Ann Arbor

Hi everyone, 

I am trying to get a better understanding of the community in Ann Arbor Michigan. 

-What is the climbing gym scene like?

-Where do people like to live? Cost of living?

-What are some of the bigger job opportunities (besides the University)?

-anything else I should know, good or bad!

I understand there is no nearby rock, but if you have input on traveling to climbing locations please share :)

-What is the climbing gym scene like?

Planet Rock is the local gym. It is nice facility. Has sport, TR, bouldering, moon board, and cracks. SE Michigan has a fairly large climbing community. Peabody in Fenton farms Ice, and has dry tooling, also. There are also several other good gyms within 1-2 hours. 

-Where do people like to live? Cost of living?

I do not live there, so others can weigh in. However, AA is considered to be a high cost of living--especially to purchase a home. You can certainly find cheaper housing in the immediate area. 

-What are some of the bigger job opportunities (besides the University)?

In what kind of field? Many industries have record vacancies right now, so it isn't hard to find work. 

-anything else I should know, good or bad!

If it matter to you, AA is certainly ideologically pretty far to the left, but it is a nice walkable/bikable city with good restaurants, etc. There are also good mountain bike trails in the area. 

I understand there is no nearby rock, but if you have input on traveling to climbing locations please share :)

SE Michigan is close enough for a lot of easy weekend trips. Red River Gorge, Ontario, the UP, WV, TN are all close enough to drive to for long weekends, and a lot of people make the trip. If you move there, come up to the UP to climb. There is a new guidebook you can purchase from Down Wind Sports. There is also a fair amount of bouldering in the UP, and a lot of it is right on Lake Superior. 

In the lower peninsula, you have grand ledge for outdoor climbing. It is a 35' cliff. TR and bouldering. There are a lot of fun routes there, and it is on the river. On a weekend, there will be a lot of folks there climbing, and the local ethos tends to be sharing ropes and belays. So it is an easy place to just show up and climb with new friends. 

Ciarán Lynch wrote:

Hi everyone, 

I am trying to get a better understanding of the community in Ann Arbor Michigan. 

-What is the climbing gym scene like?

-Where do people like to live? Cost of living?

-What are some of the bigger job opportunities (besides the University)?

-anything else I should know, good or bad!

I understand there is no nearby rock, but if you have input on traveling to climbing locations please share :)

A2 cost of living can be high depending on what your looking for. if you cool with student living and eating cheap it's just another college town in terms of cost.

Jobs include, Tech, Engineering, education, healthcare, policy/politics, social work, environmental policy. Ann Arbor is home to a Google Campus and many R&D companies who work in Bio-Tech or Automotive. There are plenty of skill trades workers as well as a few surrounding factories and proving grounds.

Local dirt kid flavor has just about all moved to the neighboring city of Ypsilanti and both towns live in the shadow of Detroit as far as entertainment. Note that Detroit has two climbing gyms and a couple obstacle training course things? There is also an outdoor ice climbing facility about an hour north of the Metro Detroit region and a few high ropes courses if that's your kinda thing.

I'll add Devils lake in Wi. and Mad River Gorge in Oh. as nearby rock.

Feel free to reach out if you want to know more about the area.