10 Christmas gift ideas for the climber

For some, mention Christmas and you see them running off leaving you wondering what you said wrong?  Others would bake, decorate, light up their houses 3 months before. I usually don ‘t fall into the mood until the last few days and then … I panic. Are you quite like me?

If you’re already scratching your head to think of a gift this Christmas, I have a few ideas for you. Check it out.

1. Six Shooter Tank Top from Black Diamond

One of the nicest gifts as a girl to receive, whatever the occasion, is a climbing top. I can’t get enough of them. The six shooter Tank from Black Diamond is something you can’t quite go wrong. This Model is stretchy in all directions and doesn’t inhibit your movements when you need to be dynamic. The padded internal bra gives good support. The material is stretchy and highly breathable making it a good partner on hot days. The sides are ruffled, so errm, it compliments nicely to a little tummy, if there’s one to show. 😀

A harness should be comfy when you belay for hours, or while looking for beta in your projects. It has the perfect cut to hold your quickdraws while clipping the bolt without them falling between the thighs. At the same time, it should be light too. Black Diamond’s Solution harness was my answer to all these critics. 4 gear loops were sufficient during sport climbing and the speed buckle enables you to open or tighten the buckle with one hand. The woman’s harness is anatomically formed to a perfect fit. Still happy with it today after numerous road trips.

2. Vertical Life Premium

I have been using the Vertical Life App ever since it has appeared on the market. Today, it is one of the leading Apps that holds an enormous amount of Topos from around the world, allowing you to download for offline use. This year, Vertical Life has a new subscription model so that you have access to all their huge library of Topos (> 4500 crags) that is held up to date by subscribing a premium account. On top of that, you will have an access to a professional training plan by pro coaches. 100% of their premium content comes from local climbers and authors and a part of the profit goes to them to support the climbing community. What I like? You can subscribe on a monthly or yearly basis and have the whole Library in your hands . At the same time, training comes to a new level where you can train, compete, get tips and motivate yourself with your friends. Vertical-Life Premium

4. The Creek 50 from Black Diamond

The bigger the better. Sometimes, going lighter and smaller isn’t what you are looking for because you need to bring along with you a whole lot of equipment. Lately, we have a drilling machine in it too. The Creek 50 Pack from Black Diamond helps out when all you want to do is put all your things inside the bag without the hassle of compressing or having dangling gear outside the pack. Find out more about this pack in my test review or get one here.

5. TK Wide , Kleen Kanteen

Apart from climbing, hydration is an important point on every climbing trip indoors or outdoors. I used to dread drinking in summer, coz the water that was lying under the sun turned warm, and the plastic bottle made the water taste a lot like plastic too. When the TK Wide from Kleen Kanteen came out in summer, it made drinking from a thermal flask a lot more fun. The wide opening at the top made it easy to fill the contents with lots of ice cubes and drink directly from the flask. In winterly conditions, it keeps the tea warm for many hours. Find out how it performed in my test review, and here’s where to order.

6. Boot Bananas

Don’t leave Bananas forgotten in your climbing pack or climbing shoes unless they are Boot Bananas! Using just natural oils, plant extracts and antimicrobial properties inside, these Boot Bananas will neutralize odor, absorb moisture out of your stinky shoes or closet. Keeps 6-12 months with proper care and no worries, you can’t slip if you ever step on them. Available on most online outdoor stores or climbing gyms in Germany.

7. Thermopad against Cold feet, cold hands

When you don’t want to give up on the outdoor season just because it is cold outside, there will come a point when you want to think about getting cold feet and fingers warm in a jiff. You can’t take hot water bottles along with you because you will be carrying a cold rubber bottle after an hour. Thermopads keep warm for 12 hours and come as hand warmers, sole warmers to keep them toasty warm instead of pouring hot tea over your fingers to thaw it.

8. Chainson Snowline

On our last summit ascent to Teide in Spain, I thought I would be dealing with a lot of snow and had my Chainson snowline grödel with me. I was prepared for the worst and was greeted by a snowless summit in January. Ever since then, it has been in my pack in all my winterly hikes. It’s easy to just slip those spikes over your shoes and avoid slipping down on icy and winterly terrains. The ultimate snow chains for your feet in winter is handy to bring along for the next toboggan ride, mountain hut visit, ice climbing or rock climbing venues in winterly conditions. Different models for different levels and purposes on snow are available at many online shops. (Note, they are not a replacement for crampons!)

9. Hand Grip strengtheners and gadgets for training

After my last biggest finger injury earlier this year, I decided that I had to work more on my weakness – (my fingers!) before I start pinching any crimps or sticking any fingers in nasty finger pockets. A general warming up for the body was good but the fingers were missing all the fun. Grip strengtheners or hand trainers come in many forms, sizes, and resistance. There are spring, coil, articulated and silicon types, depending on the kind of grip you want to achieve. For me, the ring hand trainer in silicon was simple and ideal to use and take along as it is small and it comes in different strengths. I could use it on my desk while working, (it also takes off some steam if you’re having a bad day at work) and it’s small enough to pop it into the climbing bag, so you don’t have to be idle during the drive to the next climbing crag. These trainers get the blood circulation running quickly, and you feel that your fingers are much more flexible before the climbs. The nice side effect: your grips are stronger and fingers better prepared against injury. If you want to target fingers individually, the Gripmaster Hand Exerciser allows each finger to work alone.

The PowerFingers Set from Kletterretter are elastic disks where you stick your fingers in to exercise wrist, fingers, and forearms. It helps in cases of Epicondylitis too. These elastic disks come as a set of 5 different resistance and there’s plenty of workout combinations to try.

Another training gadget was the Powerball. I don’t consider this as a 100% training gear to enhance your climbing, but it does help you out with strengthening your forearms and grip, and losing some tension on the whole when you are working a lot on a desktop. Standing up and making those circular movements with your arms stretched out can be surprisingly strenuous after 5 mins. The more sophisticated types come with LEDs that light up in different colors the faster you go or without needing the shoelace to start the ball running. Pretty kinky, right?

10. Climbing Pins-piration by MuklingByproducts

Finally found someone who is producing pins to collect for the climbers. If you love it, pin it! Check out all their pins in their Etsy shop, here. Delivery worldwide.

Well, I hope you’ll survive this upcoming festive season. Lets feast, but don’t forget to climb too. 🙂 Let’s rock it.

*Disclosure: This post may contain sponsored products and links (not affiliated) to Brands and sponsors. I was not financially compensated for this post. Recommendation and reviews are based on my own subjective opinion.