This review is based on a couple visits…read more Very convenient location: This store is located on the corner of Smith Rock Way, which leads to the birthplace of modern American sport climbing, Smith Rock. They carry the hard to find all leather full finger rappelling gloves made by Metolius, an Oregon-based company. I called several stores in and around Bend. Only this store had them in stock that day. Very knowledgeable and helpful staff: During my visits they thoroughly answered my questions and gave recommendations. Please give a raise to both Lee and Kyle and promote them :) GREAT cold brew and other brews, great caffeine source for long road trips. Lots of parking. If you're looking for quality climbing gear, I highly recommend this place.

I stood in line for at least ten minutes while the guy was busy assisting customers the gal never…read moreacknowledged me until the very end when she finally asked if she could help me. I said yes, I would like a bag of coffee beans, she looked perplexed and turned away and said to the guy she needs coffee beans. He was still finishing making drinks so she charged my credit card and he finally goes to the back to get the beans comes but then back out and informs me they are out of bags for beans and offered to put in a cup. I was blown away. I was not even offered a free coffee for wasting all of my time. Sorry but I will not be going back. I would have never had a customer stand there that long and after not being able to help them not even offer them a free coffee. Just wow!

Words can't describe this rock gym. You just have to experience it yourself. Incredible routes,…read moreawesome service, and super nice people. We've climbed rock gyms from Alaska to Arizona. This is hands down the best!

Really cool gym, so many options for climbing. Great route setting. I'd enjoy this gym as my home…read moregym, but I enjoy my visits when I'm in the area.

The staff and owner were super helpful. I needed a specialty part for a splitboard. Without it, I…read morewouldn't ride the board. They were kind enough to find the part on a rental board and got my board professionally setup so that I could ride. It saved my trip! A+ service! Highly recommend!

Friendly service! Found what I needed, and was on my way. Needed a pair of snow boots, got a…read moregreat pair of Sorel's

We just finished our 4 hours with Cliff the instructor. We were a family of 5- 2 adults and 3 kids…read moreages 13,11,5 This was outstanding! Perfect balance of teaching and autonomy in a very positive manner! Patient and encouraging! We loved this experience and highly rec for all you future climbers! Cliff was amazing!

Thus is an amazing company and the guide Alan we had was knowledgeable, encouraging, and just a…read moregreat human being. This was a great adventure for me and my husband! I will definitely book again.

One summer weekend, in 2018, the forecast called for west south west winds which blew the forest…read morefire smoke away from Sisters, so I decided to do a hike at Three Finger Jack. It's about a 13 to 14 mile round trip. The first three miles the dirt in several spots is very soft, like sand. For me that was the bummer part of this hike. Especially if your pack is 30 lbs, plus your body weight. Your striding along all of a sudden the soft dirt breaks your stride. :-| I was hoping to pick fresh wild berries. Unfortunately, other hikers beat me to them. I was lucky to find two berries; which I took a photo of before I picked them. This berry is part of the blueberry family (see photo). I took a break and found a great spot with a fantastic view. This area would be an awesome future camping spot. I setup my hammock and had a late lunch. A mild wind kept this area cool, and I felt so comfortable I took a short nap. When I awoke the view hadn't changed. As one of my friends would say, "it's a million dollar view!" I continued on the trail and finally came to view Three Finger Jack. I sat down looking at the details of Three Finger Jack. My objective was to view Three Finger Jack and plan another time to camp and conquer Jack. I'm hoping to find a hiking buddy to join me. Jack's a brittle kind of a guy. One false move, you'll have a quick way down. :-0 While hiking back down, I again came across the view of Black Butte. To the left, wild fire smoke was returning (see the before and after photos). As I arrive back to the trail head I saw a cool scene of a deer looking for dinner.

