Amazing guide, Amazing program. Last minute trip and response was really quick. Instructions were clear and payment was simple. The approach was really easy (note: drive to Clark Canyon may require a car that has a bit higher clearance). The climb itself was really nice and beginner friendly. Most were 5.7-5.9 (maybe a 5.10). Clay is really amazing at giving general routes, without giving away beta, which is much appreciated. Highly recommended!! We will definitely be back. read more

Everything was great from booking the half day to the climbing. Clay was our instructor and was great. He is a great guide and coach. I would recommend Ground Up for anyone who is new to climbing and wants a fun day outdoors. I took my 11 year old son and he had a blast. If we come back to Mammoth I will be booking another climbing adventure with Ground Up. read more

Ground Up Climbing Guides - Rock Climbing Near Me

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Just had an Amazing weekend in Alabama Hills, Lone Pine CA!! Ground Up programs are a great way to get outside & climb. Clay is very knowledgeable & experienced (not to mention easy going guy). He made our weekend sooo much fun & educational. I can't wait to climb w/ Ground Up(Clay) this summer in Mammoth!!! read more

Ground Up Climbing Guides - Alabama Hills Rocks!! - Rock Climbing Near Me

You can look at the mountain from your car, or you can put your hands on the granite wall and feel its strength as you scramble up. We would 100% recommend this as a must do activity in the Mammoth Lakes and Yosemite area. Amazing way to connect with the earth and get to climb the Sierra Nevada range a little bit. If you are at all interested in rock climbing, do not hesitate to book an outing with Ground Up Climbing Guides. Clay is a natural climber and teacher. My husband & I went climbing with Clay at Horseshoe Lake on our honeymoon. His instructions were easy to follow and we had so much fun learning how to climb. We felt safe at all times, yet he also kept upping the difficulty when we were ready for it. I can tell he would be awesome with kids as well. If you're looking for an activity to wear out your children, I'm sure this will do it! I hope to take my nieces out for a climb one day! read more

My son had the most amazing experience with Ground Up Climbing Guides. Clay was extremely responsive and knowledgeable in answering all of our questions prior to meeting. He took us to a beautiful yet challenging location and made sure my son was well equipped as well as safe. Clay even sent us photos afterward documenting my son's memorable day. He had a great time. It was definitely worth every penny and we will probably do it again next time we're in town. read more

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Excellent establishment! Clay, the owner and lead guide, knows how to run a business and take care of his customers / clients. Whether you're climbing (or whatever else) with Clay or with one of his other guides, I don't think you can go wrong. There were a few other places in town, but I don't think I would have felt as personally acknowledged and taken care of anywhere else. Clay is a great guide, but also a people person and that translates both in his private and group guiding and in how he runs his business. You're not just getting technical guiding, your getting a personable, thoughtful, tailored experience. Ask any of his other return clients. I will be a return the client for sure. Clay had a great plan for me given some information he asked for before we met in person, but then when I shared a little more information he included that in his assessment and rearranged our climbing plans for a different location. It was perfect. I'm not brand new but I'm still a beginner to climbing and wasn't looking to get my ass kicked. Just have a fun day climbing. His thoughtfulness about my desired experience and climbing skill etc we're clearly taken into consideration and I had the best climb day I could have imagined. One of (many of) his funny mantras is "it's my job to wear you out!" (Said warmly and with a smile) But he adds, "as long as that's what you want." It was exactly what I needed. The right sensitivity to challenge me and at the same time monitor my stamina/exhaustion and "having-fun" level. Thanks Clay! PS - as someone who's worked in the service industry, don't forget to tip your guide! read more

The best outdoor climbing experience I've had to date. Clay was helpful, information, and made things fun! Took two other climbers who had never climbed before and were both able to safely make it to the top of multiple routes in hours. Next time I am up in Mammoth, will call Clay again. 110% recommend. read more

Amazing experience from start to end. Super friendly people. Spoke to Clay over the phone and Robby was our instructor. Being a first timer I made 4 successful climbs and also learnt how to make knots, how to belay etc. Robby was great. This was quite a highlight of our trip. read more

