned the importance of our Search and Rescue teams that are mainly made up of volunteers and the strength and resilience that it takes for them to be apart those teams. During the Sickness we learned about patience, from our kids projecting a problem to us playing the alphabet road game, we understand that things may not come to us when we want it but we have to be ready to seize the opportunity when it’s there. Lastly, at Float the Boat we had an amazing day at the crag but the funniest moments were when we played a road game called “Boo the Dj”. “Boo the Dj” is a game where everybody picks a song, adds it to a playlist, puts it on shuffle, and whoever guesses who chose the song gets a point. This game shows that you can truly never judge a book by its cover, people have more similarities than you would expect, and that you may know some people a little bit too well 😂. Shout out to Kyngston because he won and apparently he knew all of us too well, especially all of the Kendrick, J Cole, and Drake fans. We look forward to seeing you guys at Boulderfest held by @lookoutmountainconservancy on March 22.

If you’re interested in volunteering with us, reach out via email (weclimbtn@gmail.com) or dm to join our upcoming outings.

P.s. apparently planking is back in style, if any of you are old enough to remember that
#diversity #equity #inclusion #outdoors #fun #climbing

Our recap of 2024 was extremely hard to condense down to a short…ish video 😁 but here’s a snapshot of our year. We took over 25 trips including 5 Events, 4 Gyms, 4 new activities, 3 Crags, 3 Parks, 1 Farm, 1 Boat Trip, and 1 Graduation. This year wouldn’t have been possible without support from our sponsors, donors, partners, and volunteers. We truly would not be here without any of you.

The last lesson we learned heading into the new year is about tradition, old and new. One of our kid’s had his birthday this month and he shared with us that for the past few years, on or around his birthday he’s been with us climbing. Unbeknownst to us, we started a new tradition! This tradition of climbing on his birthday sparks a moment for self reflection on how far he’s come as a climber and, more importantly, as a person. We love this tradition because it demonstrates how he uses climbing as a tool to connect with himself and others.

As climbers, and more importantly individuals, we have the opportunity to develop traditions or habits that benefit us, the environment, and our community. It’s not until we look back and reflect that we can see the choices that were good and others…not so much. Some helped us grow stronger and closer to accomplishing our goals, others may have caused harm or injury, keeping us stagnant or sidelined from achieving our full potential. So Cheers to the New Year, and to New Traditions 🎉 so that we can create new traditions on our own that best suit where we want to be in the future along with uplifting others.

As always, if you’re interested in volunteering with us, feel free to reach out to join our upcoming outings.

Special thanks to these top tier Partners & Sponsors:
@fourbridgesoutfitters @highpointclimbing
@burlaep
@blkoutfest
@bridgeoutdoorsatthebeth
@lookoutmountainconservancy
@ernestchinesechatt
@synergyclimbingandninja
@seclimbers
@callioperestaurant
@thecrashpad
@cruxconditioning
@groundup_collective
@eastlake_hcs @twobikeschattanooga
- All of you who donated and supported WeClimb this year!! #outdoors #diversity #climbing #community #love

Before we give you a recap of 2024 we HAVE to show you our last outing of the year 💪🏾. It was great cool day at the Cumberland Boulders with lots of laughs, catching up, and photo shoots 📸

We began our day with food and an overview of everyone’s holiday plans. Overall, it was a relaxed day and most of the kids just needed to be outside with friends to take a breather from mid terms and school.

One of our biggest lessons out of the many discussions we had centered around family. Even though you can’t choose your family, you CAN choose who you bring in as family.

At this point, most of our kids have a bond comparable to siblings … and they even bicker like it 🤷🏾‍♂️. But the moment you bring someone in as family, both people need to put in work and hold each other accountable for personal goals and how we treat each other.

For years, climbers have provided a second family for most people that may struggle to find family elsewhere. The great thing about our family of climbers is that everybody has different goals that provide different benefits, from conservation and sustainable agriculture to professional climbing and training; everybody has a role to play in this community, including taking care of our brothers and sisters, both on and off the rock.

That’s all for now - stay tuned for an annual review and preview of what we’ve got coming up this year!

As always, if you’re interested in volunteering with us, feel free to reach out to join our upcoming outings. Also - can you guess which photo was for the photo shoot 📸??