See that craggy, busted, pinnacle of friable rock on your right as you're driving into Bend from…read morePortland? The one just north of that nipple-looking one*? That's Three Fingered Jack. If you happen to live in Oregon and also happen to want to do some *alpine* rock climbing in Oregon, this is one of your only choices. (that nipple I describe above is your other) The rock quality on both is horrendous. If this rock were in Washington or California, no one would climb it. It breaks, it sheds, it's hard to protect. It reminds me of the Chugach up here in Alaska. At least the approach is short. Take the PCT north for about 3-4 miles. Eventually, you'll see TFJ (if you want to be seen as kewl by other peak baggers, this is how you should represent this mountain in text). You really, truly, cannot miss it. Once you see it, pick the least horrible way to hoof it up the loose dirt/gravel/scree/choss and up onto the higher parts of the peak. Eventually, you'll come to an awkward traverse. This is "The Crawl**". Some folks protect TC, some folks don't. I climbed it protected because I was new to all things alpine and someone else rigged up all the ropes for me. I didn't find it to be that bad. Would I climb it unprotected? Maybe. Should you? I don't know dude, risk management is a personal thing. Maybe you should think about it for a while. After negotiating TC, you'll reach the summit block. This pillar of petrified poo is rated at 5.0-5.2 depending on which crusty, old-timey mountaineer you ask. The climbing is easy, but it doesn't protect all that well. People usually plug some small cams. I'm very comfortable taking a fall on small cams when compared to my peer-group. I don't think the placements here are very good. Remember rule 000001 of climbing: don't fall. If you're just a hiker, I would NOT recommend YOLO-ing up this fucker in your Keens! This is easy rock climbing, but it is absolutely rock climbing. This ain't no scramble, go back to Chow if you're looking for one of those! There's usually a whole mess of tat on the summit, so you can rappel back down the small face of portable-chickenhead-hand-holds. Despite the abysmal rock quality, TFJ is still worth tagging. Once. Why? The approach is short and the views of Mt Jefferson are stunning. (FYI cool kid: if you want to sound hip when talking about Mt Jefferson, call it "Jeffy". Also: talk constantly about how the only route worth doing is Jeff Park Glacier. But *never* call it that, just shorten it to "Jeff Park") If you're feeling really freaky, you can also easily attempt TFJ in the winter. The road is plowed. The summit block? It's often coated in beautiful-but-impossible-to-protect rhyme ice. Good luck, friend. *The nipple is Mt Washington. **When I lived in Oregon, I found that TC was a good benchmark for gauging the mental toughness of prospective climbing partners. If you want to do this too, it could go like this: "Hey, you ever climb TFJ?" "Yeah bro." "So...whudja think of 'The Crawl'?" "Fawk brah, that shit was easy! I could've sprinted through it in my Crocs!" That guy could be someone you want to climb with. He could be a confident, sure-footed climber and a natural leader. Or he could just be a loose-cannon with a deathwish. Use your own judgment. Pay attention to body language.

Depending on your experience level and head-space, this is either an extremely heady "hike" or an…read moreeasy climb. This is 99% a hike, but once you near the summit, you will definitely have to do some rock climbing moves. They are easy moves, easier than anything you'd find in a rock gym, but the rock is a little loose. This is the Oregon Cascades after all, where the mountains feel like they are made out of epoxy and kitty litter! The summit views are tremendous though. Almost all the Oregon Cascades are visible (from N-to-S): Hood, Jefferson, The Three Sisters (this is an excellent place to photograph South Sister), Bachelor, etc. The best views though, are peering right down into the massive summit crater of Broken Top. Bring a wide-angle lens! Expect this to take a full day. I recommend starting EARLY. (before sunrise)

This is one of my favorite mountains to climb, but also one of the more dangerous hikes I have been…read moreon. This mountain looks as if it has blown its top, but according to a couple of geology classes I have taken, the cone at the top has been eroded by glaciers. Which is almost as cool. Another noticeable feature to this mountain is its location compared to the other mountains in the Cascade Range in this area. The Three Sisters, Mount Bachelor, Mount Jefferson, and Mount Thielson are all in the same linear path. But Broken Top is west of this path. What is important about that is that when you get to the top of Broken Top you are actually given a different perspective of the other mountains. You are looking at the Cascade Moutain Range as if you are flying above them. Now if you combine this with the fact that you can drive pretty close to the base of this mountain. You have a pretty awesome combination. There are a couple ridges that you can take to get to the top of Broken Top. I have only been on the southern ridges. From what I am told, this is not the safest path to take. I don't recommend it unless you are an experienced climber. My friends and I took this path because it is the shortest. The downside is that it is fairly steep and does not lead you to officially summit the top. We both had some close calls on this ridge. The terrain is so steep that once you misstep and start sliding you have a really hard time stopping. I had started to slide on this ridge a couple of times and was very lucky to have caught my arm on some rocks before sliding off of a cliff. Next time we will be sure to take the ridge to the north. From what I am told, it is longer but much safer and takes you to the official summit. The hike itself is very beautiful. You start above the treeline somewhat and follow the trailhead. You will find an old canal and some melting glaciers in the summertime. Once you enter the valley you will see that you are inside the bowl of Broken Top. Everyone I have talked to seems to all agree that this reminds you of the video game Halo. As the bowl looks like the giant halo around the planet that you see. From here you will want to pick the ridge you plan on climbing up. I recommend passing on the south ridge and walk around to the north ridge. This trail is located in the three sisters wilderness and it important to remember that help is not close. So you will want to be extra careful. As you may not even have cell coverage. The terrain and the ecology around here are fragile, so you will want to be respectful and travel along durable paths and not leave any trash on the ground. Obey the rules and make safe decisions and you will have a five-star experience. Here is a link to the land management agency that manages this land https://www.fs.usda.gov/recarea/deschutes/recarea/?recid=38808 Here is a lin to a map and elevation gain and loss to the different routes https://www.alltrails.com/trail/us/oregon/broken-top-trail Here are some more summit tips on this mountain http://www.summitpost.org/broken-top/150574

