My husband Claus and I decided to do some trad climbing last weekend so we headed towards Squaw Rock, one of the largest rock pinnacles found in Smith Rock State Park area, which overlooks the entire central Oregon area. If you're a climber and you live in the Pacific Northwest (or the west coast, for that matter) you've no doubt heard of Smith Rock and Indian Ridge. Luckily we live and work relatively close by in the Sunriver/Bend area (Hello, co-workers at Healthy Goods!).
Instead of approaching Squaw Rock from the state park side, we drove around to the far side and onto a one lane 'road' (I use the term loosely, it was more ruts and rocks than anything). Because most of this area is Bureau of Land Management property often used as open range cattle grazing, we had to pass through several gates on our way in. At the road's end we left the truck, loaded our gear on our backs and headed in. An hour and a half later, hiking through rough prairieland and a few junipers, we arrived at the climb.
But first things first, time for refueling. I ate my vegan sandwich of avocado, hummus, carrots and cabbage while Claus enjoyed his turkey and cheese (yes, food really does taste better when enjoyed outdoors in a beautiful spot).
The climb was easy with the exception of a few crux moves at the beginning. The first pitch went fine and then the second, with Claus in the lead securing four cams and nuts that I removed on my way up. We found two sturdy bolts at the summit that we used to rappel down in two steps (using a 60 m rope). But while on the summit the view was incredible! We could see the entire Cascade Range, especially Three Sisters, Mt Washington, Mt Jefferson and Mt Hood. Gorgeous. We highly recommend it!
Here's a few Healthy Goods products I used while on this Sunday adventure:
- Hydro Flask stainless steel water bottle - keeps icy water c-o-l-d, even in the very hot high desert of central Oregon
- Live Superfoods Organic Raw Tahini - great for my hummus
- Oh, and I love those Vega Endurance Gels!
By Chloe, customer service team member at Healthy Goods
