Rock climbing is a fantastic way to move your body, use new muscles, and have a ton of fun. When it…read morecomes to indoor climbing in Madison, Boulders Climbing Gym is my absolute favorite! This downtown location is exclusively bouldering (lower climbs without ropes), and it challenges both my mind and body as I figure out how to successfully reach the top! If your new to climbing, ask the front desk about how to get started! The only downside to this gym is that it can be a bit pricey, varying based on what kind of membership you pick. In total though, it tends to be the same as what you might pay for a nice yoga studio. Definitely a lot pricier than, say, Planet Fitness. Lastly, this space is very welcoming! If you are part of the LGBTQ community, they have special Queer Climbing events at the start of each month! These events are discounted and a great way to meet other climbers.

It's very small and smelly because the entire gym is matted and confined, but when there's 20+…read morepeople in it climbing and sweating with their rockclimbing shoes and the place is poorly ventilated and not cooled, it makes sense. Very weird atmosphere...it's more like a social club for college students; most of the climbers just gather around in small groups in front of the routes and talk predominately more than they climb. They mostly just perch down in front of the walls and talk and maybe climb a route once every half-hour. This is a little unfortunate because it's a very small place and they do have places for people to sit and talk and tables outside the area of the climbing, but no one uses them. It would be really nice to sense a change in their business model and see them market to rock climbers and get more energy going in the place with a stronger rock-climbing culture instead of ethnic-culturally centered and queer society, but I guess that's probably the majority of the people who pay for memberships so maybe they don't have a choice.

Good gym! I only bouldered here so can't speak to the top rope or lead climbing. You can tell it's…read morea bit older than the downtown location, but nothing is run down or whatever. A decent minority of routes were missing color grades which seemed like they should've had them- not sure if that's just random climbing team routes or what. Not a big deal though, most were grader, and it did make me try stuff I wouldn't have normally. This+ the color grade system did make it a bit harder to just quickly eyeball how hard sections were when walking around, but probably partly since I'm just not used to color grading and maybe have been coddled by my home gym. At least when I went it felt like a lot of the easier routes were actually in the super overhanging cave bit, so it took a bit to find them since I expected those to be harder. Those are all basically nitpicks though. The main thing is that the routes were really creative and fun, requiring really varied approaches. The people/vibe the gym was clearly consciously trying to foster also seemed super supportive/inclusive. I feel like this would be a great place to really learn how to climb well- the classes they offered seemed great also. Already sad that I won't be able to get back here for awhile since I don't live nearby, there are a bunch of problems I'd really love to be able to come back and work on. So overall definitely a strong recommend.

Too many unsupervised children running around in a small gym. Staff was helpful and friendly and…read moretalked with parents to try to get them under control but still really not a place for serious climbers.

Rude kids that work at the front desk. The gym is full of…read morecollege students that sit on each piece of equipment for several minutes while they're on their phones. As you wait. Absolutely no gym etiquette.

I have no participated in much at the U of I CRWC but I am here to say, it is a happening spot for…read moreyouth pool parties! The pool itself is wonderful and it is the only lazy river in town. For $250 your child and 24 of their friends can swim for 90 minutes. Its mostly available on Saturdays in the late afternoon (4pm) or evening (6pm). You swim for 90 minutes then go to a dry area that you're able to decorate to enjoy some good eats, presents and fun. You can make reservations over the phone months in advance. My son raved about the party! Just be warned parking/drop-off can be a bit tricky.

I love Rachel's core class. It's quick but intense, an ideal work out for me. It's also in a…read moreseparate space from the rest of the gym with enough room to spread out, it feels very safe in regards to Covid precautions.

From the owner: We are a training studio that specializes in working with individuals to improve their athletic…read moreperformance. Our niche is rock climbing and we have 3,000 square feet of bouldering walls to train on.

We've come for 5 years and have always had a great experience. The owner (or manager) is amazing…read moreand has come to me of her own volition to ask me how she could improve the space to be more inclusive of neurodivergent kids. Never has this ever happened in any other establishment. We also had 2 birthday parties there that both went great! The party hosts are proper hosts, super helpful and attentive. If you are a parent of young kids you know how crucial having that help is. All the staff knows my son by sight and are always welcoming and really tolerant and patient with my AuDHD son who constantly runs into every place he isn't supposed to. We feel like family here. I haven't gone on a hectic day (intentionally) so I can't speak to the rule enforcement on those days, but I can say that I have seen the strictness vary depending on the vibe, age, and amount of kids there. I appreciate this because it's annoying to have to parent other people's older kids around safety if they are being too rowdy around the little ones. They're all still just kids, though! The only improvement they could make is adding a slide or 2, but maybe that is in the future! Who knows! The most important thing to me is the intention and advocacy I have seen in management. Keep it up!

Had the best birthday party experience here for our besties 5th birthday. We had a two hour party…read morewindow which included an hour of free play, pizza party, private party area, setup/clean up and access to everything. They have a fun little kid zone for toddlers under 48". Trampolines, games, foam pits, ninja warrior style obstacle courses, lots and lots to do for all ages. (Parents included) The service and team members were wonderful and friendly. I would highly recommend for your event or just a fun family friendly night out.

Had the best day climbing with Lynn! Cannot recommend Apex Adventure Alliance highly enough. It was…read morethe highlight of our visit to Devil's Lake.

The time with Lynn was awesome. We were able to work on the skills that mattered most to us which…read morewas really helpful planning for a trip. Thanks again!

The Sett is not a five-star, super amazing dining experience, but it provides hot food, plenty of…read moreseating, and really nice student employees. The fries are so greasy, but they're so good. Most of the food is fried, and now that I think about it, I've never seen anyone eating one of their 2 or 3 salad menu items offered. For "vegetarian options," you're definitely limited; it's either a salad, fries and cheese curds, or a black bean burger that surely came frozen. I'm a huge fan of sauces, and not only that, I'm a huge fan of dipping my food IN those sauces. I avoid putting the said sauces on my veggie burger or whatever it is so that I can dip my food in the sauces. Anyways, the Sett has a "get-your-own sauces bar" with barbecue, ketchup, yellow mustard, honey mustard, and RANCH. Sometimes they run out of ranch because it's delicious, but if you let them know they'll replace it before you're done eating your side of fries. The place can be really loud when they're playing something on TV, a concert is going on, or it's trivia night. The line can also be really long at popular times, but it moves fairly quickly. Come eat outside in the summertime and expect to feel: a little bloated and a lot of contentment.

We have eaten here a couple of times and the food and drink are pretty standard burgers and beers…read morebut it is a good place to watch Badger sports with your fellow fans. The room is quite large with plenty of tables and the TV screen is huge. The prices are typical for what is average food. A good alternative to a packed sports bar.

I cannot recommend this hike enough. There are multiple trails some for beginners which go along…read morethe lake as you can see in the pictures and then a moderate hike that goes up to devils doorway. Beware ricks can be a bit slippery so I recommend grip shoes! My only regret is not bringing a swimsuit to hop in the lake as many people were swimming

Devils Lake Climbing Guides provided a great guide for my 69-year-old dad and me, 36yo. Our guide,…read moreMark, was flexible, patient, totally qualified and professional, friendly, and helpful. He was willing to teach me whatever I wanted to know about setting up top-rope anchors and he was patient with me and my dad as we climbed perfectly-chosen routes according to our abilities and desires. He was knowledgeable about the area and was able to answer most questions we had and obliged us in taking a longer hike to see some of the local landmarks on our way down from the crag. Thanks for a great day Mark and DLCG!