Monkey Face
A backside view of this impressive geological formation as it rises over Oregon's Crooked River.
Monkey Face is a 350 foot spire that is the centerpiece of Smith Rock State Park. When viewed from the south, the top of the pillar resembles the face of a Monkey complete with a mouth, nose, and eyes. The pillar is four-sided and bulges on all sides near the top making all routes to the summit quite challenging.
Monkey Face is also the location of one of the toughest free routes in the world, Just Do It (5.14c) located on the bulging east face, which is the side you're seeing here. On a sad note 4 climbers have died climbing the many cliffs at Smith Rock.
Next time I'm here I hope to catch some climbers on Monkey Face to provide better scale and show how impressive this climb is.
A slightly different perspective below:
Your visit, comments and suggestions are always appreciated.
Monkey Face
A backside view of this impressive geological formation as it rises over Oregon's Crooked River.
Monkey Face is a 350 foot spire that is the centerpiece of Smith Rock State Park. When viewed from the south, the top of the pillar resembles the face of a Monkey complete with a mouth, nose, and eyes. The pillar is four-sided and bulges on all sides near the top making all routes to the summit quite challenging.
Monkey Face is also the location of one of the toughest free routes in the world, Just Do It (5.14c) located on the bulging east face, which is the side you're seeing here. On a sad note 4 climbers have died climbing the many cliffs at Smith Rock.
Next time I'm here I hope to catch some climbers on Monkey Face to provide better scale and show how impressive this climb is.
A slightly different perspective below:
Your visit, comments and suggestions are always appreciated.