Plans shape up to develop rock climbing service

Alli Wendling harmonizes with nature as she moves
up the Bluff

Matt Wendling on the Bluff face

Alli and Matt Wendling

Friday,  December 30, 2005

A professional climber and writer from the US is shaping up plans to start a rock climbing service on Cayman Brac, the only Cayman Island that offers this sport.

“Climbing is like vertical dancing, and every dance is different,” explained Alli Wendling, who hopes to start this service with her husband Matt as part of a diving and beginner climbing package for guests at the Brac Reef Beach Resort next year.

Ms Wendling, who has been climbing for fourteen years, said there is always something new on every climb. Climbing on the Brac is unique, she thinks.

“I love to be outside in the natural world, to see the Caymanite bands and the fossils in the rock, the waves crashing into the shore below, harmonizing your own body with nature as you move up the Bluff.”

Sport climbing, which is the type found on Cayman Brac, is the form least likely to cause injury. 

People are more likely to be injured driving a car, she maintained. It is completely safe if you set up the equipment properly and follow all the safety procedures.

“When you fall, it is only a few feet. When people ask me if I ever fall, I say every time I climb. Climbers fall if they are pushing their abilities, but sport climbing is designed to make falling safe,” she said.

“I’m not a big risk taker,” claimed Ms Wendling, who maintains she is afraid of heights. “It’s about the movement, being a part of nature, moving up the rock, pushing my body, problem solving. It’s like climbing a really complicated ladder,” she said.

“When you are climbing, the mind and body and emotions all have to be working together. You have to be in the moment. You can’t be thinking of anything else – credit card bills, kids having problems. It’s an incredible escape from all your concerns.”

The Wendlings said they had spent an active week on Cayman Brac - hiking, biking, and snorkeling. The Island is great for adventure seekers, especially for people from the US, England and Canada, because there is no language barrier, they thought.

“People who come to the Brac have to have a propensity for adventure,” Ms Wendling points out. The Scuba divers who come and like the remoteness of the Brac might also like to try rock climbing while they are here.

“Maybe it’s something they’ve always wanted to do but not had an opportunity,” she said. Although all major cities now have indoor climbing gyms, she thinks that this might not appeal to the true adventure traveler, who likes to be outside, feeling at one with nature.

nicky@caymannetnews.com

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