Tag Archives: lead climbing

Aug6

Klimbing at Klinger – Fourth of July!

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Tuesday, 04-July-2023


I’m actually getting a fair number of rock climbing trips in this summer!

Not as many as I’d like, mind you, but… Frankly, I’m okay with it. I’m happy with the backpacking, and the climbing that I’ve gotten to do has been exceptionally fun and solid. No one will hear me complaining, and the 4th of July was no exception.

I was worried it’d be slammed – I mean, everyone has the 4th off, right? But this is Oregon, and you never can tell… But it was beautiful out, and warm, and quite dry… Ahh, who knows.

Bri and I took stock of options and picked a crag that we figured would be the least likely to be inundated with climbers – a spot on the Eastern side of Mt. Hood, far from Portland, called Klinger. We got going early, met up at her place, and even got ourselves breakfast sandwiches on the way. We drove, found the last spot at the parking area, and started in.

“The last spot at the parking area” doesn’t bode well for our heroes, but keep in mind – this was a parking spot that’s shared between climbing and a nearby trailhead… and it only held eight cars or so.

In the end? No one else nearby. We ran into maybe 8 people the whole time, none of which were climbing near us, so… I’ll consider it a win.



What did we climb, you may ask?
Hanging Chad – 5.7, Sport, Lead!
Hot Pockets – 5.8+, Sport, Lead!
Blue Grouse – 5.9, Sport, Lead!
Felsschlupfer (Rock Wren) – 5.10d, Top Rope
GSR (Good Sport Route) – 5.7, Sport, Lead!

Yeah – I felt strong. Lots of leading, though I was sad that we didn’t get any trad routes in… but I felt strong – even doing that 10d was pretty solid!


By the time we left the crag, we were the last car in the lot. We headed back, snapped some pictures of a cool little shrine we’d found in the woods, got a photo or two of Mt. Hood looking beautiful, and then I made a glorious dinner.

Not a bad 4th, huh?

May8

BCEP – Climbing at Windy Slab

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Last year, I took the BCEP class with the Mazamas – Basic Climbing Education Program. It was interesting; a great chance to review my well-trained skills, practice some that I hadn’t used in ages, and get to meet some new climbing and outdoors people. It was fun, and ticked all the boxes that I had hoped that it would.

My faith in the outdoors community reinvigorated, I quickly and happily volunteered to help teach BCEP this year. I was expecting to assist with the same group that I’d taken the class with the previous year, since leaders tend to continue teaching year over year, so I was a bit surprised when I was placed with a different group… but it turns out, this new group was just starting out – the first year the leader had led a BCEP team on their own.

The chance to help out with a new group, and to help build a similar culture of excitement and optimism for the outdoors? All while getting to show people the unbridled joy of rock climbing? Of seeing new views off the side of a mountain?

Well. Sign me right the heck up.


Saturday, 08-Apr-2023


After we finished up Hamilton Mountain, there was one more adventure of the day planned. Nothing big, and nothing too far… but an adventure I was exceptionally excited for nonetheless.

Why, you may ask?

It was my first chance to explore a new crag in years!



Looking back on it, I think I’d heard of Windy Slab before. Probably briefly in passing, since it’s anything but a popular large crag, but still – When the group leader recommended it, I jumped at the opportunity to help set up routes for the group.

We arrived, did a bit of scouting, and moved the teams up to the rock. I set a route while the leader set the one next to me, and we started walking the students through the whole process of climbing in the great outdoors.

Before climbing, we talked through leading – how it varies from top roping, what considerations to take in, etc…

While climbing, the assistants pointed out the details of what we were doing.

At the end, I got to climb one of the harder routes available to retrieve the anchor… but unfortunately the students didn’t get a chance to see, since I didn’t climb slowly enough. Yep. Not even remotely humble-brag right there.


Hey, it was a 10a, I’m okay being a bit proud that I crushed it record time.



What routes did Ben climb?

Night Music – 5.6, Sport

Dark Apron – 5.10a, Top Rope

Feb21

The first climb of the year… at 18 Deg.F

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Sunday, 29-Jan-2023

How long has it been since I’ve climbed at Smith? Let’s see…

According to my photo record, It’s… been a really long time. We’re leaving it at that.


Jess and I left Bend early-ish… and by “early-ish” I mean “not even remotely early”. The dawn had broken over a solidly single-digit temperature, with thick snow and ice covering both the truck and the world around us. We slept in, relaxed, and took our time showering and getting packed up.

It wasn’t like the world would thaw before noon, anyways.




A quick breakfast in Terrebonne helped us rally and energize, and gave the world a little bit more time to dethaw and start warming up to more bearable temperatures. By the time we left the truck behind and began our descent into the gorge it was a (relatively) balmy 18 Deg.F by our thermometer.

The rock, of course, helped reflect the heat of the sun back into us. By the time we’d roped up and I’d started climbing, the rock face was legitimately warm – literally warm to the touch. I didn’t feel the need for a jacket, despite the cold, and even ended up rolling up my pant legs to help vent some of the heat that climbing generated.

What did we climb?
Five Gallon Buckets, 5.8, Sport, Lead then top rope.




Yep, just the one…

We got two runs of the climb in when we realized the danger – While the Sun wasn’t hitting the horizon for another two and a half hours, it didn’t need to hit the horizon. The Smith Rock cluster was in the path of the sun, and the shade was creeping up on us surprisingly quickly. There were only two other teams nearby, and of them only one was climbing… and that climbing team was rapidly packing up to avoid being plunged into darkness and cold.

(As a quick interesting note – there were three teams climbing this Sunday at Smith. Ourselves, climbing a 5.8. A team to the East, climbing a 5.12c and a 5.13a. And a third team of 12, re-bolting a handful of routes. Yep – we hang with super cool folks!)



With the shade fast approaching, I took a quick final run of the route to clean the anchors. We had warm gear with us, of course, but nothing that I’d be comfortable leading in… so instead of continuing the climbing, we started into the exploring. We hikes around, checked out Asterisk’s Pass, and got the chance to appreciate the sun dropping down lower.

We packed up our gear, and headed out. The desert passed, the trees grew, and we stopped to take pictures of a beautiful sunset.



We dined at a small restaurant in Rhododendron, and continued our way home. The snow gave way, then the trees followed suit. The city grew up in their place, and soon enough we were unpacking the truck once again after a very good weekend!