Carlsbad Outdoor Activities

Although some of The Paintball Park's five locations are steeped in two decades worth of colorful paint and echoing battle cries, each arena brings in fresh equipment every season to keep paintballers on their toes. Barricades, bunkers, trenches, and tall trees provide ample cover for firing off shots at opponents, ducking from overhead fire, or meeting to discuss how to get the pizza-delivery man into the fortress unharmed. Games of capture the flag and speedball matches reinforce strategy-making skills, and elimination battles give players a chance to take out the other team while sprinting between the wreckage of tanks and helicopters.

Each of the Paintball Park's airsoft fields has a distinct feel. Running beneath dinosaur sculptures lends to a carefree sensation, and trying to find an entrance in endless, gray castle walls evokes the sense that one is an ancient warrior who left his keys somewhere.

The patriarch of more than three generations of surfers, Rusty Whitlock began shaping smooth surfboards almost 50 years ago. Accompanied by sons and professional surfers Cory and Ricky, the men of Whitlock oversee a collection of oceanic enterprises that include surf lessons, custom surfboard construction, and custom merchandizing. Whitlock Surf Experience trains budding boardsmen through small classes with a 1:5 instructor-to-student ratio. All teachers boast at least 10 years of experience and are CPR certified to save any waterlogged sand crabs. RW Surfboards fashions wave-riders of all sizes, from 6'5'' tubers to 11-foot longboards, as well as individual rentals for soft surfboards, bodyboards, wetsuits, and bikes.

Vital Climbing Gym combines the facilities of a rock-climbing center with the comforts of a coffee lounge, giving members a place to strengthen their bodies and relax their minds. The 24-hour gym entices members to climb at any time of day without concern for injury on rocky walls that are built for bouldering, a style of climbing that keeps climbers low to the ground and requires no safety equipment or backup support. Before or after climbing sessions, clients can relax on a comfortable couch, sip a hot beverage from the espresso machine, connect to the gym’s WiFi network, and talk technique with fellow climbers.

Vital Climbing Gym combines the facilities of a rock-climbing center with the comforts of a coffee lounge, giving members a place to strengthen their bodies and relax their minds. The 24-hour gym entices members to climb at any time of day without concern for injury on rocky walls that are built for bouldering, a style of climbing that keeps climbers low to the ground and requires no safety equipment or backup support. Before or after climbing sessions, clients can relax on a comfortable couch, sip a hot beverage from the espresso machine, connect to the gym’s WiFi network, and talk technique with fellow climbers.