We have never climbed, but signed up our energetic 7 year old for a morning session while on vacation at Mammoth. Clay was highly professional and friendly, easy to communicate with when coordinating link up, and super prepared. We showed up and his easy going confidence eased our concerns about seeing our daughter climb a cliff. He had all gear ready when we met at Horseshoe lake, equipment was clean and well maintained, our daughter was kitted out in minutes with everything she needed. Brief and Beautiful hike to climb site, my wife and I followed with our other 4 year old and 18 month old using a jogging stroller. Spent a wonderful morning in the woods by a lake watching our brave daughter learn from Clay, gain confidence and improve with every ascent and decent. He is an excellent instructor, patient and calm, communicates well with students. My daughter is a bit emotional, over confident, and stubborn, but she loved her instruction and listened to him better than I've usually witnessed. Our time with Clay was the highlight of our four days, my daughter won't stop talking about it. I cannot give a higher recommendation, more than worth the time and money. Thank you for the memories! read more

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Clay is the BEST! My family and I went climbing last week. Ages include 4, 6, 23, 41 & 48-a wide range. We ALL had a great time. Clay is patient, personable, professional and most importantly, made us feel safe while trying something new. I highly recommend! We can't wait to go again in the Spring. read more

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I recently went on a group outing with Ground Up, and it was a first rate experience all the way. Clay and his associate Taz were very helpful as they had everything set up before we arrived. Our group had four kids and five adults and there was a nice mix of easy to hard climbs. Clay also set up a repel line at the end of the day which was awesome. The whole group agreed it was an amazing experience and a great way to build confidence. 100% would use Clay and Ground Up again. read more

Ground Up Climbing Guides - Rock Climbing Near Me

Signed up with them for our 7 year old daughter. She loved it. She had embedded climbed before. They all gave her the confidence she needed to push herself. We will be doing more for sure! read more

Great day with Clay and his crew. There were encouraging, safe, and so kind. Such a rad group helping us climb for the day!! Highly recommend them! read more

So thankful for these guys! We had such a great time. Forest was so helpful, encouraging and fun to be around. He was a wealth or knowledge and it was so refreshing to just be in the presence of such a right on guy! Clay was always supportive and the best cheerleader . If you are looking for a refresher, or are a novice, ot just want some really good climbs to conquer, check out Ground Up, I know we will again. Rock On read more

As a family of 3, with an 8 year old girl, Clay made our daughter (and us) feel right at ease. He was great handling all of her questions (and there were many!!) and had the perfect place for us to climb. It truly didn't feel too easy at all, it was definitely "real" climbing... but in a location that offered a multitude of levels. We all were challenged at our levels, and it was just exhilarating. We forgot the worries and stress of city life instantly. Clay was easygoing and very professional, from the booking process through to the end. He's a great guy. Book with him, you can't go wrong! read more

It was so easy to arrange an outing with Ground Up Climbing in July 2019. The owner (Clay) was responsive to my calls and flexible with my schedule and just so nice. I had an amazing day climbing with Forrest. I'm a beginner and I felt both safe and challenged. I learned a lot and had so much fun. Forrest is very knowledgeable about the sport and a good communicator. I can confidently recommend this company. I can't wait to go again! read more

I spent 3 days climbing with Clay at the GroundUp Adult Climbing Camp. It was a fantastic experience! I'd been trying to move from gym climbing to outdoor climbing for a while and I learned more from Clay in just a few days than I had in months of trying to learn on my own. Clay was always helpful, patient and willing to teach and explain the concepts, and also made sure we all had a fun day of climbing. He catered to a wide range of skill levels in the group, and knew exactly which routes to pick for the best climbing (and photos!). I would definitely recommend climbing with Clay and GroundUp if you're in the Mammoth or Alabama Hills area. read more

The routes were alot of fun and all were quite different from each other so there was solid variety. Mike was great at answering all our questions from serious climbing ones, personal preference explanations to explaining more silly things like the history of bolt wars and such. He helped us with things that we'd just never experienced trying because of the all gym bouldering. My friend wanted to crack climb so he gave us a quick intro to the basic holds for that that differ from normal gym climbing. He was good at helping when I got a bit stuck on the rocks and telling me where to go to get up where otherwise I probably would have quit. We stayed out till we had to quit because my friend and my forearms and altitude breathing kinda made us give up. All and all a really good experience and great intro to outdoor climbing. read more

