ROCK CLIMBING APPLICATION
USER TESTING, RESEARCH, UX|UI DESIGN
A climbing app designed for the moments between the climbs.
There’s something romantic about climbing.
Maybe it’s the ritual of it all — the chalk-covered hands, the early morning drives, the photos saved afterward like little souvenirs of survival. Or maybe it’s the fact that climbers don’t really stop climbing once they leave the mountain. They replay routes in their heads. They swap stories with friends. They start planning the next trip before the soreness even sets in.
That’s exactly where this project began.
REI Recreational Equipment Inc., wanted to create a mobile experience that felt less like a utility app and more like a companion for climbers — something people could return to every day, whether they were actively climbing or simply dreaming about their next one.
The challenge wasn’t just designing an app. It was designing a feeling.
The Opportunity
REI wanted to become the go-to platform for climbers looking to stay connected to the sport beyond the climb itself.
Not just route tracking. Not just statistics. Not just another outdoor app.
Something social. Something motivating. Something that made climbers feel like they belonged to a larger community.
The experience needed to balance:
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Adventure and usability
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Community and functionality
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Energy and calmness
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Performance and emotion
And above all, it needed to feel human.
My Role
The Build
As a UX Designer, I helped lead the design of the REI Climbing App from conceptthrough high-fidelity execution.I collaborated closely with fellow designers throughout the research, ideation, wireframing, testing, and visual design process. Together, we explored how to create an experience that felt intuitive enough for beginners while still engaging for experienced climbers.
Responsibilities
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UX Research
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User Interviews
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Competitive Analysis
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Wireframing
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Visual Design
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Prototyping
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Usability Testing
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Iteration & Refinement
Timeline
3 Weeks
Fast enough to stay energized. Long enough to learn what wasn’t working.
Research & Discovery
Understanding the Climber
Before designing anything, we needed to understand who we were designing for.
Not just demographics. Not just age ranges. But habits, emotions, frustrations, routines.
I created a persona named Celeste — a tech-savvy millennial climber who values connection, personalization, and experiences that feel effortless.
She isn’t climbing for competition. She’s climbing because it gives her a sense of identity. Community. Freedom.
And honestly, that mindset shaped almost every design decision afterward.
What Users Needed
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A simple way to track climbs and progress
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Access to detailed climb information
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A stronger sense of community
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The ability to share achievements with friends
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An experience that felt organized without feeling overly technical
What Users Needed
What Wasn’t Working
A lot of existing climbing apps felt cold. Overcomplicated. Almost transactional.
Users told us they felt:
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Overwhelmed by cluttered navigation
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Disconnected from the community aspect of climbing
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Frustrated by confusing user flows
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Limited by apps that focused more on data than experience
That became an important turning point.
Because climbing isn’t only about metrics. It’s emotional. Social. Personal.
So the app needed to be too.
Problem Statement
The outgoing climber needs a mobile app that helps them track, plan, and share climbs with friends so they can feel more connected to both their progress and the climbing community around them.
How Might We
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How might we create opportunities for climbers to connect, share progress, and celebrate achievements together?
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How might we design a planning and tracking experience that feels intuitive rather than overwhelming?
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How might we foster a deeper sense of belonging among climbers with shared goals and interests?
Visual Identity
Color Palette
Nature already gave us the inspiration.
We pulled from REI’s existing visual identity and built a palette around muted greens, warm neutrals, soft blacks, crisp whites, and toned red accents.
The goal wasn’t to make the app feel loud or overly rugged. We wanted it to feel grounded. Clean. Elevated.
Like stepping outside and taking a deep breath.
The final visual direction blended:
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Modern minimalism
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Outdoor textures
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Editorial-inspired layouts
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Soft contrast and calming tones
Because even adventurous experiences deserve softness.
Sketching & Ideation
This was the messy part. The fun part. The part where ideas start out slightly unhinged before they become something real.
As a team, we explored concepts through:
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Hand sketches
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FigJam collaboration sessions
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Competitive research
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User feedback
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Inspiration pulled from climbing culture and outdoor photography
We weren’t just designing screens. We were trying to design the feeling of movement, progress, and connection.
Some ideas worked immediately. Others didn’t survive the whiteboard.
And honestly, that’s usually where the best design decisions happen.
Mid-Fidelity Wireframes
Before the visuals came to life, we focused on structure.
The kind that quietly guides someone through an experience without making them stop and think too hard about where to go next.
Our mid-fidelity wireframes helped us:
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Establish navigation patterns
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Simplify user flows
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Test functionality early
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Validate how users interacted with the experience
At this stage, the app started feeling real.
Not polished yet. But understandable. And sometimes that matters more first.
Usability Testing
And then came the humbling part: Watching real users interact with the product.
Participants
6 Users
Tasks
Users were asked to:
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Find a climb
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Start a climb
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Share their climbing results
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Interact with community content
What We Learned
Some users weren’t sure where to tap next. Others didn’t realize they could scroll at all.
A few mentioned the experience felt visually overwhelming, while others said the interface felt “too much like a storefront.”
Which, honestly, told us everything we needed to know.
We realized the experience needed:
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Fewer competing navigation paths
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Softer visual contrast
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Clearer hierarchy
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More emphasis on community and progress storytelling
User Quotes
“I didn’t realize I could scroll down.”
“I want to see more about my climb.”
“It feels like a storefront.”
“I like the SOS button”
Tiny comments. Huge design implications.
High-Fidelity Design
Once we understood where users felt friction, the interface started evolving into something calmer, cleaner, and more intentional.
The final high-fidelity designs focused less on overwhelming users with information and more on creating an experience that felt immersive and easy to move through.
Something that climbers would actually want to return to.
Design Solutions
A Softer Brand Identity
We refined the visual language with muted colors, elevated typography, and more immersive imagery that reflected both the calmness and adrenaline of climbing.
More Consistency
We created a stronger design system across screens to reduce cognitive overload and make the experience feel more cohesive.
Simplified Navigation
We reduced unnecessary click paths and reorganized information into clearer categories to make movement throughout the app feel more natural.
Stronger Community Features
We emphasized social interaction and progress-sharing to help climbers feel connected to one another.
Because the best outdoor experiences are usually the ones shared.
Better Climb Visibility
We introduced more detailed climb information and progress tracking so users could feel more informed, motivated, and engaged.
Reflection
This project reminded me that good UX design usually starts with observation.
Watching where people hesitate. Listening to what frustrates them. Paying attention to what they don’t say out loud.
I also learned that design isn’t always about adding more. Sometimes it’s about removing the extra click. Softening the contrast. Creating breathing room. Giving someone a clearer path forward.
And maybe that’s what made this project memorable to me.
It wasn’t just about designing an app. It was about designing a space people actually wanted to spend time in.
Key Takeaways
Design is never really finished. It evolves. Quietly. Constantly.
Future opportunities for the REI Climbing App include:
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Expanding across additional platforms
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Improving accessibility features
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Personalized climb recommendations
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Enhanced community engagement tools
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Ongoing usability testing and iteration
Because the best products don’t stay static. They grow alongside the people using them.