#outdoors #diversity #love #climbing

We can easily say that our first year at @farmtocrag was a success 💪🏾. Shout out to the staff and organizers that reached out to get us involved with this amazing event, and our amazing furry dog tour guide Gaia. We’ll try to condense the amount of knowledge that @farmtocrag and @sequatchiecovefarm taught us into a post, but it’s going to be hard.

First we had a group circle talking about the importance of the key values of farm to crag: reciprocity, resilience, diversity, healing/recovery, and respect. Within those discussions, we also learned about each other and ourselves. We then went on a tour of the farm, where we saw a very vocal donkey, newborn piglets, energetic chickens, and more, all basking under the sun. The kids felt at home on the farm, starting a group shoulder lean while hanging with real pasture raised chickens and volunteered to help make lunch and prep for dinner with @jenniferlatham .

You know our outings come with life lessons so here it is 😁 It takes time to heal. While discussing the role of regenerative agriculture, one of our kids talked about the importance healing physically and emotionally - and the actions taken to do that. Walking around the farm, we learned how fragile our ecosystem is and how we need to steward the land to heal. These principle translates to our personal life and climbing: whether we need to rest, reach out for help, relax by playing games (@simonsaysclimb), or be proactive in getting resources to heal, we must be an active participant in the healing process if we’re going to send it. At the end of the day, we need a healthy planet with thriving people to do just that.

Huge shout out again to Farm to Crag and Sequatchie cove farm for having (and feeding) us!

As always, if you’re interested in volunteering with us, feel free to reach out to join our upcoming outings. But be prepared: when you eat with us … we’ll catch you lacking!

#outdoors #diversity #love #climbing

BlkOut Fest keeps coming back better than ever 🙌🏾 some of our kids participated in the @blkoutfest for their third year in a row and showed up just as excited. Words can’t describe how amazing the entire weekend was, but we’ll try. The festival created a safe space for people to be themselves, learn from other Black professionals, while allowing space for other cultures to participate and support. BlkOut Fest attendees treated us like family and encouraged us through tough problems. We can’t be grateful enough for the weekend that we had.

The word of the week is LOVE. One of our kids, during interviews with @mariostan, mentioned that there was so much love being shown during the BlkOut fest. That love was shown to all our kids (and Beaux 😁) and it was equally being received and reciprocated. Whatever actions our kids see will be reflected into society and inherently in our future.

Climbing is bigger than just the physical act of climbing, it’s about the community that we are building; a community that listens to one another, gives space to each other in order to grow, and a community that roasts each other out of love 🤷🏾‍♂️👀. No matter if we are frustrated with the crux on a problem or each other, we choose to love. We choose love because anger harbors resentment, and dejection breeds apathy.

We look forward to sharing this story with you in a short doc about WeClimb produced by @mariostan, @hasslerfree, and Kendall Martin. These great moments in the doc were captured this weekend with the support of Josh (@jamsessionsproductions) and @calebtimmermanphoto. Thank you again @blkoutfest for being unapologetically yourselves and creating that space so that our kids can see what being authentic actually means.

We can’t wait to share our experience at @farmtocrag and all the wonderful food and people we met at @sequatchiecovefarms. As always, if you’re interested in volunteering with us, feel free to reach out to join our upcoming outings.

#outdoors #diversity #love #climbing

Fall is back! Last month we had a great day of climbing, conversations, games, projecting at @stoneforttn, and supporting our folks with the first annual International Soddy Daisy Festival to raise funds for the victims of Hurricane Helene.

We want to remind everyone to hold your friends and community close, and to never take anything for granted. The only way we can thrive is by making it through together. We learn the practice of spotting in climbing so that we can have our community’s back when anyone is in need - both on the rock and off.

Thank you to our awesome volunteers for helping us spot and spray beta 👀. Shout out to one of our boys, Stephen, for crushing his toughest climbs outside and pushing through that adversity. Lastly, thank you climbers of Chattanooga for getting us ready for the climbing season by donating jackets and gear for these chilly mornings.

We look forward to the rest of the climbing season, and hopefully we were able to catch you at @blkoutfest and hopefully we’ll see you at @farmtocrag. More updates to come!

