gear shop in the bay area

What's everyone's favorite gear shop in the bay area (that carries wall gear & good selection of climbing shoes (like a Neptune in boulder but w/o the tude, hopefully)

I have yet to find one. Though the Yosemite mountain shop rivals Neptune's.

Yeah Ryan is right, there ain't one. Besides REI and the small gear shops in the local gyms, Marmot Mountain Works in Berkeley was the only gear shop that the Bay area had (and it was no Neptune). Unfortunately MMW went under last year. Believe it or not, the only place outside of the Yos Mountain shop for getting wall gear is the gear shop at Granite Arch climbing gym in Sac (though its been at least 8-9 years since I was last in there to buy hooks). I always found it weird that in a state with such a gigantic amount of rock, there are essentially no good shops.

Sorry man.

Don't forget Sports Basement and Lombardis. As well as the climbing gyms, PG has a decent gear selection.

Lombardis is consistently out of everything, Sports Basement gives climbing gym discounts and has decent deals usually.

No one carries wall gear other than aiders and daisies. REI used to carry pitons, Berkeley store might still have them.

The absence of a place to buy wall gear in the Bay is, frankly, astonishing, given the vast number of people here with disposable income and dreams of El Cap glory.

sunrise mountain sport in Livermore now that MMW is out of business. only been in there once but I was relieved to see that it actually was a climbing shop with gear. :)

Pretty sure they have aliens, offset cams and offset nuts at Planet Granite in sunnyvale. Have some ascenders and aiders too.

For the hardcore stuff the mountain shop in Yosemite is hard to beat.

- Luke

This is depressing. Planet granite does have a reasonable selection, but it's still an climbing gym. The REI in mountain view sucks ass. People in Colorado have internet too, but there still are a number of gear shops. Even the REI is less lame.I'm beginning to think people don't really climb outside around here. When I finally got a partner 4 Astroman last weekend, it was a Coloradan here temporarily just like me.

Ok, Bay folk. Sunrise Mountain Sports in Livermore is WHERE ITS AT!! They have wall gear, tons of shoes, a million ropes, everything you need. The staff is SUPER friendly and knowledgeable. And the owner did the 15th ascent of the nose before cams were even invented. Ya, they the real deal.

Go there. Its worth it. Dont do that REI crap. This is THE gear shop in the Bay. JUST as good as the mountain shop in the valley.

Not to threadjack too much, but...

I moved to Oakland a couple years ago and was similarly disappointed by lack of a serious gear shop. I actually arrived on the day Marmot Mountain Works was selling off its final inventory.

I'm (mostly) happily employed, but I've been tossing around the idea of opening up a used outdoor clothing and equipment shop in Oakland. I haven't done any research into the actual viability of this, but this thread seemed too related not to do a straw poll and see what you all thought.

I know that a place called Wilderness Exchange (no relation to the store in Denver, I don't think) used to exist right across from the REI in Berkeley and was fairly successful until the owner retired a few years ago.

I envision some mix of new core climbing, alpine and general outdoor 'moneymaker' products as well as a larger, curated selection of used merchandise. Leave the skis and bikes to those that already do an excellent job with that, although used skis might be included.

Would people be interested in this? Would you shop there? Do you have any thoughts about the outdoor retail market in the Bay Area or specific knowledge?

I'd love to hear back from people either on this forum or PM'ed. If you have a lot to say about it and live in the Bay, I'd buy you a beer anywhere in SF or Oakland to pick your brain.

I always wondered how that Exchange place in Berkeley stayed in business, but then they closed. They had decades worth of stuff that had been bought one day but then sat on the shelf and gathered dust for 20+ years. Best selection of leather tele boots I've ever seen hands down.

There certainly is a need in the region for a real climbing shop (and BC ski gear), but as others have eluded to, the internet allows any shopper to easily compare prices between merchandisers and as we've all seen, in the end the brick and mortar places are almost all closing one after the other. A small niche like climbing hardware probably isn't enough alone to cover costs and it would be difficult to compete with big stores like Mountain Gear to sell other climbing related stuff like sleeping bags and tents.

I'd love to see one open back up like Marmot. That was a true climbing shop and is badly missed.

A second hand gear shop with first line goods is a great formula. Second Ascent in Seattle thrives right in the middle of REIs home town AND is surrounded by great independents like Marmot, Pro Mountain Sports and Feathered Friends. Part of your research should be to fly to Seattle and spend some hang time in that shop. They do excellent business and it's a true "core" shop.

Good luck,
Mal

Wilderness exchange in Denver hands down is the best used gear shop around. I've literally sold thousands of dollars in items and bought just as many there. Their consignment is fair. The Stones had our own box full of our sale items kept behind the counter for a few years. I sure do miss that place and shops like them. It boggles my mind at the lack of gear shoos in the bay area.

Thanks for thoughts ya'll.

Malcolm, good suggestion! I'll have to take a trip up there sometime. On an unrelated note, I used to work with Mason at OB. I actually stayed at your house for a couple days one summer. You were super psyched to convince us not to bring a cordelette because it's safer to tie in with the rope. Thanks again for the tip and for the hospitality :)