rock climbing
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USA Climbing Raps into Central Oregon

Bouldering National Championships on tap at the Expo Center
Damian Fagan

Competitors will literally be climbing the walls as the Deschutes County Fair & Expo Center hosts the USA Climbing Bouldering National Championship during the first two weekends in February. The event will feature many elite climbing athletes competing for spots on the U.S. National Team and U.S. Youth National Team in the discipline of bouldering. […]

Posted inCulture

Dawn Wall is a Delight for Doc Lovers

Friday screening is free for BendFilm members
Teafly Peterson

Anyone who loves documentary films knows this: the subject doesn’t really matter. The heart of a great documentary transcends its subject, and “The Dawn Wall” is no exception. BendFilm is bringing this film back to The Tower Theatre on Jan. 11, and it’s free for BendFilm members. “The Dawn Wall” tells the story of Tommy […]

Posted inOutside

Bridging the Gap

Think your outdoor buddies have to be your own age or gender? These locals beg to differ
David Sword

Outdoor experience and adventure are integral to the DNA of living in Central Oregon. Surrounded by snow-covered mountains, dense forests, crystal clear rivers and spectacular rocks, many who live and visit here do so for the diversity in the landscape, and for the myriad options available for “getting out.” The high desert, it seems, has […]

Posted inOutside

Rock Party

Climbers hit the wall for Bend competition
Howard Leff

Joey Jannsen creates problems for other people. Specifically, the more than 100 sport climbers descending on the Bend Rock Gym this week to compete in the Bend Boulder Bash. Jannsen’s job? Set vertical obstacle course “routes” for those making their way up the bouldering wall. He’s the head “setter,” which puts him in charge of […]

Posted inNews

Swarming Smith Rock

Finding solutions to the growing number of park visitors
Russ Axon

If Central Oregonians were to compile a list of complaints about living here, it’d probably be a short list. But it’s a safe guess what the number one problem would be: too many people are coming here. Nowhere is this more apparent than at the state parks around the area—and the park hit the hardest […]

Posted inOutside

BEA’s Kids on the Wall

Three compete at nationals
Delano Lavigne

Youth rock climbers from Bend Endurance Academy (BEA) took their skills to the national level this past weekend, participating in the USA Climbing Youth Bouldering National Championships held in Madison, Wis.  Leah Pfeiffer, 14, Brady Pfeiffer, 12, and Mira Capicchioni, 10, all representing the Bend Endurance Academy Climbing Team, competed in the three-day bouldering event […]

Posted inOutside

A Climb Through Time

Local icon Alan Watts talks Smith Rock sport climbing
Kevin Sperl

Reaching Alan Watts on his cellphone last Friday morning found him about to hike Tumalo Mountain, something he has done 53 times this summer. A native of Madras, Watts is best known for promoting rock climbing at Smith Rock State Park, bringing its almost 1,800 climbing routes to the international stage. “My entire family, especially […]

Posted inOutside

Boulder Bash Blows Up

Bend Rock Gym climbing competition goes big, and goes home!
Delano Lavigne

For the past five years, the Bend Rock Gym has been hosting a competitive bouldering series called “Boulder Bashes.” But, these events have largely been self-contained to the climbers there to show off their skills. That is, until last weekend. On Saturday, the Bend Rock Gym hosted its final “Boulder Bash” of the season—and, Bend’s […]

Posted inOutside

North Cascades Gains a New Route

Local climbing guide helps create 11 pitches of The Tiger
Kara Tatone

What’s now deemed as the second hardest technical climb in the North Cascades was pioneered this past August by a trio of climbers including Bend local and climbing guide, Max Tepfer. The Tiger—11 pitches with six leads of 5.10+ and harder—was created by Tepfer, Blake Herrington and Colin Moorhead on 1,000 feet of granite near […]

Posted inOutside

Go Here 10/16-10/22

On Belay!
Kara Tatone

Bend’s location abutting the state’s prime climbing areas and the country’s mecca for sport climbing, Smith Rock, makes this time of year—with cooler daytime temps and autumn sun—ideal for getting out on the rock. Climbers may still be looking for shade but it’s far cry from the mid-summer heat. Smith Rock Climbing School Since 1983, […]

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