Date: January 2019
I came in here late one Friday evening in very early January having spent the previous two and a half hours at a nearby indoor climbing wall bouldering. Bouldering? What’s that? Well basically it’s climbing to the top of low rise walls using plastic moulds as holds, with different colours denoting different levels of difficulty. Seem like a bit of an odd thing to do in a poorly heated former industrial unit in South London on a cold winter’s evening? You’d be right about the cold but odd? Not if you measure popularity by the number of other people who had turned up that evening to do the same thing.
In fact bouldering is a growth sport, if you believe everything you read in articles in The Guardian. One I found says the numbers of climbers is growing by 15-20% per year and apparently ‘sports climbing’ is making its Olympic debut at Tokyo 2020. It certainly feels like an activity with a real buzz around it when you try it out.
It was a good mate who had asked me to come along. I’d been putting it off for months. Turned off by the effort of getting there, my fear of heights and the thought of having to actually speak to the friends he goes climbing with - none of whom I know - I just didn’t think it would be for me, But as it was January and the conventional wisdom is to try new things in the first month of the year, I relented and gave up my Friday evening to it. New year, new me and all that shite.
Climbing seems to me to be the most millennial exercise activity I have tried so far. I like exercise and have taken part in many different types of physical activity in my life. A lot of these have been conventional team sports such as football, cricket, hockey and rugby. Others have been slightly different: I played American Football for three years. I'm also into running but who isn't? I have gone along to informal running groups from time to time, including one where hundreds of people run along the of banks of the Thames on weekday evenings following leaders who blast EDM out of portable speakers carried in their rucksacks. I’ve even indulged in the relatively recently reclassified pastimes of mini golf and ping pong, now deemed to be for adults because specific places have opened where you can drink booze whilst playing. In all of this however, it is climbing, or more specifically bouldering - the one without the ropes - that seems to capture the way that my generation approaches exercise.
First off the aesthetic. The staff at the centre mostly had top knots or long hair and at least one was wearing parachute pants. All of them were very 'dude' and 'man' as they took me through the safety instructions. The climbers themselves are young and beautiful - that might have more to do with the South London location. At 6pm they arrived from work to meet friends. No shirts and ties here, dress down Friday is everyday. Some of the early birds are waiting in the cafe, a flat white by their side or on the Macbook wrapping up the final strands of work for the week. There’s low level house music playing in the background. This music follows you into the climbing area where lone wolf climbers have headphones on. They don’t want to be disturbed. Others with goatees study their routes up the walls.Intimidating men with six packs hoist their shirtless selves up overhangs and women adopt incredible yogic postures on the holds in their tight fitting lycra pants. In the warm up area people engage in deep stretching or do pull ups on exposed pipes. It's all a bit warehouse rave. Free form. There's no supervision or structure. The rules here are what you make of them. Unless of course you decide to climb underneath someone else. That's not allowed.
For many it appears to be as much a social occasion as exercise. Climbers in groups chatter away in young professional tones discussing Tinder drama or new nutrition routines, comprised of Nakd bars and kombucha, all of which are obviously sold in the climbing centre cafe. Everywhere there are smartphones and photos being taken. Instagram looms large here.
If that sounds way too dismissive then please don’t mistake me, I really enjoy bouldering. I’ve been back a few times since this first visit and am starting to overcome that feeling of being out of place in my Umbro tracksuit bottoms and Nike running top as I struggle up the easy routes. I've made a mental note to buy some loose fitting, second hand jeans from a charity shop soon. That should trick them into thinking I belong. It's a fun thing to do and I’d encourage everyone to try it. Just leave your cynicism at the door and embrace it fully. Or alternatively come in early January, when you’re not allowed to be cynical.
An unwritten rule of British social life is that after any form of exertion, physical or emotional, you have to go to the pub. So that’s what we did when we finished up. The St James of Bermondsey is the nearest one we found to the climbing centre. The pub is pleasant inside and seems as though it has been recently renovated. A bit of digging in the archives of Google shows it used to be called the St James Tavern and has been open in the area another since the mid 1800s. These days it has dropped the 'Tavern' moniker and presents its visitors with an array of pies and real ale for their enjoyment.
I’ve mentioned Dry January enough times on this blog before so it should come to you as know surprise that I forwent a real ale and instead chose lime and soda as my post-exercise recovery drink. Another use for this highly adaptable non-alcoholic pub beverage.
Appearance:
It looked like lime and soda and that’s about all there is to it. Clear liquid with a hint of green. It came in a proper pint glass - this is Bermondsey, what would you expect - but the downside was that there was no fresh lime. I guess exotic fruit hasn’t made its way to this part of South London yet.
Taste:
The cordial wasn’t too sickly sweet and the lack of a fresh lime left this tasting a little bland. It’s never good when the soda water is the main flavour component, although it tasted alright. It didn’t seem like it had been there for days nor was it too flat. With a bit of a finger stir there was a sufficient amount of lime flavour in every mouthful but it still tasted too weak for me,
Price:
£1.30. A bit on the expensive side for the quality but still cheaper than a Coke or lemonade. I’ve had better for less money and worse for more. Sometimes that’s just the way it goes.
The lime and soda at the St James definitely got lost in an evening of active excitement and trying new things. Perhaps it would be asking too much of such a humble beverage as lime and soda to compete with house music, topless men and swinging from plastic holds several feet in the air but this is a blog about lime and soda reviews after all.
The pub was a good place to hang out with friends on a Friday and was certainly very busy for the time of year. It would make a good local. If you’re ever in this part of SE16, I’d recommend a visit. Finally, a big shout out to Meg from the climbing group, who helped me with the review. She also ordered a lime and soda and provided me with some feedback on it.
Sources:
Pub website:
https://www.stjamesofbermondsey.co.uk/
Pubhistory:
https://pubshistory.com/LondonPubs/Bermondsey/StJamesTavern.shtml
Whatpub:
https://whatpub.com/pubs/SEL/10712/st-james-of-bermondsey-bermondsey-east
Guardian articles on bouldering/climbing:
https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2018/aug/12/climbing-has-gone-from-niche-sport-to-worldwide-sensation-what-is-its-dizzying-appeal
https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2012/jun/28/indoor-climbing-bouldering-only-centres
https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2015/nov/28/is-it-worth-it-bouldering