If you’re interested in volunteering with us, feel free to reach out to join our upcoming outings.

P.s. Don’t forget to vote for candidates that support justice, equity, inclusion, and diversity 🗳️

#outdoors #diversity #community

Hey everybody! We’re back from our outing of the season - a trip to our backyard, the Boulders at Old Wauhatchie Pike. We climbed several problems and visited our buddies at @lookoutmountainconservancy. After our outing, we had a great meal at @ernestchinesechatt while we debriefed our day. We also talked about future outings such as the @blkoutfest and a climbing day at @stoneforttn to support those affected by Hurricane Helene.

Special shoutout to @ernestchinesechatt for providing a great lunch for us. Just as climbing is important to building community, eating together and partnering with folks who provide new experiences is just as important. Thank you again to the fine chefs at Ernest Chinese for providing a great experience.

If you’re interested in volunteering with us, feel free to reach out to join our upcoming outings.

P.s. Check out the last slides because if you eat with us we will catch you slipping 😉

Thank you again to everyone who made last nights event a success!! More recap to come, but here’s some highlights. . .

@burlaepprintandpress @fourbridgesoutfitters

Join us tonight at Burlaep for WeWatch with WeClimb!!

Here’s some pics of WeClimb’s Saturday AM outing @highpointclimbing before our event tonight 🧗🏾‍♂️

TOMORROW WeWatch with WeClimb feature film: CLIMB MALAWI 🎥

Join us at @burlaepprintandpress, doors open 6:30pm

Climb Malawi is a documentary film that delves into the heart of the vibrant climbing community in Malawi. It shares a project by The Global Climbing Initiative through which Genevive Walker, Mario Stanley, Liz Ndindi, and Scott Clark traveled to Malawi to mentor local Climbing leaders. Through intimate interviews and breathtaking footage of mountain landscapes, Climb Malawi showcases the incredible potential climbing in the southeast African country and the transformative power of mentorship.

Sponsored by @organicclimbing
Produced by @mariorstan and @theglobalclimbinginitiative
Directed by @mariorstan
Assistant Director and Director of Photography @dscottclarkphoto
Assistant Producer @walkergenevive
Created in association with @climb.malawi

THIS SATURDAY! Only a few days left until WeWatch with WeClimb!!

📣Everything you need to know📣
👀 quick double take - you saw that right!! Each attendee gets a chance to win! 3 raffle tickets and 1 beer 🍻(21+), thanks to our awesome sponsors!!

Saturday Sept 7
Doors open 6:30
mingle and hang > film viewing > panel > raffle

GET STOKED FOR
💸@burlaep donates 15% of sales to WeClimb
🍻 beer provided by @huttonandsmithbrewing
🚚🍍@fudforvybez fruit snacks truck
Raffle prizes generously donated by our sponsors 😍
- @fourbridgesoutfitters
- @highpointclimbing
- @rab.equipment.na
- @seclimbers
- @cruxconditioning
- @synergyclimbingandninja
- @thecrashpad
- @callioperestaurant
- @ernestchinesechatt

How it started ➡️ how it’s going

The kids had a great time on the walls at @highpointclimbing this past weekend! Always nice to tire out the forearms early in the season 🫠

Peep these prizes 👀 generously donated by our partners at @fourbridgesoutfitters @highpointclimbing @synergyclimbingandninja @petzl_official and more!! We’ve got crash pads, climbing gear, camp chairs, day passes, punch passes and some more surprises to share the day-of WeWatch with WeClimb. GET STOKED. PASS IT ON.

🗓️ Saturday Sept 7
📍6:30 pm at @burlaepprintandpress

2024 Summer programming highlights 🧗🏾 - we love cooling off and hanging out @synergyclimbingandninja 🤘🏿

Donate Gear?!🧣Grab a beer!! 🍻

WeClimb Gear Drive!! Bring a donation to our fundraiser at Burlaep Sept 7 to receive a complimentary beer (provided by our supporters @huttonandsmithbrewing )! Can’t make it to our event? No problem - Drop a donation at one of our partners @synergyclimbingandninja or @fourbridgesoutfitters (just let staff know it’s for WeClimb) and WeClimb reps will come by to pick it up.

