Smith Rock camping??

Okay, I have two plans going, one to City, one to Smith, depending on what a friend can/can't do. If it hapoens, this will be my first trip to Smith, at the end of July or early August. I know it will be hot, I know I can't reserve camping. How likely is it to be filled up that time of year? If it is filled, is there much else for camping? I can sleep in my car, if there somewhere to do that.

Thanks much! OLH

OLH,
Option 1 Bivy
Walk in camping, everyone cooks in one spot. Very social, I think you would like it. No reservations, as long as you have a parking spot you’re good to go, it’s unlikely that it will be totally full in August, maybe if you pull in after 6PM on weekend.

Option 2
Skull Hollow
Not walking distance, minimal amenities, but you can sleep in vehicle, Ive rarely stayed there, go to the Bivy IMO

Also steelhead falls has camping and is a great spot for swimming if it’s hot as balls 

Even when there are no parking spots at the bivy people just park on the side of the road, its never really "full" per se. The fee just increased from 5 to 7 a night. Other than the bivy theres free camping at the horse camp just north of the park. Need high clearance to get there. If youre sleeping in a van there's lots of spots in bend and terrebonne where you wont get hassled by the cops. Pm if you need a spot.

I was just at Smith over Memorial day and there was plenty of space at the bivy

Good to know, thanks, all! The bivy sounds better than I thought. First sight, it looks to just be plop a tent in a field with a bunch of other people, but, it sounds more fun. Is the bivy usually climbers, or just regular campers? My only campibg comparison, climbing wise, is hell's canyon, City/Castle, and back country Idaho stuff. Other than City, which was almost all climbers, it was just us and the bears.

Anything doable at Smith in the early afternoon, or is that when you need to hide out? I have the new map by the Climb-on folks (it's great, can't wait for City to come out!), so that will be super helpful figuring out what faces which direction.

What I'd be after for routes, are easy for beginners sport, and the same in a trade multi, to follow. Smith I will only go to if my trad friend can make it. If not, I'll shoot over to City, which is closer for me  My friend is in PDX, and his life is in transition right now.

Thanks for your help! This trip is on for sure, but will be last minute, so I want to be prepared, either direction.

Best, Helen

It was mostly climbers when the times Ive been there. Theres places to climb all day, still gets hot though. Also bring a long stick clip, like 15ft. The first clip on most routes is very high. I was on a route with a 30ft first bolt. The climbing shop in Terrebonne rents them for $5 a day  

Justin Veenhuis wrote: It was mostly climbers when the times Ive been there. Theres places to climb all day, still gets hot though. Also bring a long stick clip, like 15ft. The first clip on most routes is very high. I was on a route with a 30ft first bolt. The climbing shop in Terrebonne rents them for $5 a day  

I cannot stress enough how nice the Bivy is. If you can, get a campsite along the edge of the ridge with a view of the river. I was there for the eclipse last summer.

Camping at the Bivy is my preferred choice!  For $8 a night (it was $5 from about 2009ish until last October) you get:

- a cooking/dining area with picnic tables
- you can pitch you tent virtually anywhere flat and open past the wooden fence
- Campground host lives there, so if there's any party not abiding by the 10pm quite time rule AND not complying with requests to keep it down, you can notify the camp host to take care of that problem
- a sink for doing dishes
- garbage service
- recycling service
- charging station for your electronics
- hot showers (there were on and off problems with the hot water the past few years, but they have replaced the equipment so that that problem has been solved)
- a spacious facility that is comparable to the facility at the Smoky Mountain campground in City of Rocks: hot showers, flush toilets, mirrors, sinks, and daily re-supplies of toilet paper, soap, and paper towels

Climbers are the dominant population at the Bivy campsite, but there will be non-climbers such as campers, and I suspect the odd transient as well.  Their number fluctuate depending on the time of year.  I have been going to Smith Rock every single year since 2008 and I find the community atmosphere at the Bivy very enjoyable.

I would be shocked if you have any trouble finding a camping spot at the Bivy in the heat of summer LOL!

Smith Rock has a VERY WELL EARNED reputation for having uber high first bolts (though some of the routes in City of Rocks can give Smith Rock a run for its money....) so stick clips are a common sight there.  I highly recommend a stick clip, or, a very bold and capable rope gun.  Keep in mind that some of these routes with high first bolts have commiting moves en route to the first bolt! Also, some of the routes at Smith Rock, especially some of the classics, have quiet distance between bolts.

Thanks, again!

