Hidden Peak Climbing Gym

small gym = small community. hidden peak has been an integral part of the growing climbing community in chicago and i’m happy to say i’ve climbed in a part of chicago climbing history.

After having climbed here for over a year, I still give it 4 stars and here’s why:
1) It’s a great place to meet people who are also interested in climbing. I now have a really great climbing community, thanks to the people I’ve met at Hidden Peak. Now, I never worry about having a climbing partner or feeling unsure about my beta. I’ve met so many people through this gym that I now call my friends and climb with on a regular basis.
2) The boulder problems they set are great. THere’s a good variety of juggy and overhanging problems, easy and intermediate circuits, difficult problems, as well as fun traverse-​y problems.
3) The grades at this gym are really consistent with with I find outside. If I’m sending V3 problems and struggling on V4 problems inside Hidden Pean, I’m definitely finding the same outside. Other gyms struggle with grading, I find.
4) People here spot you on your boulder problem way more than others. Since everything is closer together, and people working problems are more likely to fall on you, people are much better here about spotting you, which I like.
5) For a bouldering gym, it’s affordable. Prices are now at $ 10/​day or $ 80 for a 10 pass.
It’s small, it might smell a bit (it’s an old place), and they have to work on their mats, but this is a good facility to visit and check out the problems here. This is a bouldering gym only, so if you’re looking for roped climbing in the city, go to First Ascent in Logan Square or Brooklyn Boulders in the West Loop.

My favorite climbing gym in Chicago. It is small but filled with every type of problem and different angle for you to climb. Strictly bouldering~! The small gym allows a great atmosphere among other climbers. The manager is Dave Hudson and one of the best climbing coaches in the nation. The gym is small but his route setting have helped create some beast climbers.

Chicago doesn’t offer much in terms of climbing, but this boulder gym seems to be «as good as it gets» in the city. At $ 7 for a day pass, it’s not bad. There are a ton of routes, but they are poorly marked and intensely stacked on top of one another. This is largely because this space is so small.
That being said, there are some interesting routes and problems, if a bit stiff. The main reason I’m giving it four stars is because everyone here was so cool and nice. Without the friendly vibe, this gym would drop a notch or two.
Bottom Line: It’s a good place to stop by and get some climbing in if you are visiting, but it would be even better to be a regular here.

I climbed here yesterday for the first time. To give you some context I am traveling for work and went over to do some evening climbing. I am usually a v4−5 climber in the gym and v3ish outdoors in NH.
There are some great problems in this gym. The biggest issue is that they are impossible to find. There is at least 4 different color pieces of tape attached to every hold, and there are NO ratings anywhere.
I found about 5 of hundreds of problems actually labeled, and these problems were EXCELLENT (v2’s and 3’s) Very stiff, but also creative and fun.
Make sure you bring your own equipment if you are traveling because the rentals here are terrible.
Overall verdict: Above average problems (when you find them) and features with a sub-​par atmosphere/​accommodations. Climb here only if you have bouldered before or you will be completely lost.

Ok, so, some of the other reviews are accurate: the ventilation in this place is lacking. However, the amount of fun you’ll have climbing all over the place like a child (and sometimes WITH a child) outweighs the funk.
I’ve been here a handful of times at this point. There are a lot of familiar faces when I go and the occasional new face as well. Everyone seems to be having a good time albeit lost in thought, focusing on a problem.
Even if you know next to nothing about climbing, try it out. It’s totally worth it.

I’m giving it 5 stars cause I can’t find anything wrong with this place! Lots of routes, friendly staff, reasonably priced, and spacious. It was my first time so I can’t speak to how often they change the routes but I have been to several gyms to compare it to and this gym is pretty awesome. I live in North Chicago and this place is about 40 minutes away but its totally worth it!

