Anna just hangs out at home
Lockdown ladder keeps young climber occupied
A month into lockdown and many kids are climbing the walls - but for Stirling schoolgirl Anna Fraser that has literally been the case.
Eleven-year-old Anna normally spends her weekends and spare time at climbing centres up and down the country.
The talented youngster is the triple Scottish climbing champion for lead, speed and bouldering.
But unable to visit a climbing centre or even clamber up a climbing frame in her local play park, the Borestone Primary pupil has had to find new ways of climbing at home.
But, before NHS Forth Valley’s Emergency Department team has a fit, we would strongly urge you NOT to try this at home. Anna is a very experienced climber and mum Lucy is the Mountaineering Scotland director for ClimbScotland.
She explains: “Anna wanted to keep climbing so we bought a new climbing frame as she had got too old for the other one.”
Inspired by one of their teachers, Anna and her younger brother and sister - seven-year-old twins Tom and Olivia created their own obstacle course in the garden using logs and planks.
But later that night, mum Lucy and dad Euan thought it would be fun to create an obstacle course where the children did not have to touch the ground.
Lucy went on: “We got a set of ladders and strapped them securely to the climbing frame and the swing then surprised them with it in the morning.
“They were out on it all morning, then we had lunch and Anna was out climbing upside down on it and asking for her harness and clip. She wanted the harness and clip to feel like she was climbing.”
So, much to Anna’s delight, Lucy duly obliged and safely set it all up.
Anna said: “It’s great to wear my harness and feel like I am climbing again.”
Lucy added: “She is obviously missing it. We will leave it up for a while and let her climb.”
And meanwhile the twins have used their lockdown time to master swinging along the monkey bars along the rungs of the ladder.
Like many mums, Lucy says she is constantly having to come up with ideas to keep her three active children busy.
She said: “We are really lucky they have a big garden, but it’s just thinking of things to keep them entertained and a bit different.”
And the “Lockdown Ladder” is certainly a bit different!