Weekend at Smith Rock

This past weekend, we went to Smith Rock, in Central Oregon, to rock climb. We've probably been to this area 20 times over the years and we always enjoy the sun, dry air and warm winter rock. Last year we stayed in a lovely house adjacent to the park that is owned by a climber from Seattle named Rob Price. I climbed with Rob a couple of times this past summer in Squamish and we decided a winter getaway to Smith Rock would be a fine way to cure the rainy season blues in Squamish and Seattle. Plus, Rob offered to fly us down in his plane - how could we refuse?

The weekend was great - we enjoyed socializing with Rob, climbing in the sun and having some deep, deep sleeps (it's very quiet and cold at night). Highlights for Elise were making waffles with Rob, riding horses and going in the hot tub. The horse ride got a little out of control when Chief (her horse) got spooked and decided to gallop. Luckily, Les and Holly (the owners) were quick to intervene and Pam snatched Elise off Chief's back before she fell. It kind of scared us all, but Elise - being the trooper that she is - gave it another whirl and everything ended well. In fact, just before we left for home, Elise got to ride on "Priceless" with Holly. She really enjoyed it and the ride was a great way to end on a high note.

Pictures from the trip...

Smith Rock in early morning light.



Priceless grazing in her pasture.


Making waffles with Rob in the kitchen of his house. Elise really enjoyed this, especially the consumption of the waffles the next morning! They were delicious...


In the hot tub on Rob's deck. A very relaxing way to wind down after a long day of winter climbing.


Evening sun in the horse pasture.


Climbing in the dihedrals at Smith Rock.


Elise doing a climb. This didn't go very well (you can tell by the expression on her face). The climb followed a groove up the wall and this scared her. We brought her down and found a much friendlier face (the next picture down) that she climbed multiple times - the day was saved.




Chewing some grass. I told that this is what farmers do and she seemed to like it...until she stabbed her mouth with the sharp end.



This is a sequence of shots Rob took of me climbing Chain Reaction, a popular climb that ascends a steep wave of orange rock. The conditions were perfect for climbing that day.




Feeding the horses some apple slices.


The calm before the storm. Minutes later, the horse got spooked and took off, scaring us all. The damage? One frightened and weeping 4-year-old, and three shaken adults. But all's well that ends well...


Pam, Rob and Elise posing at the top of the canyon with Ship Rock in behind.


Getting ready for the ride home. A look into the cockpit.


Elise posing under the nose of the airplane.


Rob circled Smith Rock before we headed north. Here's a shot I took of the park from the air.


A view of Mt. Baker. The weather was great for the first half the journey and we had beautiful views.


Flying in the small airplane was exciting for us all. Rob dropped us off in Bellingham at about 5:00 pm and we were home by 7:30 pm. It was a great weekend. Back to the Squamish routine...