Field Trip

Smith Rock

Story and photo by John D’Onofrio

The radical topography of Smith Rock seems out of place in north-central Oregon, rising as it does from sage brush covered high desert.

The Crooked River, with headwaters 100 miles upstream in the High Lava Plains, flows here in a sinuous series of meanders beneath the cliffs, home to water birds and rambunctious river otters. A renowned climbing Mecca, Smith Rock State Park draws the vertically-inclined from all over the Pacific Northwest (and beyond) but well-constructed trails offer non-climbers a chance to walk beside both the placid river and high among the soaring pinnacles of these ancient volcanic formations. In springtime, the river seems to carry the promise of the changing season and an abundance of wildflowers illuminates the landscape. It is a place to savor both dramatic grandeur and gentle beauty. ANW