Great bouldering gym. Very «home-​like» if that makes sense. All the climbers are nice and assist each other if needed. Lots of talented climbers and variety of difficult and easy routes.
I started climbing here and went for a while.
They rate pretty high, as mentioned before. You will climb something that is a V0+, but is equivalent to a v2. I think this is a great way of pushing climbers to progress.
If you climb often, this place has an awesome deal — $ 50 for a month. Totally worth it.
Love this place and miss it!
This is a challenging gym and you will without doubt become a better climbers by coming here.

I am a very very beginning climber, but I love bouldering and I have benefited from getting started with bouldering at Hidden Peak. I struggled a lot when I climbed there, as this place is the main place I started my climbing adventure at. However, absence makes the heart grow fonder. It has been over a month since my last visit because I am taking a bouldering class elsewhere. There are many strong climbers there, so it was intimidating for me whenever I went there to climb.
Nevertheless, you have to start somewhere! If you only worry about doing your best, having fun and making sure you mind everyone else’s space, your experience can be positive and you can improve a lot, regardless of your level. I miss HP tremendously and I look forward to coming back very soon!

I’m leaving out a star for the obvious reason… This place needs to be cleaned up. It was nice and clean in here two weeks after it was rebuilt in 2010. Now, the carpets and surfaces are all coated with chalk. It seriously needs a ventilation /​filtration built into this place.
Other than that, this is hands down, the BEST place to boulder hard and strong in the city. The community in here is super tight. All other reviews that say the climbers here are a little snotty, really have no clue what’s going on. Perhaps, they don’t get sarcasm??? Maybe ??? Come in twice a week, regularly and you’ll see what I’m talking about.
One reviewer pointed out the fact that the routes are not graded. Well, if you do happen to show up days after a reset or a few weeks after, OBVIOUSLY you’ll not see rated problems. Most routes are graded based on opinions from other climbers. It doesn’t get graded til a fair share of people climb it.
The regulars here are experienced and are ALWAYS willing to help out on climbs if you need a spot. The routes are hard, but hey, people here train hard. It’s not a gym where you come in, jump on a v2 and declare yourself, The King of the World. If there’s a climbing team, you KNOW for a fact climbing is taken seriously here…

This gym is sweet, no doubt about it. the people that work there are also climbing there so at first it looks like no one’s working there, but once i stood looking like a lost new person long enough people were super friendly, extra helpful in finding the right shoes, showing me some good routes and even giving advice on ways to tackle certain problems. no one is condecending or douchey, though there are some insanely talented climbers that go there, everyone is pretty open. once you start going a few times, you’ll start thinking about it when you’re not there, that one reach you weren’t able to get last time suddenly becomes an obsession and you have to go back! and when you do you put on your shoes, chalk your hands and it’s the first thing you head to! this gym is addictive. chalk it out ;)

I have climbed in NYC, Phoenix, DC suburbs, and all around Chicago and surrounding suburbs. This place is by far my favorite! I started as a beginner climbing here and got hooked. My favorite is the 12−2pm open climb $ 7 special. The price cannot be beat anywhere. As for difficulty, i will admit, going back to climbing after taking almost 2 years off to live in a dental school cave, is difficult. But beginner climbers can work on traversing and go off course to improve. It is a bouldering gym so you don’t hook up to the harnesses or anything and it is not as tall which I like. (unless you use one of 2 short easy climbs targeted at you kids). I love it because it leaves you with independance to do what you like. Plus it is close to Blommers Chocolate factory for a post workout refuel!

Although the staff was friendly and approachable the gym itself I thought was terrible. It’s a very cramped space — the routes are incredibly messy and difficult to make out as well and, in my opinion, it just isn’t really a good ‘climbing gym’. Possibly a nice place to boulder if you’re already familiar with it, but not so much to a newcomer.

