Decolonizing Climbing in Malawi and Beyond

Funny story: When Genevive Walker landed at the airport in Malawi, she had this feeling that she’d arrived in her “homeland.” But then she looked over and saw a white family. “We were all shocked,” Walker remembers. “I didn’t realize that Malawi is a big tourist country.”

While it may have been news to Walker, many travel to this southeast African nation to explore Lake Malawi, Africa’s second largest lake by volume. International climbers come for the bomber granite of Mulanje, Africa’s tallest rock wall, which rises some 3,000 meters (nearly 10,000 feet). Much of the climbing lies on the Chambe face, which stands 1,700 meters tall (5,557 feet).

But Walker wasn’t there for the Yosemite of the African continent, as it’s widely known. In fact, she bailed off Mulanje’s walls after realizing it wasn’t accessible enough. Because she didn’t travel to Malawi to do what international climbers usually do when visiting another country—swoop in and send a stout line.

Instead, the Global Climbing Initiative (GCI) and its Climbing Leadership Fund organized a project to bring Walker to Malawi to help get more Malawians into climbing. Because even though expats and tourists have been climbing there for some four decades, until the Climb Malawi project got its start in 2019, there had been no efforts to get the local community involved.

The whole thing came together when Tyler Algeo—who founded the Climb Malawi project through GCI while living in Malawi—reached out to Walker to see if she’d be interested in traveling there to support the project. “Even though I am an African-American from the States and I can’t say I identify as African, having leaders who folks in Malawi can see themselves in was huge,” Walker says.

As a guide who prioritizes working with clients from marginalized backgrounds, Walker’s personal mission as a pro climber lined up well with the vision of Climb Malawi. So when Walker got the call from Algeo, she said “100% yes” before she even had the details.

Then she looped in her friend Mario Stanley—a podcaster and filmmaker—whose route development background would be invaluable for establishing new climbing areas for local Malawians. GCI also brought on Liz Ndindi, GCI’s Africa Regional Coordinator and the founder of Climbing Life Kenya, to join the trip and provide perspective on goal-setting for Climb Malawi. Walker’s partner, Scott Clark, also came along as a photographer.

Plot twists in Malawi

Just one week before Walker, Clark, and Stanley set out for their three-week trip to Malawi back in 2023, Stanley decided he wanted to turn their trip into a film.

“My OCD was like I can’t think about that right now,” Walker recalls. But she says the hustle to make it happen was worth it. That’s because the story that unfolded during their time there ended up being wildly different from most climbing travel narratives.

Your typical travel climbing film often goes something like this: white North American or European climber shows up in a remote country with a big objective. They almost don’t send, but then they do. They eat some local food, drink a local beer, and go home.

Alternatively, we might see some well-intentioned climbers show up at their destination and do some climbing with the locals, or get a few kids in the area to rope up with some free gear. They are trying to do a good thing, but as Walker explains, “We go into these other countries thinking we know what these places need and what the people need, when actually we really don’t.”

Walker and Stanley were determined for their story to go a lot differently. So when they showed up, the first thing they did was meet up with the folks at the Climb Malawi project. Since Algeo of GCI had left Malawi, the project has been managed by Ed Nhlane, a local Malawian with a passion for climbing. The project has its own climbing center in the capital of Lilongwe.

After connecting with the leaders of Climb Malawi, Walker, Stanley, and Ndindi wanted to take a “teach a climber to bolt” vs. a “give a climber a bolted route” approach to empower locals to take the development of the climbing scene into their own hands. She explains that it’s really about working “side by side” with the community to see what they want and need, vs. making assumptions about what would be helpful.

With his background as a route developer, Stanley led the charge and also served as a mentor for Walker, who had never set a route before. “It was really nice that my first experience got to be with a Black man and to be mentored by a Black climber,” says Walker, who never really had a mentor in her climbing.

The next plot twist after the last-minute film: The iconic Malawian climbing area where Walker and Stanley assumed the best route development opportunities would be turned out to be less than ideal. After a six-hour drive from Lilongwe, three full days of bushwacking, losing a drone, and coming up empty on moderate routes, they started to wonder if Mulanje, the “Yosemite of Africa,” was far from the accessible crag they were looking to develop.

“Accessibility means a lot of different things depending on who you talk to,” Walker explains. She says they focused on moderate grades and approach time. “Initially, where we were scouting, the approach was three hours and we didn’t have a trail,” Walker explains. The grades were also in the 5.11-5.12 range—too difficult to be considered accessible. “I was just like this is not feasible. Nobody’s going to come out here.”

Finally, their local hiking guide Geoffrey Mwantisi had an idea. “I think I found something that might be up your alley,” he said. He led them to another crag in Mulanje that turned out to be exactly what they were looking for: a 10-minute approach and great potential for moderate single-pitch climbing. There was even a walk-around for top-rope setup. “This is perfect,” Walker remembers thinking.

“People of color mentoring other people of color”

In developing that “perfect” crag, not only did Walker experience meaningful mentorship, but she, alongside Stanley, got to serve as mentors to a crew of Climb Malawi leaders.

As Walker and Stanley got to bolting, they also hosted workshops on routesetting for leaders and members of Climb Malawi at a crag called Mulundi. Working with local climbers, they were able to establish five or six new routes on Mulundi. Walker says there’s a ton of potential for more accessible routes in the area.

