Life of a Gal Named Liv

Oh bend, what a place. From the hipster coffee joints, to the miles of juniper, to smith rock.

This trip was my third time at Smith Rock, and my last “trip” before I take off for the PCT!

Did some sick climbs, did a neat (very snowy) high desert hike, and saw some amazing views!

Did one multi- pitch, with a magnificent 70 meter rappel (hence, me tagging the pink rope behind me).

The last two days mainly focused on single pitch crack climbs, in the lower gorge. Since Smith has some of the best rock climbing in the world, it’s always pretty busy during climbing season! So a 30 minute hike to get to a climb is well worth having the wall to yourself.

on the hike out, we saw these crazy huge eagle nests! (See photo above) after talking to a ranger, we learned that the nests typically only have 3 eagles in them, and can be as big as a Volkswagen van! Crazy! That section of the park was closed to climbers, to protect the Golden Eagle population. Cool to see from a distance, though.

Smith is high desert, so the temperatures were quite cold still in March. Often, I was climbing in 3-4 layers, with little hotties in my chalk bag. Above is a photo of me (in august 2022) on my last trip to Smith- about 90 degrees.

Another photo from August- so grateful to have such a cuddly crag dog!

If you haven’t been to bend or Smith Rock, you should check it out!

Camping recommendations: Skull Hollow Campground, or dispersed camping up the road Northeast of Skull Hollow.

We did grab an Airbnb for one night (during a snowstorm) & here is that link: https://abnb.me/CWCwbDmahyb

10/10 recommend this place! They allowed dogs, 4 people, family-friendly, latte machine, & had a sauna. A last minute reservation was only $111!

Food recommendation: Lucky Woodsman Food truck

I got to test out my “puff socks” camping every night, and damn they are worth it!

Happy trails! – from piñon & liv