Okay, i can’t add much to what Dustin already mentioned in his review… except that, though it is primarily a bouldering gym, you are able to rope up if you want…

Edited 5÷6÷15:
This place is still awesome. Great community and the best Boulder problems in the Chicago area
2011 review:
I will say first that my opinion is slightly biased because I work at The Peak. However, I wouldn’t work at a gym which I didn’t think was great, and The Peak is a great bouldering gym! For old climbers, new climbers and families, the Peak is a great place. The climbers are very helpful and Dave Hudson (Manager) runs one of the best climbing teams in the US; Team members consistently place at national and international level competitions.
Don’t expect to see some kind of fancy LA Fitness type gym. It is a bouldering gym in the basement of gymnastics facility and it could use a little cleaning up. It is a small-​to-​medium-​sized space with a padded/​carpeted floor and lots of problems for all levels. There are vertical, over-​hung, slab & top out problems. Although many of the taped problems are not labeled with a grade, the people working and climbing will help you find what you’re looking for. There are a lot of strong, long-​time climbers here and they put up a lot of quality climbs. The number of people climbing during the day varies from a few to a lot, but there is always great energy. New holds and climbs are put up before every comp and there are resets often enough to not get bored. To me, the best part of climbing at the Peak (and climbing in general) is the energy level and how helpful everyone is. If you’re new to climbing, new to the gym, or by yourself, the community will help you feel at home.

bouldering here is pretty fun. it’s attached to a gymnastics gym, so you can watch the little kids do crazy roundoff back handsprings and balance beam routines. they are so cute! the climbing gym is in the basement and is like a weird, hole-​in-​the-​wall staircase for grown up-​ish type people.
it gets really busy during the week, which is has it advantages. people who have been climbing for a long time give good advice to novices. it’s really fun to watch the people who are insanely experienced and can do wild moves. the disadvantage is that it’s a very small spot, so it’s hard to finish a route sometimes.
generally, it’s like a dance party of climbing. i find myself tapping my toes by myself, and i notice other people doing little hip sways, while they wait for other people to finish their routes.
i usually wear a «the simpsons» t-​shirt or a white tee with really bad pit and coffee stains and several holes in it. fortunately, here you do not need to dress to impress. in fact, i’d give myself a big scumbag award for dawning some pretty grody things here.
anyway, the routes are good for any ages and skill level. it’s cool to see kids and experts enjoy the same bouldering spot.
go here, if you want to spend 10 dollars for 4 hours of unlimited fun and get strong, while you’re having a blast.

Hidden Peak is awesome if you love bouldering. If you’re looking for well-​set boulder problems on a variety of angles and a friendly community, this is the place to go.
With that said though there are some minor cons: on busy days it can get uncomfortably crowded. Be aware of your surroundings, and especially the climbers around you. Also, if you’ve never climbed before this place might seem a tad overwhelming (tons of climbing holds and tape everywhere that can be a bit hard to follow).

I finally made it back to Hidden Peak after their fairly major overhaul to the climbing area. Unfortunately, I was left with a similar impression as before, only for different reasons this time.
They did manage to deal with the stench and the excessive amounts of chalk by replacing the carpets and adding several high-​powered fans. I’m not convinced that the stench will stay away, though, since the fans are arranged so that they simply circulate the air rather than actually bringing in fresh air.
The main problem now is that despite the fact that there are hundreds of marked routes, almost none of them are rated for their difficulty, and most seem to be geared towards very advanced climbers. This means that, as somebody who’s still fairly new to climbing, (for reference, I’ve been climbing for about 6 months and can easily tackle 5.9s and V1s at other gyms) I had to spend a significant amount of time during my visit just trying to find routes that were an appropriate difficulty for me, and I still only ended up finding about 6.
The end result is a gym that is likely perfect for experienced, advanced climbers, but for beginners and more casual climbers, there’s not enough there to draw you back for more than one visit. I’ll probably give it another shot in 6 months when my climbing skills have progressed, but for now I’ll definitely be taking my climbing dollars elsewhere.

The problems are under-​rated (e.g. something labeled as a V0+ is actually more like a V2) and it’s super tiny, but it is pretty awesome none the less. Everyone is friendly and they change problems often enough to keep it interesting. Over all, Hidden Peak is a fun and challenging bouldering gym and it beats driving out to the suburbs or going down state!
Well. .. almost. I have a pretty big heart-​on for Upper Limits in Bloomington!