The climbing area at Smith Rock State Park. The Climber is on Chain Reaction a 5.12c rated climb.

Living in central Oregon has it's many advantages. one of them is the close proximity of some world class rock climbing. Smith rock is not only a beautiful place to go hiking but it is a rock climbing mecca and holds some great climbing.

I got into rock climbing to help me feel more comfortable climbing the steep part of mountains and it did help a great deal. It has been a while since I have really gotten into climbing (my most reliable climbing partner moved out of town), but I still have a desire to climb classic routes over beautiful rock. There is nothing like a nice piece of rock in a nice place. I like a traditional style of climbing, placing gear and multi pitch routes.

The photos in this series show some of my favorite times at the crags. Who knows maybe some day I will find another favorite climbing partner and get back out there.

Part of the main climbing area. The rock feature in the middle left is the Peanut. It has a lot of popular climbs.