Brandon Mortimore

As an outdoor lover growing up in Wisconsin, Devils Lake was a special place for me. Many weekends, summer camps, and school trips were spent grilling hotdogs by the beach and hiking the forested trails of the park. My childhood interest in geology naturally resulted in the rocks being my favorite part of these adventures.

While I was always fond of looking at the rocks, the possibility of climbing them never entered my mind. Years later, I discovered on a day trip with DLCG that you actually CAN climb them. Having no idea how to climb, I was initially intimidated. However, with some pointers from our guide, it turned out to be very approachable and fun!

This experience led me to attend a week at Teen Climbing Camp where I made many great friends and fell in love with climbing. Soon after, I joined the Boulders Climbing Team in Madison along with some friends I met at Teen Climbing Camp. With the guidance of coaches and motivation from new peers, I improved as a climber and soon found myself competing around the Midwest and traveling to incredible climbing destinations around the world.

While at home in Wisconsin, I study Engineering Mechanics at UW-Madison and invest myself in my second hobby: music. I study French horn performance recreationally with the horn professor at Madison, and I play in the UW Wind Ensemble with some of my closest peers. Between school, music, and training for climbing, I easily fill my schedule—sometimes a little too much. But in the midst of it all, I take every opportunity I can to get outside and enjoy climbing with a great view of Devil’s Lake behind me.