It was worth it. While it rained in P-town on Saturday, we were basking in the sun (and albeit some wind) in the Tieton River Range, sans people. That's right- we were the only climbers at The Cave that day. We threw Joe and Drew on some rocks for the first time in several years and broke Ky's climbing cherry on a not-too-easy crack. All performed admirably. Enough so, in fact, that we have deemed them worthy climbing partners for future trips.
Puttin' up some ropes for some climbing fiends.
Everyone (including Hazel) wants to be certain that Drew's performance is top-notch.
After everyone had had enough of the sun and the wind and the cracks, we retired to camp. At camp, there was BEER. And a HAMMOCK. And also shooting and some weird rock bocce game Drew and Ky invented as a way to avoid shooting guns with Barkernews, Joe, and I. We just shook our heads and pretended we did not see them throwing rocks on purpose. Rocks are for climbing and creating campfire rings. Silly people.
Joe demonstrates the proper hammock technique.
The next day, we proceeded directly to Dream Wall at Lava Point, where *surprise* there were no other climbers. I *heart* the Tieton River Range. It was warm. It was sunny. The climbing on Dream Wall is amazing. Hazel even took a nap next to a boulder. It was a perfect day with awesome company.
Drew demonstrates his mad skills on Ring of Fire.
The group escapes the controlled burn just a couple hundred yards away from the climbing area.
Ultimately, Joe gets kudos for commanding us to climb and camp with them. It's true- we are extremely busy and totally over-scheduled. And we did owe them a climbing weekend. Also, we love hanging out with Joe, Ky and Drew. So, hey, guys? When are we going again??