So the big play thing is the one thing I can take my son to do on the weekends and its closed.. got…read moreit. What kind of schedule is that?

Five stars isn't enough for this place. I started visiting here as an adult playing indoor soccer…read morebut as my kids grew older, we started to sign them up as well. Overall, I just truly love this place. From day camps to birthday parties, it's just organized and run to perfection. The staff know my kids by name which makes me feel so comfortable when we drop off for a day camp. We have yet to have a negative experience and probably have 70+ visits. I love this place and the staff. To the owner, great job hiring and give the entire staff a raise. Thank you!

It was a fun and unique experience for our girls!!! Thank you Leo for this unique experience! You…read moreare awesome!

This was a truly unique and amazing experience, where else can you even do this??…read more I stumbled on this activity listed on a hotel's website as something to do in the area and thought it sounded really unique and adventurous. My boyfriend said this was the one thing of all the activities he really wanted to do so we signed up. The emailed information was really detailed on where to meet, down to the need to use Google maps vs Apple maps, which was helpful. Megan was our guide/trainer and arrived on time. She spent a lot of time explaining and showing us all of the gear to start - including us holding the gear and practicing opening/closing/using it. Then it was on to the practice tree for her to show us how to get up and down. Then we did it. Once she felt comfortable that we were "okay" (and by ok I guess I mean safe, not necessarily in good shape to climb LOL). We headed over to the old growth tree and learned a little about trees, which was really informational and I'm glad she took the time to educate us. The tree was enormous! Megan then took down all the ropes from the trees and we got to climbing. We got no where near the top when we had to call it quits but it was the adventure of a lifetime for sure and Megan was fab in explaining and being patient with us!

A gem not so far outside of PDX. Amazing staff. Excellent food. The Phoenix rebuild since the fires…read moreis impressive. I loved the silent pool and the river access the most. Walk slowly and watch your surroundings, the dragon flies, the bees, the butter-freaking-flies are ABUNDANT. Recommend walking every square foot of the property.

I really appreciate the experience at Breitenbush Hot Springs. In particular, the FOOD! So much…read moredelicious food, freshly made and full of love. The hot springs are incredibly relaxing as well. I appreciate that the sauna and spiral tubs are cleaned daily, and the others on a rotating schedule, so they always feel relatively fresh. I also love that the springs are clothing optional. To me, it feels like a fantastic way to help me drop into the healing vibes and it's a tea practice for us westerners to detach nudity from sexuality. Such a worthy practice for all of us to honor that bodies just are and nudity doesn't always need to be sexualized. Plus it keeps the tubs cleaner to not have clothing in them! Love that the soaking options are open 24/7. I'm also a huge fan of the cold plunges, and the access to the cold river for plunging/dipping. And I LOVE that's it's off-grid so guests can really drop into presence. The staff feel welcoming and friendly, and there's always someone on duty, even overnight, which helps me feel safe. I also appreciate the "no intoxicants" policy for the same reason. It's not a polished bougie type of resort, so if you want or expect that this might not be the place for you. If you're into forests and healing waters and delicious food in a more family-like atmosphere, you'll love it here.

So I was very disappointed when me and my wife took a day trip and tried to find these caves. It…read moreled us to the small town of Detroit dead center of the town no one there or anywhere around had a clue or have ever heard of this place. There's no direction of where to go how to find it or anything else. This was a complete waste of time and we ended up try to go to Brighton Bush we made it, but it was 30 mile detour a huge pain in the ass and then they were completely full when we got there so ended up taking a trip to Bagby instead and we were glad we could soak in a tub because bagby it's pretty much falling apart

A well-known secret among landscape photographers, Boca Cave is a pretty spectacular place…read more The hike is short. The cave is enormous, but not "spooky". The mouth of the cave almost perfectly-aligns with a view of Oregon's second-tallest peak: Mt Jefferson. Proof of intelligent design?! You access the cave by taking a slight detour on the way up to Triangulation Peak. Enough babbling, just go there. It's not close to any major metro, but it's worth the drive.