First Ascent Humboldt Park - Chicago, Illinois

Rye

First time coming to this gym location for First Ascent and was really impressed ! To start, there is not an official parking lot but a good amount of street parking in the area. Attached a picture on the front door on good places to park. The gym is very large, as there is 3 full alleys of bouldering and a small gym on the side. the locker rooms are large and there are plenty of free lockers to put your stuff in (they have padlocks on them). there is a wide range of beginner - intermediate and advanced climbs. the staff is friendly and helpful. the community at these gyms are welcoming, as i found it easy to talk to strangers about different routes and encourage eachother. the prices are fair and pretty standard. overall, a well rounded gym and will be coming back !

Miguel Angel

We came here as a group with some who already climb as a hobby and it was my first time. Kate at the front desk was friendly and professional and completed my forms and completed the intro with a video with information about climbing.
After signing a waiver and getting Climbing shoes it was time to get ready.
They have lockers to put away clothes and stuff not needed while climbing. They have an area to work out and it includes weights, treadmills, rowers, and more. They also offer group classes in one of the rooms.
Finally, they have a good size place to climb, from easy to difficult and the climbing is leveled.
We were there for about two hours and had fun climbing, if you have never done it, take it easy since you'll work out muscles all over your body.
Free parking on the west side of the side street.
Can sign up for a daily pass as well as monthly.

Henry Lin

First Ascent re-inspired me to get back into bouldering and improving my upper body strength. There are many problems in this gym with a relatively tall rock climbing wall. You can definitely find problems which fit your level and problems you will aspire to solve.

Curtis Byal

Probably the best bouldering gym I’ve ever been to. Creative routes that are challenging and fun, and a fantastic/consistent increase in difficulty that allowed for me to push myself in ways I can’t at my home gym. Only downside is I don’t live nearby so I can’t come more often!

Trina Shepherd

The friendly staff and welcoming vibe made my first time climbing an enjoyable and exhilarating experience! I appreciated the easy to follow and understand instructional video and the challenging yet skill-level appropriate climbing options. Overall, a great experience and I’ll definitely be back!

Keng

Really fun bouldering gym - one of the best I've been to around the world. Plenty of problems, and super technical route settings - a lot of focus on foot work, tensioning, balance than just plain upper body.

The grades are on the savage end, but you can really tell that the setters are good.

There's also a moon board, campus rung, scatter board, a workout area.

Cool and new location, friendly staff. Climb on!

Aaron Walsh

I've never been bouldering before so I scheduled an hour beginner's session with Ziggy to learn the basics. He spent close to two hours helping me through each of the courses, giving me tips, and answering all my questions; I learned a month's worth of info in one session. The gym itself was very clean and well organized and wasn't crowded on a Saturday afternoon. It has a weight lifting area and a yoga studio which is free for members.
Also, since the session also came with a day pass, I was allowed to drive up to the Avondale location and spend a few more hours climbing with a rope. I highly recommend both locations and will definitely be returning!

Mimi Pham

A climber's Paradise. The staff is great, always eager to help and assist you in all your climbing needs. Among the staff there are experienced climbers, Yogi's, and route setters. As for the setting, there is a diversity of climbs, slabs, over hung, powerful climbs, crimpy climbs, they have it all! In abundance! This is by far my favorite gym in the Chicagoland.