Route reading is how you climb before you climb. It’s the process of studying a boulder or route and solving
it with your eyes before pulling on. This lesson covers:
Identifying sequences and possible cruxes
Visualizing moves and body positions
Improving onsight efficiency and redpoint planning
What is Route Reading?
Route reading is part detective work, part movement rehearsal. It sharpens your mental map of the climb — and
helps avoid costly mid-route surprises. Look for:
Hold Types: Are they incuts, slopers, crimps? What direction will they pull best?
Foot Options: Spot edges, smears, or sneaky toe hooks before you commit
Body Flow: Is the route right-left-right? Does it rise diagonally or demand
compression?
Every good climber builds the send twice — first in their head, then on the wall.
The Process: Read, Rehearse, Refine
[Image - Climber Pointing Out a Crux Sequence]
Route reading isn’t just passive scanning. It’s active rehearsal. Here’s how to do it well:
Bottom-Up Pass: Start with your hands — what’s your likely first sequence?
Foot Path Pass: Rewalk it with eyes, focusing just on feet. They’ll make or break flow.
Crux Scan: Look for the most uncertain or powerful move. That’s your mental anchor —
solve that, and the rest will follow.
Full Rehearsal: Mimic the movement. Gesture with your hands, step through in place,
imagine the shift in weight and direction.
Route Reading vs Improvising
Reading: Plan A. Structured. Efficient. Based on visual logic and past experience.
Improvising: What happens when Plan A breaks. Still valuable — but slower and more prone to
errors.
Ideally, you want your read to be 90% right. Improvisation should be a backup — not the whole performance.
Common Pitfalls and Fixes
Overconfidence: Don’t assume it’s easy because it looks simple. Check the angle, the
reach, the match points.
Skipping Feet: Hands don’t move without feet. If you didn’t spot the smear, your
sequence will feel off mid-send.
Reading Too Fast: Especially on onsight. Slow down. A 30-second scan can prevent a
2-minute flail.
Not Re-reading After Fails: Don’t just throw yourself at it again. Re-check the problem
and revise the beta.
Quick Tips:
Film your flash attempts and compare to your initial plan.
Practice silent rehearsals — visualize full routes in your head start to finish.
In comps or onsight practice, treat preview time like gold. Don’t talk. Read.
Use hand gestures to walk the sequence — even pros do it.
Do post-send reviews. What did your initial read miss?
Summary
Route reading is one of the most underrated skills in climbing. It’s the difference between a clean flash and
a sloppy burn. Build the habit of intentional pre-send analysis — scan, visualize, rehearse. The more you
climb with your brain first, the less your body has to guess. And in climbing, guessing costs energy — or
the send.