Even though I spend the majority of my free time travelling, this is the place I spend the most time. I experienced climbing for the first time right here, in April of '96, and I'm always happy to return. At Smith Rock there is no limit to the challenges and new routes for me to try; I haven't even scratched the surface...
The other thing I like so much about this place is all the great people to climb with. Although I like to meet and climb with new people when I travel, the locals here make it tough to leave. Friendly folks with positive attitudes who like to have fun are hard to find, but not at Smith. I can come out here any time of year and find great partners to hang out with. It's been said that you can climb here year 'round, and I can say that's true. With a down jacket, gloves, and a little help from 'Mr. Heater' it's actually very nice. Sometimes, when the sun comes out, it feels like summertime; even in the middle of December. The chalked up rock doesn't feel as slippery to cold fingers, and the short days mean you've got to climb harder routes because you don't have time for a lot of them. Although Smith is known mostly for an abundance of technical slab routes, there are actually quite a few steep climbs here as well. The rock type also tends to be undercut at the start, making a 'clip stick' very handy if you don't like to risk injury; or you can cheat...
This fall since I've been back, I've really tried to push myself to climb harder routes. The tendons in my left wrist that have bothered me for so long are finally feeling better, and I'm able to pull on small pokets without pain. My first goal was to get another .12c to back up the one I got at Mt. Charelston. I was able to redpoint the full 'Heinous Cling' on my sixth try. I learned a few things, since this was a very difficilt route for me. I found that I need more than one rest day between hard climbing days, and that I need to focus on memorizing moves so that I can eliminate mistakes. Also very high on my priority list is avoiding injury. I plan to take at least a month off from climbing so that I can fully recover. For the first time, I'm ending the climbing season by choice, not because of pain.