Baylor graduates to bring rock climbing gym to Hewitt

A rendering shows the interior planned for Basin Climbing and Fitness at 650 Alliance Parkway in Hewitt.

A crowd gathers Friday for the groundbreaking of the Basin Climbing and Fitness facility in Hewitt.

A crowd gathers for a groundbreaking ceremony Friday at the construction site for Basin Climbing and Fitness at 650 Alliance Parkway in Hewitt. The gym will include multiple climbing and bouldering walls, a climbing rope, kids zone, yoga studio and exercise equipment.

Hewitt Mayor Steve Fortenberry, State Rep. Doc Anderson, Hewitt Chamber of Commerce members and Basin founders pose with golden shovels at the groundbreaking ceremony Friday.

Basin founder Trinity Robb poses with his wife Lauren and their children at the groundbreaking ceremony for Basin Climbing and Fitness.

Basin founders Steel and Carley Ferguson, Trinity Robb and Jessica Colley pose with Hewitt mayor Steve Fortenberry. Also in the picture are Robb's wife, Lauren, and Colley's husband, Floyd.

Basin co-founder Trinity Robb speaks to the crowd of supporters at the groundbreaking ceremony Friday.

Construction is underway at 650 Alliance Parkway in Hewitt.

A rendering shows the interior planned for the Basin Climbing and Fitness gym in Hewitt.

A company started last year by a group of Baylor University graduates is set to bring the first rock climbing gym to McLennan County next spring.

Basin Climbing and Fitness kicked off construction on the gym Friday in Hewitt at 650 Alliance Parkway with a groundbreaking ceremony, attended by Hewitt community leaders, area residents and State Rep. Charles "Doc" Anderson.

Trinity Robb, one of the four founders of Basin, said the company hopes to create a climbing gym that can appeal to climbers of all skill levels, whether they are veterans or novices.

A company started last year by a group of Baylor University graduates is set to bring the first rock climbing gym to McLennan County next spring with a Hewitt location.

Robb said bringing a climbing gym to the Waco area has been his longtime goal. Robb studied outdoor recreation at Baylor and became part of a local rock climbing community that would climb at the indoor rock wall at the university's Student Life Center, the county's only regularly staffed climbing facility.

In 2020, he teamed up with fellow Baylor graduate Jessica Colley and married couple Carley and Steel Ferguson to begin planning the company that would be founded in 2022 as Basin.

The closest gym that would be similar to Basin is Boulders Climbing Center in Harker Heights. Beyond that, climbers would have to travel to Austin or Dallas to get something similar to Basin.

“One of the things that we've seen in Waco is that there are not that many activities where families can participate together,” Robb said. “Rock climbing is one of those unique activities that can really span across decades of someone's life to be able to actually participate in it. And ironically, oftentimes kids — because of their strength to weight ratio — are better climbers than adults. So we're really excited about bringing something to Waco that we feel like it's really unique that families can actually participate together.”

Robb said the name “Basin” refers to a depression at the bottom of a mountain where water flows and climbers and hikers begin their ascent.

“We really wanted the name to represent community, something that’s going to be life-giving, that’s fun, a place of adventure,” Robb said.

The gym will offer various types of climbing walls, including 14 to 16 foot bouldering walls intended to be climbed without a harness, a 34 foot top rope wall to be climbed with a harness, as well as climbing ropes and smaller walls intended for children. The gym will also have areas for birthday parties, a yoga studio and a workout area with free weights and exercise machines, making the facility an all-in-one rock climbing and workout gym.

A rendering shows the exterior of Basin Climbing and Fitness planned in Hewitt.

Memberships will run $75 per month for a solo membership and $140 per month for a duo membership. Family packages start at $140 per month, with anther $35 per month for each child under 18 in the family.

Climbers can also purchase day passes, costing $20 for an adult, or $14 for kids under 14, with an additional $6 cost to rent gear, or gift cards, which would allow someone to use the gym for an allotted amount of time.

Basin is also offering 100 Founders Packages to dedicated climbers, which run at $500 and $800 for solo and duo, respectively. Family packages are $800 plus $100 per child. Founders Packages allow the buyers to have their name carved into a climbing wall at the gym and give them lots of exclusive merchandise, as well as a discounted monthly membership rate that will last as long as the membership is active.

Construction on the gym is estimated to last until February, with a tentative opening scheduled for February or March, Robb said.

Hewitt Mayor Steve Fortenberry said he is personally excited by the gym, as he will take his grandchildren to climb. He is also excited for the economic possibilities Basin will bring to the area of Commerce Park.

“We're just growing leaps and bounds,” Fortenberry said. “With the construction that’s going to be going on throughout the living area here, I think it's really going to enrich this corner, this area. It’s going to help fuel Walmart, I just think it’s just a good mix for everybody involved for the city. It’s just another event that people can come to and do as a family. We are a family community, but we really enjoy and appreciate the opportunity to have such a family oriented-type organization.”

Fortenberry said he is thankful Basin chose Hewitt as the location for the gym, and said the city will support the company in any way it can.

Greater Hewitt Chamber of Commerce board President Michael Wyatt said McLennan County is a perfect spot for a rock-climbing gym because it lacks natural areas for climbing. He said he thinks Basin will be a fun addition to the outdoor-loving Hewitt community.

“We’re a community that already loves the outdoors,” Wyatt said. “Cameron Park is right up the road, it’s still beautiful. Hewitt has multiple parks with walking trails and bike trails, and this will just be another fun thing to give the community something to do a little bit more active and not have to deal with the Texas heat.”

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