EMCA - Eastern Missouri Climbers Association

09/21/2026

Who's ready for our 5th Annual Sage Mountain Campout!? We're less than a month away!

Same great lineup as last year — live music from Brokeneck in the cave, sandstone climbing, a climbing competition, Sunday morning yoga, raffle, clinics, and much more.

Mark your calendars, spread the word, and come hang out with the community for a weekend of climbing and camping under the sandstone.

Big thanks to our sponsors: Terrain Magazine, 4 Hands Brewing, Tragur Technical, Upper Limits, Dyno Company, and Blumenhof Winery.

More details: emclimbers.com/smcc2026

09/20/2026

09/10/2026

Missouri’s state parks have some seriously underrated climbing.

From granite boulders to limestone bluffs, climbers have plenty of options to get vertical — and access continues to evolve as Missouri State Parks works with climbing advocates to improve opportunities and safety.

Check out our story below on climbing in Missouri state parks and start planning your next trip to the crag. ⬇️

08/23/2026

Mark your calendars — fall is loaded 🧗

Sage Mountain Festival 2026 — Oct 10–11, 11am — Berger, MO
Our 5th annual, and it's the big one. Two days at the cave with a climbing competition, assisted top-roping on The Three Knights, a knots clinic, crashpad discus with Upper Limits, Saturday night's Climber Celebration & bonfire (live music from Brokneck, BYOB), stargazing, and Sunday morning yoga + a bouldering 101 clinic. Sage is one of the few sandstone areas in East MO — 40 routes, 70+ boulder problems. $50 before Oct 8th, price goes up after. Tickets at sagemountaincamping.com/buy-pass (link in bio).

First Ascent Day — Oct 24, 11am — French Village, MO
Open to anyone and everyone, whether you've never touched rock or you're looking for your next project. Come climb with us.

Silver Mines Volunteer Day — Dec 5, 10:30am — Ironton, MO
Give back to one of the places that made this community what it is. Cleanup and trail work at Silver Mines.

There's plenty more! Add our events to your calendar and we'll see you at the rock!!

07/13/2026

What an incredible spring season for the Eastern Missouri climbing community! 🎉

From attending the Access Fund Conference, where three EMCA board members gained valuable education and resources to better protect and expand climbing access, to successful events at Boogerboo, Missouri State Parks, and Astral Valley, this spring has been a tremendous season of growth for our climbing community.

Thank you to everyone who came out to support our events, help with trail work, crag maintenance, route development, and stewardship efforts. Every contribution helped strengthen outdoor climbing opportunities across Eastern Missouri.

A special thank you to ReKinection for your continued support and partnership. We truly appreciate your commitment to helping grow and strengthen our local climbing community.

Keep your eyes open for our Fall Season Schedule, kicking off in September! We look forward to seeing everyone back out at the crags this fall.

Boogerboo MissouriStateParks MarkTwainNationalForest

05/19/2026

05/11/2026

Thank you for coming out to Robinson Bluff Festival

We know Friday night's rain had some of you wondering, but Robinson Bluff came through with dry rock Saturday morning like it always does. Once everyone warmed up on the walls, the rest of the weekend took care of itself.

Congrats to our comp podium:
🥇 Dylan Welding
🥈 Easton Harber
🥉 Tyler Gywiselk

Vertical Voyages climber clinic was a highlight, and the disc golf clinic brought a lot of climbers into a great new outdoor sport for those rest days. Tie-dye shirts were a hit, and the energy all weekend was exactly what we love to see.

Thank you to band Brokeneck for a wonderful show, our photographer Taryn Frances, and to our sponsors and partners: Upper Limits, 4 Hands Brewery, Trango Technical, Blumenhof Winery, Robinson Bluff, The Dyno Company, Vertical Voyages, and Terrain Magazine. The site owner was thrilled with the event and is already talking about more — so stay tuned.

We set a new EMCA festival attendance record this year and we couldn't have done it without all of you. We're excited to bring it back next year.

See you out there!

04/14/2026

Wohoo!! THE MIDWEST HAS CLIMBING!!!!

03/20/2026

❤️EMCA had an awesome Community Day at Shepherd Mountain Bike Park! 🧗‍♂️☀️

Huge thanks to Wheelhouse for sponsoring FREE shuttle rides—featuring a one-of-a-kind military truck shuttle 🚛💥—getting climbers, boulder pads, and bikers to the top! 🙌 The park also offers weekend climber shuttles for just $5

We put up new first ascent boulder problems and there’s plenty more to develop on this unique granite mountain in Missouri 🪨🔥

Big thanks to all the leaders and participants for supporting and keeping our local climbing areas alive for the next generation 💚

Next up: Boogerboo on 4/11—come out and spread the stoke!

02/27/2026

🧗🏾 This month we’re recognizing Black climbers and mountaineers who have shaped our outdoor recreation through performance, leadership, and cultural impact:

Kai Lightner — 12-time Youth National Champion and international competition climber; co-founder of Climbing for Change.

Phil Henderson — Veteran mountaineer; led the first all-Black team to summit Mount Everest (Full Circle Everest expedition).

Rahawa Haile — Climber and influential outdoor writer who sparked national conversations about race and access to public lands.

Charles Madison Crenchaw — First African American to summit Denali (1964).

Climbing is stronger when everyone sees themselves on the wall, on the mountain, and in the story of the sport.