The Philadelphia chapter of the American Alpine club was officially formed in the fall of 2014, but the idea has been around for years. Listening to those stories, and telling some ourselves, we kept finding a common thread. The great climbing, and the exciting atmosphere was almost always made possible by a passionate community of local climbers who found innovative ways to stay in touch with each other and responsibly interact with their crags. Which got us wondering; with hundreds of committed climbers in and around Philadelphia, why aren't there a bunch of large community-wide events, open to climbers of all stripes, that don't revolve around competition? Events that are designed to inspire and educate climbers on a large scale. Events that can bring us all together so that when a local crag, business, or individual needs a little support, we can all help them out. And while we're getting to know each other, lets have some fun! After years of networking with local climbing organizations and businesses, and building events both large and small, we jumped on board with our long-time sponsor, the American Alpine Club. Formed in 1902, the AAC has a long history of keeping climbers connected. They are uniquely positioned as a nationwide organization to support local climbing communities around the US. We became one of their official chapters with the vision of crafting exciting new events, built by and for Philadelphia climbers, that are open to everyone. So please come out, grab a drink, and get to know your community! Check out our events page for more info on what we have coming up. Climb on!
-Alex, Shawn and the rest of the AAC Philly leadership team
