In the Menagerie Wilderness

Pete Guagliardo on South Rabbit Ear

me·nag·er·ie 

[muh-naj-uh-ree, -nazh-] 

noun

1. a collection of wild or unusual animals, especially for exhibition

2. a place where they are kept or exhibited

3. an unusual and varied group of people

The Return to Smith Rock!

The Smith Rock Group

When we first learned to climb, Kristin and I would make the trip to Smith Rock just about every weekend, looking for little slices of adventure in different corners of the park.  We'd pack up the car on Friday night, drive up and over Mount Hood and then down into the High Desert, pulling into secret (or not so secret) camp spots in the dark.  Straight through the hottest months of the summer we'd spend every weekend in the desert heat, rotating around the towering cliffs opposite the sun in search of shade and friction.

More on the Suffering

The Cleanest Line just posted an evocative piece by Kelly Cordes on the noble attraction of suffering, which has preoccupied my mind since returning from Gunsight.  Check it out.
  

Nate Tack mid-suffer  Photo by Jaime Bohle