Grand Teton National Park opened all its roads to vehicle traffic May 1. That said, there’s still plenty of snow in the Teton Range and the weather hasn’t yet settled into a nice spring cycle.

“For those heading into the backcountry, please keep in mind that the bears are out and about, and you should take precautions accordingly,” according to the Online Ranger Station blog site for the park.

The park’s pedestrian/bike path that goes from Jackson, Wyoming, to Jenny Lake still hasn’t completely melted out. Expect snow on most trails in the park.

Last Saturday I saw an illustration of the difference between indoor rock climbing and outdoor rock climbing while climbing at a crag in the Wolf Flats area along the South Fork of the Snake River.

A group of college students showed up at the South Park crag along the South Fork River road and cued up on their first route. I walked past and said, “Warming up on a 5.12c — you guys are getting after it!”

One of the guys smiled and said, “We’ve been climbing 12s in the climbing gym, so we should be able to get up it.” His belayer was nodding. They said the nearby Pointless Crag was more than crowded. After falling several times on the start of the climb, I directed them to an easier 5.10d at the end of the wall. (The smaller the rating number, the easier the route.)

“You might want to use a stick clip to clip the first bolt because the first section is a little tricky.” They didn’t have one — something that’s highly recommended at South Park — so we let them use one of ours. Despite the easier grade, the young climbers continued to fall several times on their way up the route. After three of the seven climbers gave the route a try, they packed up and said they were going to the crowded Pointless Crag down the road where they hoped to find easier routes.

Most new climbers in the past decade are exposed to the sport in indoor climbing gyms. While gyms are a great place to learn some of the basics, such as how to belay, how to lead climb and how to catch falls, there are a few key elements indoor climbers are not exposed to. The difference between real rock and plastic holds on an artificial wall can take many climbers by surprise and question route ratings.

Outdoor venues offer amazing variations in terrain and much of it is trickier to puzzle out — there are no color-coded routes showing the way. The base of climbs are not padded floors and sometimes the bases are narrow ledges. But it’s this variety in the outdoors that appeals to climbers.

There are a few good ways to get up to speed with outdoor climbing. I think the best way is to hook up with an experienced mentor. Mentors can teach safety, equipment and take you to the best places most appropriate to your skill level.

Another way is to watch some online tutorial videos. Watch several different ones because different folks emphasize different things.

Sometimes climbing gyms teach skills to safely climb outdoors.

One of my favorite reasons for climbing outdoors is the beautiful places you get to experience. Many crags are awe-inspiring and challenge you mentally and physically and often are in wonderful places.

The crags down along the South Fork of the Snake River are in a gorgeous setting. On warmer days, folks (like me) ignore their lawns and honey-dos and grab a fishing rod or mountain bike or hiking shoes or other favorite toy and head for these hills.

Last week along the Heise Road, we saw dozens of people fishing the river, riding mountain bikes and motorbikes, and rock climbing the cliffs just off the road.

Spring is a great time to visit this area. In mid-summer, the area may not be so enticing for climbing, but most of the other activities are still great.

A few upcoming events for your calendar:

— The Angry Horse gravel bike ride in the Bone area east of Idaho Falls is scheduled for 7 a.m. May 28. There is a fun ride and two race distances of 82 and 45 miles. Sign-ups end May 26. Go to https://theangryhorse.athlete360.com.

— Jay Anderson Memorial Tour of Marsh Creek Valley, a road bike ride, is scheduled to start at 7 a.m. May 28 starting at the Pocatello Community Charter School. There are 26-, 60- and 100-mile loops. Cost is $40 in advance or $50 day of. Go to https://www.bikereg.com/tmcv.

— Palisades Ultra Trail Series race will be July 15 to July 16 with a backcountry trail race featuring distances of t either 100-mile, 50-mile, 50k or 1/2 marathon. Go to https://ultrasignup.com.

Jerry Painter is a longtime East Idaho journalist and outdoorsman.