Today I give you another active date for you and your partner. I would like to take you to Clip N Climb Leeds, just a 15-minute Uber away from campus.
We were first met with the screaming and crying of small children and the huffing of parents. My boyfriend gave me the side eye, knowing full well that this childish idea was all mine. Once we had stated the names of our booking, we were let through to the brief where we were kitted up into our harnesses and allowed to climb. Don’t worry, the harnesses were attached to ropes at each wall. Safety first!
The room was the size and height of a warehouse, with so many climbing walls all reaching six times my height. The skill level required for each wall was listed beside it, and each was decorated with wonderfully colourful designs. Some were steep flights of stairs, warped and twisted to make the climb much harder than your average staircase. Others were tree vines, some lit up when you reached a certain height and some were space themed, with massive ‘planets’ to climb over and around. All the walls were unique and varied in difficulty, making the hour of climbing adventurous and actually quite hard. There was also a transparent wall which you could climb on both sides, allowing you to race your partner as you climbed. There was even a ‘Stairway to Heaven,’ which included about 10 poles, each gradually elevating you off the ground step by step. These poles were tauntingly wobbly, with nothing to hold on to and only your balance to depend on. I did not make it to the top, my fear of heights coming into play. My boyfriend did make it to the top, of course, showing off by balancing on one leg whilst he was up there before jumping off.
And finally, to top it all off, there was a drop slide, where you hold onto handlebars which slowly pull you up into the air. I paid for my boyfriend to do this, mostly to watch him change into the little red jumpsuit and the hard hat. He was lifted into the air, holding on for dear life, until he reached the same height as the surrounding climbing walls. Then, he had to let go. Yes, let go. He fell a couple of metres before his body met the slide underneath, catching him and bringing him down into the ball pit. Funnily enough, I did not attempt this.
The hour of climbing was the perfect amount of time, and by the end I had managed to climb all the ‘easy’ rated walls and a couple of the medium ones. I would highly recommend Clip N Climb as an adventurous date to test your limits and bring you out of your comfort zone!
Written by: Madeleine Brooks
Edited by: Hannah Marie