Joining the Club
Who can join the club?
We welcome climbers and boulderers of all standards, from those who've barely touched rock to the very experienced. Some people are new to climbing, others have been climbing for years and want someone to climb with.
New members who want to climb routes need to have a minimum level of capability: as a minimum, you need to be able to put on your harness, tie into the rope, and belay safely. If you can't do this already, then climbing walls such as The Foundry or Awesome Walls offer suitable introductory courses.
Where and when do you climb?
We meet on Tuesday and Thursday evenings: in the summer we climb outdoors on crags in the eastern Peak (generally), and in winter at the indoor walls in Sheffield. These are all listed on the website, and each climbing venue is followed by a trip to a local pub.
Days out at the weekend are arranged on an ad hoc basis, often after climbing on Thursdays, and we also have a programme of trips away organised by club members.
What equipment do I need?
If you want to climb anything requiring the use of a rope, you will need your own harness and, ideally, a belay device. Also some comfy, non-restrictive clothing (including a spare warm layer and waterproofs), and should have their own rock shoes too.
Whether you wear a helmet or not is a personal decsion, but many people choose to. On crags with loose rock around, a helmet will help protect you from falling stone. This article may help your decision: https://www.thebmc.co.uk/tech-skills-should-i-wear-a-helmet
If you decide to carry on climbing, then you'll want to get a rope and other climbing gear, but don't go mad and buy all these right at the start.
What about insurance?
Prospective club members are covered by civil liability for up to 3 months provided their details are held by the club. After that, you need to pay subscriptions to be covered. Please read the PDF file below for full details.
How much does it cost?
The membership fee is £32. This includes BMC membership as a club member (including Civil Liabiliity Insurance and other membership benefits as described here), inclusion on the contacts list which is circulated to all members, invitation to join the organised trips away, and access to the members-only Facebook group. If you wish to upgrade your BMC membership to full membership, you can do.
Members of more than one BMC-affiliated club can reclaim the portion of their subscriptions which have been paid to the BMC - the form is available on the BMC website. The membership year is a calendar year: full subs need to be paid no matter when you join.
New members need to join within 3 months of first attending the club to ensure that they continue to be covered by insurance.
Can under 18s join?
Under 18s are welcome to join us, but they must be accompanied by a parent/guardian or nominated adult who is acting in loco parentis. This is in order to comply with child protection regulations. The adult doesn't have to be a climber, but they might find it more interesting if they are, and we encourage them to join the club too and get an idea of what climbing's all about. Please feel free to contact us if you want to talk about it. If this doesn't suit you, you might prefer to look at the indoor climbing sessions offered by The Foundry or Awesome Walls.
What should I do next?
Email Steve & Ian at membership@peakclimbingclub.co.uk before you come along for the first time. To ensure you're covered by insurance, we need to record some of your details. If after a couple of weeks you decide you'd like to join us, then you can download a membership form using the link below.