I love this climbing gym! There's a surprisingly large parking lot here (despite being in the…read moremiddle of the city), and there's even some bike parking where cyclists can securely lock their bikes. Coming from a different gym, we had to get certified for belaying. Fortunately, through their membership system, we were able to take an extremely informative class, then take the belay test at our convenience at our next climbing session. These walls are probably the tallest I've seen in my cimbing time! Even my more experienced friends say they often get exhausted around 3/4 of the way through a route. Certainly a welcome challenge for top roping. With a membership (or day pass), you also have access to the full gym and bouldering upstairs. Members also have access to a host of yoga classes at different times. The locker room is super convenient with built in locks that you need to input a numeric combination. There are plenty of bathrooms and clean showers. Definitely worth checking out!

ALWAYS a great time at First Ascent Avondale! To celebrate my brother's birthday, he and a friend…read morebouldered and my friend and I auto belayed. We all had a great time! My friend and I are excited to take a belaying class at First Ascent so we can tackle even more climbs!

Huge place. Great variety of routes. There are so many routes that you can't do them all in one…read morevisit. It would be hard to get bored of the climbs there, because there is almost always a route you've not tried yet. This place has more realistic features and cracks that other gyms don't have. The route grades seem a little inconsistent at times, and compared to the other climbing gyms in the Chicagoland area. For example, most routes feel much, much harder than that grade anywhere else. And many of the mid-to-harder grades seem better suited for taller people, as the shorter among us have to dead point or dyno to many of the holds. You'll definitely get braver and stronger climbing at Vertical Endeavors. Room for improvement: The loose black rubber flooring is always a complaint because like a trip to the beach where you find sand everywhere, pieces of this flooring comes home with you. It also leaves black stuff on your hands and feet, so I recommend that you wear socks/closed toed shoes between climbs, because it's not that easy to scrub out.

My child was attending a party here in March. Birthday child was turning 9 and so several kids this…read moreage. There were also other participants there, ranging in age from 4 or 5 to adult. Most people at the party had no experience climbing. There were some people there not climbing, including young children. After a quick tutorial, everyone went to start climbing. It seemed too quick even. I did not realize there was no staff in the general area they were climbing to help get the area ready (if needed) or clip them in. It seems this would be smart to do and it definitely is needed. My youngest was heading to the climbing area from the party room and a 9 year old was trying to get his climbing area ready by releasing some clips. No staff or adults with the party were helping. We were walking by and since the child was not strong enough to get the other clip off, the clip on the floor flew up and randomly hit me in the face as I was walking by. It all happened so fast, and I thought I lost by eye. The 5" metal clip hit right below my eye. So glad I changed into my contacts before we went because I can't imagine what else would have happened if my glasses were on. I needed to go to urgent eye and the ophthalmologist. Thankfully, the 5" metal clip hit right below by eye and it seemed I would be okay after I healed. It took 5 weeks. While I am okay now, I'm hoping I have no issues come up due to this preventable injury. They make you sign a wavier for anyone there, but it seems to be negligence on the business. Why are children and other inexperienced climbers releasing clips and clipping themselves in?! Maybe this place is good for experienced climbers, but if you are thinking to have a kid party here and most have no experience, I would look elsewhere. They need staff assisting with getting areas ready to climb and clipping climbers in. Bad enough I got hurt and thankfully the 5" metal clip hit right below my eye, but next time it might be a more serious incident.

Great gym Great workout…read moreNice people Bouldering only Many routes We Loved it Kids loved it Would recommend Will repeat

Located on the 4th floor of the mall the temperature in this gym is always perfect for climbing!…read moreThis is just a bouldering gym so no ropes. The space is large and they often have fun events to engage the community such as a kilter board competition, members meet ups, college nights, bloc fest, there is always something coming up! The staff are wonderful and super knowledgeable! If you are coming in for the first time, fill the waiver out on their website to get through everything faster.

I attended this community center for a volleyball tournament and was quite impressed with how clean…read morethis facility is. There is a second floor that reached all around the main floor, where you can view from the top or bring your own folding chair and watch from above. There is a cafe up there also allowing you to purchase food and drinks and watch the games below. There are bleacher seats all along the main floor where you can sit and watch also. Plenty of parking in front and there are a few restaurants across the street from here but you can't bring any food in as they want you to buy within. I recommend this center.

First time visiting this place on. Mother's Day weekend for my daughter's volleyball tournament. I…read morelove the ample parking, upper indoor track, the brightness of the facility, the digital scoreboards, and seating. I couldn't give 5 stars seeing as there wasn't enough bathrooms for a place so big. 2 family bathrooms and 3 women's stalls was nowhere near enough.

I've been a member here now for a few months (and a climber for 20 years) and so feel like I am now…read morefamiliar enough with my home gym to fairly review it. My favorite things about this gym: - Creative setting in the shorter walled section so you feel more comfortable trying new moves without the fear of falling too far - The layout with open sweeping views and plenty of light - The arch - tons of cool practice with overhangs and traverses - Bike parking inside! - Big area with mats upstairs to do warm-up and warm-down stretches Areas this gym could improve: - Cleaner holds! Not just Uptown - all of the locations. They're so greasy that it automatically adds a grade to any problem, and not in a fun way. - For lower-rated climbs, setting routes that aren't just jug ladders. It is possible to make beginner climbs fun and challenging in a puzzly way, but Uptown doesn't do that. It's all jugs. - More community events, and the community events that exist should be free to members. If I'm a member I shouldn't also be paying to go to sound baths or take fitness classes and participate in citizens' competitions. I've never been a member of a gym that charges its members for ANY events. There are free events at FA, but they're essentially just meetups. Anything with more to offer carries a charge.

Increasingly unsafe. Kids under 8 running around the weight room. People parking infants under…read moresquat racks in their stroller no joke. Idk how they have a good insurance policy.

Lovely gym! Very nice and informative owners, super kid friendly, lots of different levels of…read moredifficulty, with belay, auto belay, and bouldering

We brought our 6 year old daughters here and it is so much fun for them. We watched as they were…read morebuilding confidence as they climbed. And thanks to Elijah's help, my more timid daughter was able to reach the top and ring the bell!!! Extra shout out Elijah, you made their birthday a great one!

My five year old daughter is signed up for one of the kids weekly classes and absolutely loves it!…read more She wanted to take a break after six months or so (which is pretty common for her), but this was the one class that she kept asking to go back to. I think part of the reason why she loves it so much is the coaches- they are so nice, helpful and positive! My daughter comes home saying motivational phrases and telling me how strong she is. Even though she's only five, I think it truly is boosting her self esteem- not only having coaches who tell her she can do hard things, but showing her she can do them as well.

I attended an Obstacle class with Tori through ClassPass. This class is not easy: while Tori and…read moreBrian were so friendly and helped me every step of the way, but this is not a good class if you are new to working out/fitness. You need to be at a basic level of "in good shape" to attend. My favorite obstacles were the rock wall and the curved wall that you run up. As a ClassPass member, I have done a lot of fitness classes and this is one of a kind. UltiFit is located in a big office/warehouse park. It is kind of hard to find as the sign is smaller but there is good parking in front. There are cubbies available for your belongings and a bathroom. They have foam rollers and stretching aids if you want to stretch afterwards.