The Dam Wall
Title: When the Wall Wins: Our Unexpected Rope Swing Adventure at Wayne National Forest
Date: September 28, 2025
Location: Wayne National Forest, Ohio
Destination: The Dam Wall
Some trips go exactly as planned. Others... turn into rope swing adventures halfway up an inverted rock face.
We headed to Wayne National Forest with one mission: climb The Dam Wall.
If you’ve never heard of it, The Dam Wall is a climbing route that’s become a bit of a legend — steep, unforgiving, and definitely not beginner-friendly. We’d seen videos and heard stories. It looked challenging, sure, but conquerable. So we packed our gear, talked big, and hit the road thinking we’d bag it in a day.
Spoiler: we didn’t.
The Wall That Fights Back
When we arrived, the reality hit fast. The Dam Wall isn’t just steep — it’s inverted. As in, leaning over you the entire time, demanding strength, technique, and a dash of courage we thought we had. We gave it a few solid tries, but between gravity, slick rock, and sheer exhaustion, we weren’t getting far.
Here’s where things took a turn — or more accurately, a swing.
Because the wall was so overhung, every time we fell or let go, we didn’t just drop. We swung.
Suddenly, our climbing rope transformed from a safety system into a full-blown rope swing. Every bail turned into a wild pendulum ride away from the wall and back, legs flying, laughter echoing off the cliffs. At some point, we stopped even trying to get higher — we just kept climbing a few feet up and launching ourselves off like kids at recess.
Did We Climb It? No.
Did We Have a Blast? Absolutely.
The day turned from a failed ascent into a full-body joy ride. Our climbing session became part workout, part amusement park ride. We shouted, we spun, we probably looked ridiculous — and we loved every second of it.
Sure, we didn’t top out The Dam Wall. It beat us this time. But we walked away with something arguably better than a summit selfie: a totally unexpected rope-swinging adventure and a reminder that letting go (literally) can be half the fun.
Takeaways:
Inverted walls are no joke.
Your climbing rope can double as a rope swing — if you’re brave (or tired) enough.
Failure can be fun, if you let it be.
Next time, maybe we just rig a swing on purpose.
We’ll definitely be back — stronger, smarter, and maybe just a little more ready for what The Dam Wall throws at us. Until then, we’re calling it a win.
