Building your own outdoor climbing wall - How to do it

A home outdoor climbing wall is something we all envy professional climbers. There really is nothing better than having your own practice space like mine Adam Ondra, Rabutou or Shauna Coxsey. In the same spirit as we built the DIY trapeze and the campus, today we will look at an outdoor climbing wall (of course, the name does not prevent you from putting it inside). At the outset, however, we must emphasize that this is the most difficult project in terms of both finances and time and effort.

Which wall do we mean?

Step 1: Where?

Just like the campus and the trapeze, the home climbing wall has to be put somewhere. For those who live in apartments, it should be noted that you probably don't have enough space for such a structure. It is therefore ideal to place the wall outside or in your own premises. Somewhere where it is possible (as far as possible) to guarantee dryness and peace from animals that would try to eat the wooden structure.

Step 2: Fastening

There are three main ways to anchor a climbing wall. The first and also the easiest way is to build it as a separate structure. The second option is to attach a climbing wall using carabiners to the wall. This will save you a lot of space if you want to have a wall in small spaces. The last option is to have the wall as "part of the wall", when the climbing wall becomes a de facto part of the house. However, this is the most difficult option that we are honestly not capable of, so we will not cover it today. 

Step 3: Material

This is where we get into financially sensitive territory. For a basic climbing wall, you will need wooden boards (number according to the size of the wall), beams, mattresses (boulder mats), holds and steps, and loads of things to tie it all together. Among them screws, bolts, nuts, washers and so on. Keep in mind that two wooden structures and 4 struts will need to be built, so a lot of wood is needed.

Step 4: Planning

Before embarking on this ambitious project, it's good to think about what you really want. The slope of the wall, the difficulty of the climb and the landing are the main areas of this concern. The incline depends on your ability as a climber. In general, however, we would recommend avoiding tilts greater than 45 degrees and rather sticking to around 15-30 degrees.

Grips are what make your wall the precise tool you want to have. The more of them you have available, the more variability the wall will give you. Of course we know that it is very expensive to buy new grips, especially the bigger ones. So take a look at the local walls. It often happens that they dispose of old, worn-out grips for a fairly good price. 

The landing pad is the last thing that needs to be solved. The surest way to guarantee a good landing is to have "two structures". That is, an area, as big as the wall itself, that will be filled with mattresses. To begin with, you can put old mattresses from beds here. After a while, however, we recommend bouldering shoes. 

Step 5: Construction

The construction of the wall itself is relatively "simple", but it takes a long time. First, you need to create the torso of the walls from boards and strengthen it along the edges with a frame. The next step is similar, i.e. build only a frame the same size as the wall itself. There is, of course, an option to build only the main wall with supports. This way you save space and material. However, it should be remembered that the supports should stand on pedestals so that they do not break into the ground and are more stable.

After you have the frame/s, it's time for the supports. This is where planning comes in handy, as the angle of the wall must be set and held. There will be 4 supports, two on each side of the wall itself. The first, short one, will be in the middle of the wall, and the second one will be at the very top.

It is important to find an adequate method of connecting all the pieces together. As it varies between materials and types of wood, we will not advise you here. It will be much safer to ask where you bought the material. However, what we can say is that you should avoid gluing wood. Although it is a fixed version of the connection, it is not ideal for a climbing wall.

Step 6: Catches

The last step is the grips. We recommend looking at the wall you are climbing. It probably has its own spray wall, which you are familiar with. If you have a lot of catches available, you can play without limits. If not, try building some boulder problems or holds so that you can climb on them, for example, fitness wheels.

Exercise on a home outdoor climbing wall

Depending on how perfect your climbing wall is, you will practice. With lots of grips, you can do practically anything. A smaller number claim more patience and more recovery of paths and problems, but even this leads to results. At VARP, we use the LATTICE application to practice on the spray wall or we climb simple wheels for time. But we believe that when you climb, you will find what suits you and the outdoor climbing wall will grow close to your heart.