If you've been a climber in Missoula during the last few years, then you probably felt the loss when the Missoula Rock Garden closed. The University of Montana gym has been our only alternative, and it does a great job. But as anyone who lacks a Griz card knows, hitting up a card-carying friend for a guest pass isn't the same as membership and access whenever you like.
The good news is, by late summer it appears those days will be behind us. Rumors of a new bouldering gym opening in town have been circulating for a while, and now those rumors are turning to reality in the form of the brand new Freestone Climbing Center.
Walter Hailes is the owner and force behind the new gym. We received the following update from him earlier this week,
"We are making progress. The padded floor is in the building but waiting to be assembled under the climbing walls. I will start ordering climbing holds this week, and we will soon have stacks of plywood being outfitted with t-nuts. We are currently on schedule for an August opening [with construction beginning] hopefully mid June."
You can get further details, check on the gym's progress and show your support at the Freestone Climbing Center's Facebook page.
We'll also post updates here at the Mill Creek blog as they become available.
This is great news for the Missoula climbing community and we can't wait to check out the facility once it's completed. As Dylan posted on Freestone's Facebook wall, "It needs to be August already."
