HISTORY: Trad Climbing is a form of rock climbing that requires climbers to place protective gear (wire stoppers and spring-loaded camming devices) into cracks of various sizes to suspend a person's weight or catch a fall. Traditional climbing dates back to the late 1880s in Wales of Great Britain and the Dolomites.  By 1958, Warren Harding, Wayne Merry, and George Whitmore scaled the Nose of El Capitan in Yosemite Valley in 47 days using "siege" tactics with fixed ropes.  On June 6, 2018 (60 Years Later), Alex Honnold and Tommy Caldwell climbed the Nose in under 2 hours (1:58:07).   

WATCH the WIDEBOYS trad climb the World's Longest Roof Climb [2500ft]. Plus, the highlights for the Crack Roundup 2021, showcasing Mary Eden (the Trad Princess), Brittany Goris on the Salathe Wall, Alex Waterhouse on the Kraken, and Keenan Takehashi, Conner Herson and Ethan Pringle on Empath. 

BEST TRAD CLIMBING VIDEOS

HAZEL FINDLAY

WATCH Hazel Findlay trad climb one of the area’s fiercest test piece, the bold Electric Avenue (5.13+R).

ANNA HAZELNUTT

WATCH Anna Hazelnutt climbs Once Upon a Time in the Southwest E9 6c (5.13a/b R), a steep and crimpy slabby at Dyers Lookout.

DESERT GOLD 5.13a

WATCH these amazing athletes trad climb Desert Gold 5.13a in Red Rocks, Nevada.

SQUAMISH, BC

WATCH Ryo Masumoto climbed The Shadow 5.12d on University Wall. First free climbed by legendary climber, Peter Croft.

Greenspit 8B+ is a route of mythical status. After enduring the runouts, whips, and painful jams, Babsi became the first woman to succeed.

HAZEL FINDLAY teams up with Colette McInerney  to climb one of South Korea's most beautiful and challenging lines.  

DAN FISHER sends the long-standing Vertigo Project at Namadgi National Park in Australia. 

WATCH Kyle Addy and Alex Mougenot take on Brown Corduroy Trousers (28, 5.12d, 7c) at Frogs Buttress, in Queensland, Australia.

'Progress' is a new trad route in Heubach, Germany. It combines the existing trad route 'Prozess' and the sportclimb 'Geduld Stephan' via a bouldery traverse

Watch Sonnie Trotter a.k.a. Captain Canada," trad climb a dicey 5.13 R called "Lake of Fire" in Squamish, Canada, with sidekick Alex Honnold.  

WATCH Mayan Smith-Gobat trad climb the Salathe Headwall.  This is one of TripleBlack's Favorites. 

TRAD PRINCESS

WATCH Mary Eden trad climb Supreme Manliness 5.13- in Moab, Utah.

HAZEL FINDLAY

WATCH Hazel Findlay faced off with the immaculate 230-foot splitter, Concepción (5.13), located in the desert near Moab, Utah.

WATCH Russ Clune and Sam Elias on the hardest route in the Gunks: Brozone (5.14b).

TASTE THE BRONCO 5.13c/d

WATCH Jonathan Guy trad climb "Taste the Bronco" on the famous South Star Wall at Donner Summit near Lake Tahoe, CA

THE DIHEDRAL VI 5.14a

WATCH Jorg Verhoeven free climb The Nose on El Capitan, arguably one of the world's most famous climbs. Changing Corners on pitch 27, rated 5.14a/b.

WATCH Sonnie Trotter send the Totem Pole an iconic sea stack that rises up from Fortescue Bay in Tasman National Park, Tasmania