Clay was responsive and helpful when we were looking to book guided rock climbing in Mammoth. He coordinated a great location that was ideal for a range of skill levels. It was my first time climbing, and my husband's first time climbing outdoors, and I appreciated how he adjusted our climbs based on our experience. Clay was incredibly generous with his time, and you can tell that climbing is his passion. We also stumbled upon his kids climbing camp, and you can see how involved and supportive Clay is with the kids. I highly recommend booking Ground Up Climbing, whether you're a novice, a family with kids, or a more experienced climber. He can accommodate a range of skills and levels! read more

Loved it! My kids did a camp with Clay and Forrest and came home raving, so we hired them when we had friends visiting. Everyone had a great time. Clay was very enthusiastic and helpful in showing us the ropes. It was a lovely morning and we can't wait to do it again. read more

Don't hesitate, book with Ground Up now! We just came back from a half day near Horseshoe Lake. This was our second time climbing, but first time with kids. We were three families with 8 children from 2-11 yo and the day could not have gone better. We met up at the lake, got fitted for gear and did a short hike to the rock. Everyone wears their gear but we had chairs, food, and young kids. Our guides started picking up kids and bags to help us! They learned all 14 of our names and remembered them until the end of the day. This is a top notch operation. The guides are professional, knowledgeable, helpful, and simply fun to be around. They made us feel special and were very encouraging. Our kids had a blast! Thanks Taz, Trace, and Robby for the awesome day!!! read more

My family of four (kids age 13/8) went on a climbing trip with Clay from Ground Up Climbing Guides this past weekend. We had an amazing time. Clay is friendly, informative and very safe. We learned so much and had a blast. We challenged ourselves in a safe, supportive and encouraging space. My daughters had climbed in climbing gyms, but they were able to work on their skills in such a beautiful natural setting. I'd never been climbing before, but I caught on quick. I would recommend this activity to any adventurous family coming to Mammoth. And I would absolutely recommend Clay for his kindness, patience and enthusiasm. read more

I agree with everyone else - Clay was amazing with our family and everyone climbed to exhaustion and had an incredibly good experience. Route selection was great and he encouraged our kids to keep climbing until they made it to the top with huge smiles and a sense of accomplishment. And the equipment was all new. We will definitely be climbing with Ground Up Climbing Guides next summer! read more

Our family got to spend the afternoon with Clay on a beginner climbing adventure. We love the outdoors but this was something completely new to us that we have wanted to try for a while. Clay was so great with our boys (12 and 16), he immediately knew how to coach them to their strengths to build their confidence with climbing. It was such a great experience from the first contact to the end of our adventure. Thanks again for such a great climb, we hope to see you in Texas sometime!! If you are looking for a great guide to make your climbing experience the best it can be then Clay is your guide! read more

Super happy with our weekend climbing with Ground Up climbing guides! Spent two full days at two awesome locations near Mammoth. Amazing guides, Clay and Forest, were supportive and open to whatever the group wanted to learn from lead climbing to cleaning anchors, sport and rappelling. Looking forward to climbing with them again! Cheers! read more

My husband and I had never rock climbed before so we were a bit nervous. Clay made it so comfortable that we actually did quite well and had a blast doing it. He's very thoughtful and a great conversationalist. I'd recommend Ground Up to the non-experienced as well as the very experienced. read more

Ground Up organized a 2 day camp for kids. Our crew was 7 to 11. There were about nine kids total, five were our crew. This was a great experience for all. The kids were challenged and had great experiences. read more

We had a wonderful time climbing with CLay today. He was very professional, knowledgeable, patient with the kids, funny and he put everyone at ease. He chose a perfect spot for climbing and he engaged all of us to do our best. We were pleasantly surprised to see our small kids going all the way up without the fuss we get during our indoor climbing sessions. All in all highly highly recommended read more

Clay was out of town but hooked my family up anyway with an amazing guide. We had a blast and will be back for sure.

Clay gave our family a fantastic climbing experience that my kids will never forget. Clay is a professional climbing guide that truly cares about his customers. He is especially great with kids and beginners and makes sure they not only learn how to climb but more importantly have fun while gaining confidence in themselves. read more

Clay was amazing. One of the best guides I've climbed with and had an amazing time being pushed to do something harder after every climb. He showed us multiple different versions of climbing and is extremely talented. I'd highly recommend you go out and climb with him, whether you're a family, group of friends, or solo. read more