Oregon...is awesome

Greetings again blog readers! John and I are still doing well and still heading North. Last we posted we were bouldering on the Northern coast of California. That was a great time, but we've since left California behind. We drove through redwoods shrouded in fog, down terrible dirt roads and eventually back tracked to the state highway to find a better campsite near Crater Lake. When we woke we drove up to Crater Lake and enjoyed the beautiful views of it's SUPER BLUE waters and snowy peaks in the distance. We eventually hiked down to the water and John took a dip in the cold water. Following that quick stop we pressed on to Bend for food and to pick up the Smith Rock guide book. We pulled into Smith rock later than evening and set up camp.And in case you were wondering, Smith Rock is awesome! John and I were both apprehensive prior to arriving, we just weren't sure it would be all that it was cracked up to be. We were so glad to be proven wrong, and greatly enjoyed the three days we spent climbing there. The rock is super interesting and heavily featured with pebbles, pockets, nubs, ledges, etc. This all made for great and varied climbing. The temps were a bit high, so we chased the shade as best we could, but otherwise had a blast. Also, the local scene is really cool, we met a lot of climbers from the area and all were super nice and full of fun stories, good beta for routes, and dirt-bagging tips to keep trip costs low. Smith rock campground also has free showers (AWESOME! and badly needed).

However, today it was time to move on again, so we packed our things and are now in Portland to celebrate John's birthday with a brewery tour and a night in a real bed.

Couple more things:

1. The lack of photo's here and on facebook is sorta a result of there only being two of us. We are climbing our asses off, but there isn't much evidence of that because well one of us is belaying and the other is climbing. Hopefully the scenery shots will keep the masses at home happy.

2. I did my first run today in about 3 weeks. The tendonitis in one of my toes is still there, but it has been feeling better, and I was to inspired by the trails at Smith to pass it up. So I got up early and put together a 3 mile loop. The loop started by gaining 700 feet up switchbacks, and man did it kick my ass (trail name was "misery ridge"). I gained about 500 feet with about 1/4 mile left of the climb and had to switch to powerhiking the last bit of the climb (also, the first time my ears popped from elevation change during a run! pretty cool). After that initial climb I had a blast, the rest of it was primarily downhill on steep switchbacks with great views, and it eventually eased into winding roller coaster hills. I've never felt "flow" like that before during a run, felt like I was skiing or floating or something, it was pretty awesome. This was certainly the most technical (rocky, rugged, etc.) trail I've ran, and I can't wait to do it again, it was so much fun! Unfortunately, the tendonitis is still there, but doesn't feel any worse, so I'll play it by ear and if I get inspired again later on in this trip I may go for another run.

-Tonto