We are getting ready for the winter season and need your support! The kids will be spending more time outside in the elements, and we all know climbing is more fun when you’re cozy 🧣🧤🧥

Have you seen our event flyers out and about town?!? Spread the word!! 👏🏾WeWatch👏🏿 with👏🏾 WeClimb 👏🏽Saturday 👏🏾September 👏🏿7 🎬

So stoked to host a conversation Saturday September 7, following our film viewing at our annual fundraiser, WeWatch with WeClimb 🎞️🧗🏽‍♀️🧗🏾‍♂️🤘🏼🪨

Check out our panelist bios and come hang out with us at Burlaep for our event!!

@thefallingclimber @lookoutmountainconservancy @burlaep @burlaepprintandpress

🎥SATURDAY SEPTEMBER 7 🎬

We are stoked to hold a Movie Night fundraiser at @burlaepprintandpress @burlaep in support of our mentorship programming. Join us next month! Bring your friends!

Save the date!! There will be a gear donation drop, food and drink, films to get psyched on, a silent auction, raffle, and a panel discussion ✨

no registration needed, 💲10 recommended donation
More details to come 🎉

Join us!! 🤘🏿🤘🏾🤘🏽🤘🏼🤘🏽🤘🏾🤘🏿

Interested in being a WeClimb mentor but unsure where to start?? ✨Come hang out with us✨ during our summer gym sessions!

Meet us at @highpointriverside for a morning of hanging around, problem solving, and playing some games on the routes. It’s low key, and mega rewarding.

See you there 😎🤩🧗🏾‍♂️

One of our sessions at @highpointriverside, just hanging out 🤙🏾 #diversifyclimbing #blackclimbers

WeClimb gym day from February 2024! We have some new faces joining us, getting stoked on climbing at @highpointriverside

🔥2023 IN REVIEW 🔥

We are stoked to share our 2023 summary with you!
👏40+ weeks of programming
👏11+ events attended
👏14+ climbing destinations
👏10 awesome partners

Special shoutout to our fantastic partners - thank you for your support in bringing opportunities to kids through rock climbing.
@fourbridgesoutfitters @blkoutfest @giardino.chattanooga @lookoutmountainconservancy @synergyclimbingandninja @highpointclimbing @bridgeoutdoorsatthebeth @seclimbers @triplecrownbouldering @whiteoakbicycle

Heading into comp season looking back on a festival-packed fall.

@blkoutfest November 5th was truly unique - the WeClimb kids helped lead service projects with @lookoutmountainconservancy, then had time with other @blkoutfest attendees to climb at Boulders on Old Wauhatchie. The perfect opener event for the climbing season, great group of people, and top tier vibes. We are already stoked for 2024 🔥

🌟Hello🌟Giving🌟Tuesday🌟. Excited to ⚡donate⚡to a hyper-local, outdoor and youth-oriented organization? Does it bring you joy to know your money goes straight to programming and experiences that provide opportunities to youth, on and off the climbing wall?

🔥Go to link in bio to donate to @we_climb_chatt today!!

Small donations go far for our programming. Items like crash pads, climbing shoes, insurance for our activities, and transportation to ensure we can get kids to the crag all are less-visible costs that we plan for each year. Be a part of bringing joy to these kids, and supporting our mission.

🔗Learn more about WeClimb via link in bio!

WeClimb is stoked to get back to our regularly scheduled programming 🎉 AWESOME Saturday session with the kids this past weekend, in our first get together since the kids headed back to the classroom! We got to hang out at @highpointclimbing downtown, and refresh some rope climbing skills 🤙

#blackclimbers #diversifyoutdoors #climbersofcolor #representationmatters

Our friends and partners at @bridgeoutdoorsatthebeth are in the top 5 for a ✨$25,000✨grant✨!!

Help us in supporting them, now through 🍂October 4th🍂 by casting votes!!

Visit the link in our bio, or search online via keywords "Land Rover outdoor accessibility" and cast your vote!

The kids are back in school, but our mind is still on summer! Throwing it back to WeClimb attending the Juneteenth community celebration at @bessiesmithculturalcenter. Not only did we get to check out the great food and music, but the kids spent some extra time in the museum for the music exhibit. Its not every day that the kids want to spend extra time in a museum, so we were stoked to explore an exhibit they were really enjoying!

