Welcome back to this years’ chapter of Giving The Gift, where the spotlight shines on thoughtful, meaningful gift ideas that smart, creative local business people or organizations offer.

Do you have a challenging person to shop for this season? Is your house already overrun with superhero action figures, DVDs, electronic debris,  or gaming stuff?

Maybe you’ve run out of ideas for a spouse or significant other? A cranky teenager (hey, they don’t read my blogs anyway, LOL) who likes nothing, or a boss who has everything?

Tell them to go climb a rock. Literally.

Passion about, and commitment to excellence of  their product or service factors greatly into my thought process, just as much as a big WOW does. And from the moment I first walked into The Cliffs at Valhalla,  an indoor rock-climbing and fitness center I was WOWWED.  Mike and I spoke, and the rest of it kicked in.

Opened in September 2005, The Cliffs at Valhalla is the culmination of Mike Wolfert’s 20+ years of  travels and experiences, and YOUR most excellent solution to the afore-mentioned troublesome giftees.

Located about 15 seconds off the Commerce Street exit on the Bronx River Parkway, simply, it is this huge space, with many engineered walls replicating all different angles of rock. There are at least 50 rope-climbing walls, and a whole big section of -I guess you’d call them freestyle?-bouldering formations. All are set with climbing ‘holds’ in creative climbing paths designed to accommodate ten different climbing levels-from absolute beginners/kids to seasoned climbers-each level designated by a different color tag.

Very clean, very  friendly, and very, very safe-here are some things that surprised me: 

• Women tend to be better climbers than men, at least early on (their natural stregnth is their core-abdomen/legs/butt-better for climbing)
• Climbing is a workout, not just a journey. You can climb as a way of getting fit, or working out those extra ya-yas.
• Creative thinking skills factor in just as much as physical ones do.
• Climbing is about setting a strategy and achieving goals-very transferrable skills in the rest of your life
• When rope-climbing, you are supported by the rigging at all times, and not at the mercy of someone else holding the other end of the rope

Here is why you should consider giving a gift certificate to The Cliffs at Valhalla: Mike and his 40+ employees love climbing, and want you to love it too. Lots of classes/packages, but best deal by far is their special Learn to Climb package.  $99.00 gets you a inital 3 hour lesson on climbing safety and strategy…PLUS a months’ unlimited climbing….PLUS a follow-up 3 hour lesson,  after that month to explore techniques and other skills. 

It’d be an unexpected and fun break from the winter yuks, and if  your giftee is  smitten, there are all sorts of other packages and memberships they can take advantage of, plus an on-site gear shop with guides, apparel, and professional-grade equpiment suitable for both indoor and outdoor climbing.

There’s lots to like about The Cliffs at Valhalla. They host loads of special events (click here to see pics) and lots of specialty classes: afterschool, Scouts working on merit badges, even at-risk and kids on the spectrum.

 But they are also good community partners:  now thru December 14th they are sponsoring a Winter Coat Drive with  1071. FM The Peak-the refreshed home’s own  radio station of choice.

These are the people, and the places you want to support. SO-go climb a rock, and tell them the refreshed home sent you!

Check out links to past Giving the GIft posts:  Enrichment, Delight, Membership, In Honor Of (then Check, Before You Send A Check),  Original Art, and Entertainment. Some of the specifics may have changed, but still snappy ideas!