Betties at Smith Rocks

A crew of us Betties went to Smith Rocks last weekend, catching a great fall weekend on the rock. It was super cold when we arrived and set-up our tents; our tents were frosted over the next morning. Each morning, we enjoyed coffee (thanks Anne!) sitting in the sun in front of the massive rocks of Smith.

On day one, we spent a good deal of time hiking around trying to figure out where to climb. Eventually, we got on some routes at Pleasure Palace and Mesa Verde Wall. At Mesa Verde Wall, we met some cool people while we waited and waited and waited to do Cosmos and/or Screaming Yellow Zonkers. I finally lead Screaming Yellow Zonkers but, by then, it was getting late...so I took it down and we headed out on the long hike back. It was a beautiful hike with the full moon shining on the Crooked River and reflecting off the rock faces.

Dawn, Christy, and Anne

 Christy

Dawn...it wasn't as slabby as it looks here. 

We had more luck on Sunday, climbing several routes at the Dihedrals, all of which were fun and relaxing. A huge rock fell off a route just to the right of us, a good reminder to us of the dangers of climbing. Thankfully, nobody was beneath that route and so there were no injuries.

 Anne, in the crack

 Christy

 Me, having fun on 5-gallon Buckets

We were again some of the last to leave the crag...back to the car and then out to eat (Terrebonne Depot- awesome!) b/c we were all starving.

Monday morning, we awoke to rain and a sky of dark clouds. So we hit the road and headed home. It was a great weekend.

The Tree of Life

A whole month has passed and we have no pictures to show for it. We've been climbing a little nearby, enjoying the summer that finally came in September and has now left us. We've been working on the yard (renamed the 'mud pit'). Not sure what else we've done with our time, to be honest.

I haven't done a movie review in awhile so I thought I'd post about 'The Tree of Life' (directed by Terrance Malick), which goes down as one of our all-time favorite movies.

Check out the trailer at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DlYYreuK8vo. You've probably missed it in theaters so check it out on DVD when it comes out.

My review: This movie is breathtakingly beautiful. At a couple points in the movie, I sobbed at its beauty alone, not even the story line. It is not your typical fast-pace, Hollywood style movie; it is very artsy and different, sometimes too slow, but I liked it all the more for the ways in which it strayed from the norm. There were scenes I could've done without and it was a bit too long. However, the cinematography was outstanding, the music was perfectly complementary, the dialogue was sparse but meaningful, and the movie concept (not exactly a plot) was profound. In reading the reviews and talking with other people who have gone, it seems you will either LOVE this movie or HATE it. There is no in-between...all the more reason to check it out. It is truly a work of art.

Banff- Lake Louise Climbing

There are some crags at the end of Lake Louise so we spent an afternoon trying out the climbing.

 Rosie, the crag dog, joined us as her owners were somewhere else

 Kyle, currently a flat-lander, feeling the vertical rock again

 the lagoon climb...there was a tiny island 

that you had to wade to in order to get on the rock.

Owen, pulling one of the mantle moves

Banff- Mt. Rundle Scramble

The hike was strenuous and steep but the scramble was terrifying. The guidebook author listed this as an 'easy' scramble with minimal exposure....guess we have different definitions.

 Not too bad at this point...loose gravel on slab rock.

 the boys heading to the summit

(Photo courtesy of J Finnigan)


Just ahead of us (yes, we are crabwalking), 

the rib we were scrambling on was less than 5 feet in width

with fatal drop-offs (200+ feet?) and on either side...

Banff- Sentinel Pass Hike

A hike with beautiful views of mountains, glaciers, wildflowers, meadows, and an alpine lake at the base of a pass.

 Brandon, Owen, Kyle

 Hillary & Jamie, photo of a photo being taken

 Our sweet, slightly demanding friend, the chipmunk

 very cool spires and towers...

 Brandon on his way to Sentinel Spire

 To get to the belay, you had to traverse this ledge with major drop-off below...

we didn't end up climbing the spire.