Best Holiday Gifts for the Climber in Your Life

‘Tis the season to be freezin’! Falalalala la la la laaaah!

Your dirtbag friends, family members, and loved ones are cold. I promise you that right now they are wearing at least one layer of down insulated something and very likely standing by a crackling smokey fire in a National Park, or on public land somewhere. 

If you’re struggling to find a gift that your climbing dirtbag won’t throw away, or put into storage, look no further! This is a Holiday Gift Guide for rock climbing dirtbags of 2022. You’re welcome.

She Fly Pants

She Fly pants have only been on the market only a short while, but they are taking the pants industry by storm. These pants are not only durable, comfortable, stylish, and extremely practical, they also have a patented “pee zipper” that unzips the crotch of the pants and allows the wearer to pee without pulling their pants down! Peeing outdoors has never been so easy. They are online at SheFlyApparel.com and are a woman owned and lead business run out of Colorado. 

Polaroid Film Camera

Polaroid is a bit gimmicky, but honestly there is nothing more meaningful to a dirtbag climber than their memories. In the age of cell phones and disappearing images after 24 hours, it is a lovely memento to have a snapshot of a time in their lives that they cared for nothing more than a fun place to climb and the good friends they had around them. 

Polaroid cameras and film are a bit more expensive than the Kodak disposable cameras you can get at any Walgreens, but the “instant developing” film is worth the extra cost. Years from now your dirtbag will be grateful they had a camera that captured the moment, and didn’t disappear after 24 hours. 

AAA Membership 

Moms and Dads, this one’s for you! Some kind of roadside assistance for your beloved climbing dirtbag is a really good idea. It takes a lot of driving to get dirtbags from one side of the country to the next, and during those long drives it is likely that they will hit a few *erm* bumps in the road, as it were. 

In my own personal experience, having a AAA Membership has meant the difference between being stranded on the side of the road overnight, and making it back to a small nearby town. It matters! 

A Winter Coat

Remember earlier how I said your beloved climbing dirtbag is probably cold right now? Well, the best way to overcome that is definitely a nice winter coat or parka. Something full of down, something that has a hood, and something that comes down over their butt. So on those really cold winter nights, they can sit around a small and smokey campfire comfortably. 

Check out the many options on the Outdoor Prolink website here. Or check out this review article that outlines some great ones.

A New Rope

Unless your climbing dirtbag is primarily a boulderer, get them the one thing that will make them feel the most safe and the most loved: a new rope! 

It’s extremely likely that they have an old rope with a few soft spots in it and maybe a few fuzzy spaces that could look like core shots if not appraised appropriately. A new rope is a heartfelt gift for a dirtbag, and as a bonus, it will make them feel safer and more cared for. The perfect gift! 

Check out the many options on the Outdoor Prolink website here. 

Crack Gloves

Can’t afford a new rope? No worries! There are plenty of gifts that the unwashed loved ones in your life will really appreciate. Consider a pair of crack gloves! They cover your hands so that when your dirtbag friend is jamming their hands into ice cold wintery cracks, they will remain unscarred and unblemished. On the outdoor prolink website, they have several different kinds of crack gloves, from ultra thin for tight hands cracks, to bulkier and more padded for fists and offwidth. 

Check out the many options on the Outdoor Prolink website here. Or this review article that goes over many types.

Belay Goggles

Another easy gift for the climbing dirtbag in your life is to get them a pair of belay goggles! These puppies are lightweight, fairly cheap, and will protect the neck of the person you love most. Belay goggles help the belayer see the climber without craning their neck up at the sky to be able to see. It’s a win-win situation. The leader gets a better belay, and the belayer gets a more comfortable belay. They also break easily, so this might be something to consider getting the dirtbag in your life every single year! 

Check out Belay Goggles on the Outdoor Prolink website here.

A Guidebook

And finally, a nice cozy, informative guidebook. This is a great gift to get the dirtbag in your life who has always talked about wanting to go somewhere, but has never really made the trip happen. Get them stoked on a place by buying them the local guidebook, this will help fuel the stoke and excitement for the area, and maybe even get them off the ground! 

Keeping within the Holiday Spirit

If none of these things seem feasible to you, remember that a dirtbag has few needs and limited space. Gift cards, easily consumable items like fire wood or tasty treats, and small tokens of love like earrings or sunglasses will be most appreciated. Larger items or things needed for more domestic living situations will not be as treasured. 

And if all else fails, you can get them a gym membership to a planet fitness so they can at least clean themselves off every once in a while. Good luck with your Holiday shopping and a happy Holidays to you all! 

Cover photo credit: Kaya Lindsay