Next up, fall temps, and more WeClimb programming 🤙

👏👏👏This is what its all about!! 🍃💧🌞
Last Saturday, we got a crew together to go play outside at a local Chatt swimming hole.

We found waterfalls, dancing, a helping hand, some very Good Dogs, and an awesome group to adventure with. This is the upside of a Chattanooga summer 😋

The kids got to rock scramble, and apply their climbing skills in new ways to explore new places they may not have felt comfortable going to otherwise. They pushed their limits, jumping into cold water, exploring some caves and cliffs, and navigated the creek by forging their own path.

#blackclimbers #diversifyoutdoors #climbersofcolor #representationmatters

We kicked off June with some gym climbing, and then headed over to our boy Stephen's basketball game, where he scored 12 pts, 5 rebounds, 6 assists, and 1 block 🏀. Stoked for the summer! More updates later this week from the WeClimb-weekend!!

We have our first WeClimb graduate!!

This past Saturday we attended Hector's high school graduation and cheered him on! Major life event for Hector, and so stoked for other WeClimb kids to be there to watch him walk the stage and celebrate together.

Hector was one of the earliest WeClimb participants - @thefallingclimber (Kendall, our founder) took Hector out a few years ago, and he really took to rock climbing. You'll find Hector at @synergyclimbingandninja from time to time, and you may be able to recognize him by his classic look of headphones over the beanie.

Proud of you, Hector! Keep reaching new heights 🤩

Another Synergy Saturday @synergyclimbingandninja, given the rain before the weekend. The kids puzzled through some problems and worked on dialing in skills on the wall. We wrapped up the morning with some time in the park to really work up an appetite for another fantastic lunch courtesy of @giardino.chattanooga!

#blackclimbers #diversifyoutdoors #climbersofcolor #representationmatters

¡las chicas poderosas! Check out these lil crushers!!

Yesterday WeClimb hosted a group of 5th graders from East Lake for their first trip to @synergyclimbingandninja and first time ever rock climbing.

The kids, who are part of an after-school program, self-dubbed their group "las chicas poderosas" (the power girls, or a reference to powder puff girls 😛).

Afterwards, @hasslerfree asked them what they liked most. Many really enjoyed the ninja room and playing around with dynamic movement, and a few were stoked on rock climbing in just one visit! A delightful reminder to us and them that young ladies are strong and capable 💪🏽

Yet another awesome day with @bridgechattanooga last week! These lovely ladies were crushing it at @synergyclimbingandninja, and we captured just a fraction of the smiles with these pictures. Looking forward to future sessions with this group 🌟

What a weekend! @bhamboulders put on quite the event, and we are so stoked to have been able to bring kids to attend and compete this past Saturday!

For many of the kids, it was their first time in Birmingham, and we hit a snag making sure there were enough seats in the carpool to get all the kids to the comp. Thank you @hunter_aleman and @katiekut for working with us on getting an 8-seater van to get all our kids to the event!! So cool to have support from the community to get the kids to the wall.

Transportation is a critical barrier to making climbing accessible, whether we are talking about a climbing gym, the local crag, or a destination hours away. The solution is simple, but its not easy. Volunteering time, donating money (link in bio 😜), and/or raising visibility of programming put on by WeClimb or our partners really does make a difference, and we saw that this past weekend!!

Thank you all!

The kids have packs and water bottles, thanks to community donations last month✌🏾🎒💧! Thanks as always to our wonderful partners over at @fourbridgesoutfitters for hosting a pack drive and donating these awesome water bottles!! We could not do it without you. So stoked to get outside and put these to the test 💪🏾

Its been a great month so far! More to come on the latest outings and happenings, but here is where @we_climb_chatt has been, and where we are headed for the next few weeks! See you out there ⛅🌻

We couldn't do it without our sponsors. Huge shoutout to @POA_TN, @nomanslandfilmfestival, and @blkoutfest for being our largest company sponsors this past year - we are able to provide our WeClimb kids with gear, meals, comp entry, and adventures through your fundraising and support. Its exceptional to have brands like you behind us and we really feel you championing the cause of equitable access to climbing and bring climbing to our kids. An extra special shoutout to our local Chattanooga rockstar @walkergenevive for pointing @nomanslandfilmfestival our way, and being an awesome role model!

