Climbing/MTB/dating scene (Denver, Arvada: school, living in, gym)

[indyatthemoment]

A preemptive thanks and appreciation for anyone who posts on this thread. . .

I'm 27 yo single dude who is starting to figure out what I want out of my city. I lived in Chicago for 3 years and took a work contract to Indy for a year. No interest in moving back to chicago as trying to get outdoors is iffy at best. Devil's lake is 3 hours if traffic is good and Palos MTB gets old.

Indy just isn't for me, the city doesn't offer much for 27 yo single, outdoorsy people and it seems the vast majority of young people live in the suburbs and the nearest climbing is 3.5 hrs at the Red River Gorge (which is awesome, by the way).

I have considered Denver as somewhat of an outdoors mecca and was wondering about local crags (sport routes) and MTB trails within an hour or so of Denver, i'd be living somewhere within Denver city limits probably with some craigslisters looking for a roomie. I'm also considering Minneapolis so any comparisons would be great. Also, what are the climbing gyms like (I'm a 5.10b/c range in sport, lower in trad 5.8/9ish).

One more point I'd love some honest feedback on is the women out there, do many women climb? MTB? I've never been much of a "shack up with random bar girls" type of guy and not too many women in the midwest seem to really like the outdoors much.

Sorry for ramblin' and again thanks to all!!!

[jeepgrl015]

well I am born and raised in chicago and will be relocating to denver this year. I am a COMPLETE outdoors person and I wouldnt be to hesitant to give up on us midwest girls. We can be pretty adventurous and outdoorsy per say when we wanna be.

If I were you and you like the outdoors I would choose Denver due to the fact that the scenery is amazing and there is would always be something new and exciting to do on a first date!

Like I said, I dont live there yet, but can only imagine all of the outdoor activities there is to do on a daily basis..

Good luck to you and I hope you find the right choice in city...I DID!

[zionvier]

Originally Posted by indyatthemoment

I have considered Denver as somewhat of an outdoors mecca and was wondering about local crags (sport routes) and MTB trails within an hour or so of Denver, i'd be living somewhere within Denver city limits probably with some craigslisters looking for a roomie. I'm also considering Minneapolis so any comparisons would be great. Also, what are the climbing gyms like (I'm a 5.10b/c range in sport, lower in trad 5.8/9ish).

check out Mountain Project for all the climbing questions. An hours drive from Denver will deliver you to a ton of places. Sport wise check out: Clear Creek Canyon, North Table Mountain, Boulder Canyon, Morrison, Garden of the Gods. Trad: Eldorado Canyon is incredible, but you'll also find stuff at almost all the ones I listed for Sport (except North Table Mountain)

Why go to a gym when you can climb outside? I've actually never been to a gym, so I can't tell you what they are like around here.

One more point I'd love some honest feedback on is the women out there, do many women climb? MTB? I've never been much of a "shack up with random bar girls" type of guy and not too many women in the midwest seem to really like the outdoors much.

Yes, you'll find a lot of woman out at the crags and on the trails. Not quite 50/50 male/female, but they are definitely out there. They definitely don't suck either.

[tfox]

zionvier did a good job answering your questions about outdoor climbing -- Colorado is indeed a climbing mecca.

As for indoor climbing, there are several rock gyms you can go to. In Denver there is Paradise, just north of Downtown Denver, and Thrillseekers, which is south of downtown. In the 'burbs, there is also another place called Rock'n'Jammin, which has a couple of locations in the north and south suburbs, it's also good. Boulder has an outstanding rock gym, but it's too far away if you're living in Denver. There are several others. Most of the cities have a rock wall in their rec centers that you can use, the biggest is probably APEX, which is in the western part of Arvada. Not quite as big as a rock gym, but some of these rec centers have very impressive facilities overall.

[katmoney]

I definitley recommend Rock'n Jam up in Thornton.

[freudgirl]

Indy,
I'm currently stuck in philly for grad school and I'm outdoorsy as well, and the outdoors scene sucks here too. I am looking to move and my short list is pretty much based on the activities I can do while there. I would imagine that there are a lot of people out there like us who want to move because of the great outdoors. I'm hoping that where I end up (it may be denver) will be full of people like me who lead an active lifestyle.