A Pennsylvania City Has Public Park Climbing 'Rocks' That Are Completely Free To Use

Bouldering has been likened to solving a puzzle with your body while building strength and defying gravity. Honing one's mental and physical agility while mastering physics is certainly a worthwhile challenge, but as the late rock climbing legend Alex Lowe reminded us, "the best climber in the world is the one having the most fun!" Boyce Bouldering Park near Pittsburgh shares this philosophy. With 6,000 square feet of boulders including seven climbing walls and more than 100 "problems" that cater to beginner climbers at the VB level, all the way up to more advanced climbers at V10+, the park provides ample opportunities to hone your climbing skills while having a rad time.

Not to be confused with traditional rock climbing, bouldering is done sans rope with lower climbing heights, designed so that climbers are unlikely to seriously injure themselves if they fall onto a protected surface. Pittsburgh-based and professional design consultants Boulder Solutions  understood that assignment and have made sure that none of the climbing walls at the park are higher than 15 feet. In the name of keeping it fresh, the routes will be reconfigured by expert route setters twice a year, so there will always be a new "send"  to attempt.

Unlike other climbing facilities in the city, Boyce Bouldering Park welcomes participants into the world of climbing by bringing them outdoors, closer to home where the sport originated. In fact, bouldering has roots at least as far back as the 1900s when French climbers set up "problems," –- short climbing challenges across rock faces -– as a way to practice for larger ascents into the Alps and avoid possible snafus on mountain heights.

Pennsylvania is no stranger to providing wonderful outdoor adventures, such as the beautiful skywalk in Kinzua Bridge State Park. By placing the park outdoors, Allegheny County officials accomplish their aim of making sports activities more accessible to their residents. Similar to another Pennsylvania park featuring outdoor recreation in Erie, it's totally free, and it doesn't require fancy gear or a gym membership. All that's needed are comfortable clothes and a pair of sneakers.

Enter the park on a good day, and you may see the magnetic draw of the boulders as they bring the Pittsburgh-area community closer together. One visitor raved on Reddit about the scene at the park, which was comprised of families, groups of teens, and adults. The climbing panels are helpfully color-coded to indicate skill level. Green and blue are shaded for beginners, while red and black indicate advanced. Pittsburgh is known for treacherous climbs, considering it's nicknamed "America's Death Stair Capital," but you don't have to worry too much at the bouldering park as landings from your climb are cushioned by a pit of rubber. The high-quality components of the walls are built to withstand damage from any kind of weather, and are fitted with overhangs to further protect the panels, holds, and climbers.

As an additional incentive to get Pittsburgh residents outdoors and moving, city planners also built an 800-foot pump track right next to the bouldering plaza, which is another great attraction for the whole family to enjoy. For those not in the know, a pump track is a paved track with small inclines and banks designed for anything human-powered and on wheels, such as bikes, skateboards, or rollerblades. You use your body's momentum to maneuver, and the pump track at Boyce Park is designed so that you may not even have to pedal at all.

CBS Pittsburgh Reporter Boaz Frankel tried out the track on YouTube and gleefully exclaimed that it felt like being on a rollercoaster. The track is designed as a series of loops, with the outer ones being more challenging while the interior circles around a rock garden mimic the natural conditions for mountain biking. Boyce Park is easy to find; It's just outside the Pittsburgh suburb of Monroeville, and the boulders plaza and pump track can be found at the southern end of the park off of Wave Pool Way, next to the skate park.