When I Googled Smith Rock online, I was surprised to see so many references to ‘U2 and Will Smith Rock Jimmy Fallon.’ The Internet is a strange place sometimes. Doesn’t it know that Smith Rock is one of the 7 Wonders of Oregon? To be fair, Oregon’s Smith Rock showed up first, but as I browsed for more infomation, my feed became overwhelmed with show biz banter. Don’t get me wrong, I’m a fan of Will Smith and Dave and I even had the opportunity to eat at Bono’s restaurant in Dublin recently. But today, we are talking to you about a giant piece of rock in the high desert of Central Oregon.
Sunrise at Smith Rock in Oregon
It was a cold and rainy day when we met photography guru Bo Baumgartner at the base of Misery Ridge Loop Trail. This trail is 3.8 miles (6.1 km) long with a 1000 foot elevation gain. It starts of just over the bridge at the bottom of a path and takes you straight up a rocky path zigzagging it’s way…up up and away!
It was a steep climb up Misery Ridge but the Views were worth it.
As I huffed and puffed my way up, Bo seemed to take each step with ease. I tried to hold back my heaves as I attempted to chat with him while looking relaxed. As he talked to me about the landscape around us, I didn’t hear a thing, I was too busy trying to catch my breath as we kept a quick pace up the steep steps. Dave looked less tired than me during this early morning trek, but told me later that whenever he felt tired, he just stopped to take a photo. And here I thought he was just doing his job well.
Bo and Deb stop for a chat.
But seriously, it wasn’t that bad. It’s a good hike to the top but once we got there, I thought that’s it? I was expecting much worse misery. The hike up to the top of Smith Rock may have been steep, but the views were nothing short of spectacular. I couldn’t help but to stop often to take in the scene below. I couldn’t believe how quickly we ascended to such a high point. It only takes about a half an hour to reach the top of the ridge, and after that you are rewarded with an easy stroll the rest of the day. Well, with the odd scramble or two and a very fun descent down some steep switchback trails.
Bad weather but beautiful views!
It was windy and very overcast for our misery ridge loop hike. This is the most difficult hike in the park and Mother Nature had a sense of humour today. Why not make it as miserable as possible for Dave and Deb so that they would have a true, misery ridge experience? Honestly though, it could have been worse. The rain held off for our entire walk and even though there were high wind warnings in the forecast, nobody was blown over the edge.
Look for Bo in this shot of Monkey Face, Smith Rock.
We checked out the various views from above until we made it to the famous Monkey Face. Monkey face is a striking feature of Smith Rock. It’s a 350 foot tall rock tower that apparently resembles a monkey’s face. I couldn’t see the resemblance, but it was still impressive to see. You can climb Monkey Face if you know what you are doing. It houses some of the toughest sport and trad climbing routes in the world and Bo told us that he’s hoping to be able to tackle it one day.
Stretcher and Cruthches just in case at the bottom of Monkey Face
‘Good luck with that Bo.’ The stretcher and crutches placed in an emergency shelter at the bottom of the crag were enough to let us leave that goal to him.
Watching some climbers at the Bottom of Smith Rock
We finished our day at the river where we stopped to watch the climbers tackle some easier routes for a bit. Easy routes in Smith Rock are relative. Bo tells us the volcanic rock takes some getting used to. It looks like an amazing place to climb though. Cliffs are easy to get to with steps and paths carved out along the edge surrounded by neat and orderly wooden fences. It’s easy for climbers to find their way to routes for all levels of climbing. But Smith Rock is notable for its more difficult sport climbing routes.
Smith Rock in Sunshine
A Beautiful morning at Smith Rock in Oregon
Since the weather was so bad during our trek at Smith Rock, Dave was really disappointed with his photo opportunity. So, instead of moping about it, we switched our Lava Tube tour the following day to the afternoon and woke up early to take another drive out to Smith Rock and catch it’s spectacular beauty in the early morning light. The wake up call was worth it as Mother Nature was kind to us today and gave us some gorgeous views of Oregon’s wonder.
The Sun peeks over the mountain at Smith Rock.
No comments:
Post a Comment