We love our sponsors🖤An additional shout out to @ontheroadandoff, @fourbridgesoutfitters, @highpointclimbing, @synergyclimbingandninja, @cruxconditioning, @seclimbers, @giardino.chattanooga, @callioperestaurant, and @burlaepprintandpress for helping us out along the way! We appreciate you!!

Another lunch at @giardino.chattanooga wrapped up the Saturday gym session!

Rainy days heading into our Saturday adventures? No problem. We are more than happy to play around at @synergyclimbingandninja

Thank you @giardino.chattanooga for hosting us and sponsoring a full-spread family style lunch this past Saturday! Climbing at @synergyclimbingandninja, snuck in some time at the park for basketball, then lunch and an awesome view. Fantastic weekend for the kids.

Yesterday, WeClimb got outside with @bridgechattanooga and @seclimbers for Float The Boat climbing competition at Boat Rock - The kids felt a bit uncomfortable on slab, but by the end of the day the whole group was all over the rocks. Although these climbs are definitely different from Chattanooga, the kids got to experience some solid progress over the course of the day!

Boat Rock is a bouldering area about 13 miles west of Atlanta, featuring egg-like granite rocks along the ridgeline.

Where you’ll find us in February! 👀

Some exciting events throughout the month, from exploring new sets at the gym, to competition and conservation in GA - we are excited to be partnering again with the SCC @seclimbers, and looking forward to sharing updates as the month progresses.

Feb. 11 - Our day at the boulder fields was rained out, but we had a blast at Synergy

Feb 18 - We have a number of kids repping WeClimb at Float The Boat 2023!

Feb 25 - The kids are going to get outside at Campbellton Boulders to learn about conservation & the development of a new climbing area, dive into some volunteer work, and climb!

Busy drippin’ with THE SICKNESS!!

Thanks to the Equitable Access Scholarships from @seclimbers we attended another climbing competition over the weekend. This time we headed south to the Hospital Boulders in Alabama (pst, check it out on @kayaclimbing) We had several returning and one new climber in the boulderfield for a chilly-turned-beautiful day.

At the end of the day, we talked about what we loved, learned, and will do differently next time. The answers ranged from “that one over there” to “doing this” [smears foot on slab]. One of our favorite answers: “I learned that you can be outside in nature and enjoy a really beautiful day” 🥰

Our founder and director, Kendall, learned something too. After all, teaching and learning goes both ways.

“It was good. It put things in perspective for me because I lost a lot of strength and fitness over the past year. I was able to see the pride that the kids had in me just being black and climbing. I beat myself up all the time for not being where I want to be, especially compared to people who had the ability to train more than I did. So it was nice seeing that the kids didn’t care how hard I climbed, or that I didn’t climb as hard as I think I should climb. They were just happy to be outside.“

That’s growth. That’s what we’re here for.

Til next time…

ℹ️💁🏽‍♀️The Sickness is an annual fundraiser for SCC to keep areas, like this one, open to climbing and preserved for current and future generations. You can support their mission by becoming a member, donating, or volunteering your time. They have another comp next month at Boat Rock in Atlanta. Shoutout to all the sponsors who supported this event including title sponsor @organicclimbing and our friends at @fourbridgesoutfitters @synergyclimbingandninja @ontheroadandoff @blackdiamond @groundup_collective

We had a blast at the Wauhatchie Boulderfest this past weekend!! Thanks to @lookoutmountainconservancy for having us with support from @accessfund @highpointclimbing @ontheroadandoff @seclimbers @mario_the_climber for the comp.

Boulderfest is a climbing competition at The Wauhatchie Boulders, Chattanooga’s premier urban bouldering park. It is open to climbers of all ages and skill levels. Whoever climbs the most problems, wins! During the comp, the WeClimb kids were supported by mentors and fellow climbers. This was an opportunity for us to see our back yard boulderfield in whole a new light - and push boundaries by performing in order to compete.