Since their visit, Algeo, the original founder of Climb Malawi, has noticed a “confidence boost” among Malawian climbers that he says “has been transformative for the community.” In the past, he notes that the Climb Malawi leadership lacked the confidence to introduce more people to the sport. “Thanks to the training conducted by Genevive Walker, Mario Stanley, Scott Clark, and Liz Ndindi, we’ve seen a huge boost in confidence among Malawian climbing leaders,” Algeo emphasizes. “This has resulted in not only new bolting efforts but also the establishment of a new climbing group in another city—all led by Malawian climbers.”

Individual stories from the film reinforce the strides Climb Malawi has made in the community. Take Gracious, a 12-year-old boy who went from appearing visibly nervous while lowering down a climb, to drilling bolts with confidence. Or Shalom, a girl in college, who Walker saw as a natural leader. “After we left, we found out that she [Shalom] not only was able to start bolting her own routes, but she got the first female ascent in Malawi, which was super awesome to hear,” Walker says.

As for Walker, even though she never really had a mentor in her own climbing and didn’t necessarily set out to become a mentor to anyone else, she often ends up playing that role by virtue of her identity and the affinity spaces she gravitates toward. “A lot of brown and black folks in this industry, whether we want to or not, already are mentors with the work we’re doing and just being here,” she says. Being mentored by someone who you can relate to and see yourself in has immense value. And she doesn’t want anybody else to have to learn to climb without a good mentor, like she did. “I at least want people to have options,” she says.

That’s why in addition to prioritizing clients of color in her guiding work, Walker wants to continue supporting Climb Malawi. “When you’re stepping outside your comfort zone or trying something new, there’s something special about learning from somebody that you can either relate to or see yourself in a little bit,” she says. “That’s what I wanted to be for the leaders of Climb Malawi. I am coming into your world and your culture—the last thing I want is for you to feel uncomfortable.”

By Malawians, for Malawians

As for the next chapter in Climb Malawi’s story, the community has been climbing the routes that they established with Stanley and Walker and continuing on their own route development journey. Walker is hoping to return later this year to continue to support the community in routesetting and education.

After winning awards for his film Climb Malawi, Stanley has also been mentoring a couple of locals in filmmaking. Currently, he’s pursuing a follow-up film about a Malawian climber and the history of climbing and outdoor recreation in the country. This second story “was filmed and created by Malawians about Malawi,” Walker says.

To support GCI and Climb Malawi, on March 7, Walker and Stanley are hosting a fundraiser in Seattle at The Mountaineers. They’ll hold a screening of the Climb Malawi film, followed by a discussion led by Phil Henderson. If you’re in the Seattle area, Walker and Stanley will be hosting a couple other events the week leading up to the screening, including a discussion on mentorship at West Wall Cafe on March 4 and two Kilter Board sessions on March 5.

The Climb Malawi project continues to seek support—for everything from bolting more routes to hosting events like adaptive climbing—to achieve their goals of growing the sport and its positive impact in Malawi.

On deck for Walker—and her cold toes and fingers

Until she goes back to Malawi, Walker is staying busy guiding and bouldering around the Chattanooga, TN area, where she lives. This summer, she’s hoping to make her way to Squamish—she’s never been. Japan also tops Walker’s list, but not necessarily for the climbing. “I just know the food is dope and the climbing gyms are supposed to be amazing … but I’m just going for the food,” Walker laughs.

Walker also plans to spend spring and fall in the Red River Gorge and continue focusing on her enduro-style climbing, while working her way through a recent knee injury. But for her, it’s hard to dial it back—she compares herself to a puppy who goes hard nonstop until she collapses.

“If you’re not going to give 100%, what’s the point?” Walker jokes. “When I’m sending something and I’m giving 100%. I am literally on the verge of throwing up the entire time. I am yelling and screaming and sweating and just growling the entire way … and then I’m probably done after that last burn.” She adds that she doesn’t necessarily recommend her “all in” climbing style to other climbers.

One thing you definitely won’t find Walker doing anytime soon? Ice climbing. Recently, she posted about her struggle with Raynaud’s disease, which restricts blood flow to extremities. [Editor’s note: As someone who struggles with Raynaud’s in climbing and other sports, I was in hot pursuit of Walker’s hacks as a pro climber dealing with numb, painful fingers and toes.]

After her partner took her ice climbing near Vail once, Walker ruled out that discipline of climbing hard and fast. Her rule is she won’t climb in temperatures below 50 degrees Fahrenheit. If it’s below 60 degrees, she needs sunny weather. “Even in the 60s I still bring out the hand warmers,” she explains. And no, she doesn’t want your layering advice, because even if her body and core is warm, her fingers will be numb.

For other climbers out there with Raynaud’s, Walker’s best tips are to keep hand warmers in her climbing shoes—she likes the little electric ones. She also uses a heated chalk bag and wears “full puff” belay pants and belay booties. Her last literal hot tip is to wear a hand warmer around your neck on a lanyard—or keep them in your pants pockets—so you can get some quick heat between moves.

But of course, when Walker returns to Malawi, keeping her fingers and toes warm shouldn’t be a problem.

 

About the photographer: Chattanooga-based commercial and adventure photographer D Scott Clark thrives on capturing the world from his perspective. From remote backcountry trails to large commercial projects, he brings a unique perspective honed by years of personal exploration. When not behind the lens, you’ll find him rock climbing around Chattanooga.

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