La Roca Boulders

“Awesome gym! The setting is fantastic, my favourite in Melbourne, they seem to continuously use their good selection of holds in novel ways to create engaging climbs that I would say mostly mimic outdoor style movements. Occasionally (and definitely currently after their 10/10 social comp) there are some comp style climbs, which I think still blend elements of technicality to enhance difficulty, as opposed to moving holds further apart or making them worse. Literally the only knock I could give is that their main boulder hall is quite small and gets very busy on certain evenings. However they bought a warehouse and put in a 24hr spray wall and gym facility 😎 15° kilter-sized spray (perfect for Enduro circuits), a 30° kilter-size spray (good for warming up), and a massive barrel wall (I think goes from 60°-45°, is mega). These walls are used less frequently but still have a lovely social crowd to hang with (which is very much reflected in the main gym too), again my only knock would be that the barrel needs more slopers/macros, it's crimp heavy which I love but it's hard to work slopers which are somewhat of a weakness for me. All of this is forgotten though because I can enter at 11pm on a Friday night and leave at 3am on Saturday morning with the 24hr access card. Also they seem to genuinely care about the community they've built, in the short time I've been a member I've seen them offer out sponsorships to get P.O.C. into climbing, host a fine dining pop up in their car park, and put on a fantastic social competition with a ridiculous amount of prizes, free food from said pop up, free gelato, free prizes for the winning team, mini games, and I think most impressively, equal prizes for all gender categories at the advanced level (something Victorian State Championships didn't do when I climbed in their inclusive category). I put so much time into the review because I am genuinely very impressed with their business model. As someone who despises capitalism, they've actually made a 3rd space that is safe and fun to be in, while using the money they've generated from said space to give back to the people who frequent it, something I wish more gyms did to this scale. Some other final points: •Fantastic coffee •Cool merch •Parking is terrible most times, you will likely have to park around the corner •Mats in the cave area are stiff AF but adds a nice "am I going to wind myself" to the sketchy high heel lay back that I personally love •Top out section •Moonboard (2016 I think but I have no idea I'm a Kilter bro sadly) •Bring back the stickers please I got a new drink bottle •45 wall is king, always has good lines on it”

“I stopped by this rock climbing gym today—not to climb (still working up the nerve for that!)—but to check it out and grab a coffee. While I can't speak to the climbing itself, the place had a great vibe, super friendly staff, and surprisingly fantastic coffee. Seriously, I wasn’t expecting to get one of the best lattes I’ve had in a while at a climbing gym. The space looked clean and well-maintained, with lots of people clearly enjoying themselves on the walls. Who knows—next time I might actually try climbing. For now, though, I’ll keep coming back for the caffeine and atmosphere.”

“Beautifully crafted climbing gym. I find it has more unique holds, angles and styles. Spacious and good util. There is a separate area/annex focused around training. Friendly staff and community. Dog friendly too of course. The only negative after going here for a bit, is on warmer days, I feel like I'm cooking like a rotisserie chicken. Coffee is beautiful though, drinkable straight away vs other places which are immediate fiery chaos in your mouth. Coffee: 5 Service: 5 Atmosphere: 4”

“Usually go to Boulder lab. This one is smaller but still has many different climbs, very friendly staff and nice atmosphere. The drinks are also very good. There are lots of beginner friendly climbs as well for those who want to get started with bouldering.”