We had a special surprise visit from our friend Tiffany @blackgirlsboulder and host of @blkoutfest to cheer us along. We also had delicious hot cocoa from @goodmancoffeeroasters to fuel up before the comp then tacos and beats from @seppemarch @celeppesfoodtruck for the after party.

Did you know - The Wauhatchie Boulders is named after Chief Wauhatchie of the Cherokee Nation. Chief Wauhatchie fought alongside Andrew Jackson in the War of 1812. Today, this land is protected by the Lookout Mountain Conservancy who’s mission is to protect Lookout Mountain’s scenic, historic, and ecological resources through conservation, advocacy, recreation and education. LMC runs an internship program, employing local youth from the Howard School to help maintain the property. They receive environmental education, leadership training, skills development and support. We are proud to partner with LMC to provide climbing opportunities to their interns through our programs at the gym and outdoors.

We’re dropping an annual report from 2022 soon, so stay tuned. In the meantime, we’re getting ready for another comp this weekend - raise your hand if we will see you at Hospital Boulders for The Sickness with @seclimbers !!

Thanks to Seth Carpenter and TJ Mauer for some sick 📸

THIS WEEKEND!!🧗🏾‍♂️🧗🏿🧗🏿‍♀️

We are so excited for the @blkoutfest to head to Chattanooga this weekend! Our crew has been getting strong to impress (and keep up with) festival attendees for a mentorship day on Sunday at our favorite spot - the Old Wauhatchie Boulders at @lookoutmountainconservancy

And we’re extremely grateful for the support from festival proceeds. Read below for the beta and join us if you can!

The Blk Out Boulderfest is a bouldering festival made for, produced by and centered around Black climbers.

The mission of the Blk Out Retreat + Boulderfest is to carefully curate and create a safe space for building community and celebrating and uplifting Black athletes, entrepreneurs and creatives.

The retreat is an all-inclusive experience for new and experienced climbers. This retreat is carefully curated and designed to educate and build meaningful connections between women and non-binary climbers.

The festival ends with a Boulder Buddy Mentorship day with WeClimb Chattanooga (THAT’S US!!), a local non-profit organization that uses rock climbing as a tool to help underserved youth become better versions of themselves and to increase diversity in the climbing world.

#blkoutfest
#blkoutboulderfest
#blkoutfest2022
#blackclimbers
#blackgirlsboulder

@thecrashpad
@synergyclimbingandninja
@blackgirlsboulder

@climbing4change
@arcteryx
@thenorthface_climb

We’ve been getting after it since Fall is HERE! The gym is a place where we not only get together every week, but we build skills and strength and get to work it out on the wall. A few weeks from now @blkoutfest will be in town and we are getting ready to get outside for the mentorship day at @lookoutmountainconservancy Old Wauhatchie Boulders! Here’s a recap of our past couple weeks climbing:

Last Saturday we went to Atlanta again and climbed at Stone summit. The crew were projecting a V5 that they were two moves from completing. During the session they got competitive but still had high hopes of doing it. It’s been really cool to watch the kids get psyched in trying hard, pushing themselves, and bringing others along for the challenge. Several of the boys have started about how they want to begin training so they can climb harder routes.

And we got to get out again with @bridgechattanooga !! It’s always a blast to team up with that crew and get more kids psyched on climbing. It’s great to see the WeClimb kids who come every Saturday share their knowledge and skills with others. It takes what they have learned to a whole other level.

Fall is here and we’ll see you out there in the boulderfields - look for the WeClimb crushers pulling hard and say hello!

Climbing temps are here and we are out here ready for it!👊🏿👊🏾👊🏽👊🏼👊🏻

This weekend we got outside to enjoy the Boulders at Old Wauhatchie. After hiking for a bit we got on some of our favorite boulders. Things got a little competitive as the crew tried to see who could be the first and fastest to send the no hands problem.

After moving our bodies we settled in for a meditation and nature photography stroll. Before heading home we refueled a with the always tasty food from @fudforvybez

Thanks again to @lookoutmountainconservancy for maintaining this awesome bouldering park. It’s close to home and provides easy access to climbing outside in Chattanooga. We’ll be back again soon - and can’t wait for the @blkoutfest in November!!

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