I'm well aware of what happened BITD, as some of the same bad boys put up routes in both City and Smith. Also, Black Cliffs here, and Lesley Gulch in Oregon, probably others too.

Being unable to climb even some of our local "easy" routes, I also get that "easy" does not at all equate to "beginner".

30 feet? That's halfway up, here, lol! I have a painter pole type stick clip, homemade, but it's not that long. I also have a super clip, but haven't found a pole I like for it yet. I'd like to get a short telescoping one for it, that extra length could be added on to. Then, I'd have the length when needed at the base, but could haul the short version up with me if I have to clip my way up something.

Purists are maybe rolling their eyes by now, but if I'm gonna be climbing when I'm 70 or 80, broken bones in my 60s won't move the program along, and, could shut me down entirely, including mobility, before I'm even old enough to retire.

Falls, I'm not afraid of, oddly. Just hitting something, lol! So, if whippers are in the mix, but clean, I'm okay with it. No fall zones? That'll have to be the rope gun.

I'll figure on the bivy, if it ends up being Smith.

Best, Helen

Shady spots:
West side Christian Brothers/snake rock in morning
Aggro, Cocaine, Phoenix, Llama Wall all day shade,
Lower gorge afternoon shade

Our summer plan was to head straight to the "backside" (everything beyond Asterisk Pass) and go non-stop until it gets hot, which is early afternoon. Wander back to the car for shady drinks or town for ice cream or something. Then gear up around 5 for evening shade at Red Wall, Picnic Lunch Wall and that area. Forget about the Dihedrals and other spectacular but south-facing venues!

Some great moderates on the backside like Spiderman, In Harm's Way and lots more I forget (that was the 30 years ago). 

Thanks much! I don't have a guidebook yet for Smith, although I have a Climb-On map (what a great map!). Is there a shop I can buy it at over there? I like to support the little towns I travel to. Also, is it worth going to Bend to visit Metolius?

Anything else for a first time visitor to be aware of?

Thanks! Helen

Old lady H wrote:

Anything else for a first time visitor to be aware of?

Thanks! Helen

The gear shop in Terrebonne sells gear and Beer!

Curt Veldhuisen wrote: Our summer plan was to head straight to the "backside" (everything beyond Asterisk Pass) and go non-stop until it gets hot, which is early afternoon. Wander back to the car for shady drinks or town for ice cream or something. Then gear up around 5 for evening shade at Red Wall, Picnic Lunch Wall and that area. Forget about the Dihedrals and other spectacular but south-facing venues!

Some great moderates on the backside like Spiderman, In Harm's Way and lots more I forget (that was the 30 years ago). 

Dihedrals get tons of shade due to the geometry of the crag. There are east, west and south facing routes.

Old lady H wrote: Thanks much! I don't have a guidebook yet for Smith, although I have a Climb-On map (what a great map!). Is there a shop I can buy it at over there? I like to support the little towns I travel to. Also, is it worth going to Bend to visit Metolius?

Anything else for a first time visitor to be aware of?

Thanks! Helen

Tons of breweries in Bend. I contacted Metolius a year ago or so and asked about a tour. They said to give them like a weeks notice.

Just past the entrance to Skull Hollow is a cattle guard, once you cross that there is dispersed camping.  You'll love the bivy.  If you see the hosts sitting out stop by and say hello to them, they are usually very nice people (hosts aren't permanent and change often) and very open to a friendly chat.  

Dallas R wrote: Just past the entrance to Skull Hollow is a cattle guard, once you cross that there is dispersed camping.  You'll love the bivy.  If you see the hosts sitting out stop by and say hello to them, they are usually very nice people (hosts aren't permanent and change often) and very open to a friendly chat.  

its actually past the second cattle guard that there is dispersed camping, which is a bit further down. (first cattle guard is after you turn off of the main road, the second is after the paid Skull Hollow campground). If you camp before the second one without being at a designated site and paying, you can get fined, a lot of people get away with camping there, but the free BLM land is out a little further. Anything after the second cattle guard is fair game. 

"Out of harms way" 5.8, should be clean falls.

Lots of 5.9s would be safe

Menna Mourad wrote:

its actually past the second cattle guard that there is dispersed camping, which is a bit further down. (first cattle guard is after you turn off of the main road, the second is after the paid Skull Hollow campground). If you camp before the second one without being at a designated site and paying, you can get fined, a lot of people get away with camping there, but the free BLM land is out a little further. Anything after the second cattle guard is fair game. 

Thanks for the clarification.