Being at Vista Verde is like a playground for adults. There are so many fun toys, activities and new things to try, it can be hard to decide what to do next! This past week I was offered to join a trip out Rock Climbing with our outfitter, Rocky Mountain Ventures, and it was such a blast!
I definitely had my reservations. For one thing, my first and only rock climbing experience had been on a first date in an indoor gym, needless to say he is not still around and I have not climbed since. But everyone needs a little adventure in their life so I decided to give it a whirl.
I went with one other guest and it was like having our own private rock climbing session. It was so great, a girls day out with a rock climbing professional. We hiked into the Routt National Forest, which surrounds our luxury guest ranch, where we climbed a 5 – 6 and a 5-7 (in rock climbing terms, moderate level climbs). We both learned how to ‘repel’ and ‘belay’ for each other as well as scale the rock face.
Our guide, Kevan was so encouraging and patient. It was technically the ‘advanced rock climbing session’ offered later in the week, but I was by no means advanced. The other gal I went with, a guest at our ranch for the week felt the same way even after doing the beginners climb, but he helped us along and taught us all the tricks of the trade. We heard his stories of traveling the country to destination climbs, even using portaledges, which we learned is sleeping on a cot-like bed suspended on the side of a ledge! This did make me feel like my little adventure was nothing in comparison, but the view from the top was so beautiful. The sense of accomplishment you feel makes it all the more worth while.
Being eager to learn and hungry for a good time definitely made for a wonderful morning on the cliffs overlooking the guest ranch resort where I'm spending my summer. So if you have a desire to be adventurous and do something out of your comfort zone for a change, you will have to come and try out our awesome Rock Climbing adventures! To top it off, the rock climbing is part of the all inclusive rates at our guest ranch, so there is no extra charge for the experience.