Levenworth, Smith, and The City of Rocks!!

After my trip to Southern Utah, I came back to Helena for a quick meet up with friends and a swapping of gear. I spent all of 2 days total in town and was off with Sarah to climb around Oregon and Washington. Our first stop was Corvallis, Oregon and we met with a few of Sarah's friends for a day of whitewater rafting on the Bull Run and Sandy River in Oregon. It was a fun filled day with Dan Ott as river captain extraordinaire! The morning after, we headed to Washington, but took the scenic route up the coast! I was certainly a kid in a candy shop as we went searching for tide pools and I was able to touch and see many cool sea creatures!

 Did you know if you stick your finger in a sea anemone it will start to suck your finger in in!?!

Back in Washington Sarah and I were around for 2 days in Seattle while she worked and I mountain biked. Then we packed our bags and headed to Leavenworth, Washington (The Blodgett Canyon of Washington) as I would call it. We climbed for 3 days and on our last climbing day got on an exceptional moderate route called Outer Space on the Snow Creek Wall with a ~200 foot splitter hand crack surrounded by chicken heads (knobs that often form on granite rock)! It was all smiles the entire way up the climb and we didn't see another climber around which added to the exceptional day! I will surely be back to do this climb again someday! On the way down we ran into a friendly group of mountain goats that still had their beautiful winter coats on.

Tromping thru snow on the way to the wall!

snow creek wall

We climbed #22

Sarah jammin the splitter hand crack!

victory pic on top of the wall!

A few more days in Seattle after and we were soon back to Oregon and to off to Smith Rock outside of Bend where we climbed and mountain biked for the next week! Although we didn't get perfect weather, we did manage to get on quite a few classics and multi-pitch routes. The history at Smith is rich and it was fun to climb some of the first sport climbs ever bolted. My good friends from Montana Tyler and Caitlin Shanley were even able to meet us for a day of mountain biking! On Easter Sunday Sarah's friend Dan planned a float trip on the Deschutes River and we had a blast sending down the fun rapids on a nice sunny day!

Smith!

Gearing up for the day!

Caitlin excited on the single track!

Sarah climbing high above the crooked river

The last pitch of "Wherever I May Roam"

High above Smith

Unfortunately, Sarah had to go back to work, but since I am unemployed I headed to the City or Rocks in Idaho for more climbing with my friends Mary Lane and The unofficial "guide" to the city Josh Holcomb. The rock at the city blew me away with its high quality face climbs on amazing red patina varnish that provided amazing holds from jugs to amazingly positive crimps and side pulls. The face climbing was so good in fact that I drove there to crack climb and only climbed one crack route my entire time there!

Getting a great belay from Josh while I place a nut

Climbing on of the many cool featured red patina faces!

Josh climbing high!

Mary Lane workin the pockets to the top!

Puzzle Wall

Sunset in the City

Building Blocks Wall

 Now I am back in Helena for my sister's graduation and excited to start planning for a float and climbing trip down Labyrinth Canyon on the Green River in Utah around the 16th of May!