I live in NorCal and we have tons of climbs. I climb all the time and love it. I just purchased a gravel bike with the new GRX with a 48/31 in the front and 11-34 in the rear. Wow that is not enough gearing especially around here. Per GravelCyclist.com’s recommendation I just put an 11-40 cassette on and it feels sooo much better. The gearing feels looser, like there’s more room to breathe. Did a 20mile 4,000’ ride yesterday with dirt climbs over 20% and being able to spin a bit more than grind helped so much. I don’t subscribe to the idea that having bigger gearing makes you not as “cool”. Give me even more gearing so I can do more climbing!!
My Shimano rear derailleur technically is only spec’d for max a 34t cog but tighten the b tension screw allows the derailleur to shift smoothly and quietly into the 40t.