We've been having a great winter rock season this year here at Smith Rock. Many people visit the Central Oregon area in the summer when temps at Smith can soar into the upper 80's and 90's. For the rock enthusiast, mid-winter can be a great time to climb at Smith Rock State Park on clear days. In fact, most of the locals prefer to climb in the winter at the park. Down in the canyon, temperatures can often be twenty to thirty degrees warmer than in the nearby town of Redmond, providing surprising relief from what felt like winter just a few hours ago.
This week I was lucky enough to share some of that great Smith mid-weather with Stuart and Tanya who decided to take a leap from the gear plugging climbing they are used to on the quartzite cliffs of the Gunks, to the bolt clipping face climbing of Smith's welded tuff. We had a great day sampling some of the areas classics and basking in the sun- we even had to break out the sunscreen!
 |
| Tanya enjoying the sun and face climbing. |
|
 |
| Stuart getting some mock leading in. |
 |
| Sun and bolts on Smith Rocks Morning Glory Wall. |
