Smith Rockin' It

Our first stop on the trip and already way too much to talk about. We've been living in our little Jelly Bean at Smith Rock State Park with a whole slew of climbing bums. Clean water, flushing toilets, pic-nic benches and best of all... a very low rent. To tell the truth we haven't spent much on anything aside from beer and food; the essentials of life.

The park is a mecca of sport climbing with ample bouldering and traditional climbing. This area is known as the birthplace of American Sport Climbing and the routes and access are proof of this. The approach to the climbing area is a minute long bike ride and then a 10 minute walk. Needless to say we have stunning cliffs right at out doorstep.

The climbing has been stellar and we are both pumped about getting stronger. Sending my first 5.12's and leading my first 5.10 miltipitch trad route gives me a huge amount of confidence for the time to come. The only issue staring us in the face is our inability to wake up early in the morning. This does, however, mean that we've been living a pretty casual life... climbing when we please and being in the company of good peeps. Lots of them... from all over the world... and generaly with a good sense of humor.

We've been kickin' it with the locals and have reaped the benefits of being outgoing I'd say. Homecooked meals, hot tubs, and capable tour guides. It seems to me that the people make the place and in the case of Smith... the place kicks ass.

We've gotten to do some pretty nutty things here... and soon enough we will have the photos to back it up.

On the back side of the park is a 250 ft spire that is split off from the main cliff. This spire is known for its profile shot; which looks like a monkey's face. There are two caves on the spire, one is the mouth and the other would be in the back on the head. We managed to set up a slackline inbetween the mouth of the monkey and the main cliff which is a 35ft span with an exposed 200ft drop below you. Regardless of the fact that the person walking it is tethered in to the reduntant line the feeling of exposure is overwhelming. The first three steps put your heart in your throat and an intesity in your eyes that I've never felt before. I managed to walk the line back and forth on two occasions without falling and bruising myself to pieces like some others. The offshoot of having the line set up was that we had constant access to the top of the Monkey's face. Meaning that with a little work we could spend a night in the monkey's head. A large cave protected from the wind by large boulders. Boulders that happened to wind up being "trundled" over the edge.

The logistics of ascending fixed lines and repelling into the cave are fairly complicated... the logistics of doing this in complete darkness are therefore a little more un-nerving. Regardless, we managed to get five people, all of our gear and most importantly a case of beer. Which, due to circumstances unforseen by Charlie and I led to the two of us killing a vast majority of the case. In the end it was one of the most comfortable sleeps of the trip and one of the most uncomfortable mornings due to the lack of lavatory. Probably the coolest things I've done in my life.

The stories go on and on. We'll update you with some photos and maybe a a post with some more thought put into it.

So far I haven't been able to wipe the smile off of my face... for oh so many reasons.

-Thomas Sloss