When we came rock climbing here last year on our way to Portland, OR, we knew we would be back for more at some point. We can camp in the bus right by the rock climbing walls! No approach walk (this also means we can climb until it is almost dark!). The kids can go to the rig to eat, play, pee... It's heaven! And the beauty of this place is stunning. It is pretty packed on the weekend. Young cool hipsters come from Portland and Seattle to take selfies of themselves up on the wall (yes, we have seen that!) dressed up like they just jumped out of a magazine... We made the average age go up quite a bit! But they were all super nice and excited to see kids rock climbing. The Red Bus intrigued many and our lifestyle made a few commiserate over the fact that they had to drive back to the city for a week of work... Hey, we have solar power and good Internet connexion (even here in the middle of the desert!), we are good for a week!

There are two main rock climbing areas: Frenchman Coulee (The Feathers and Middle East Wall) and the Echo Basin (Sunshine Wall, M 'n M Wall, Powerhouse Wall and more.). The Feathers are short basalt columns; there is a North Side and a South Side. The difference in temperature when the sun is out is incredible!. On the North side, people were belaying with down coats and hats, while on the South side, we were belaying in tank tops and sweating! The routes are longer on the Sunshine Wall. There are now over 600 routes at the area, ranging from 5.2 to 5.13 (mostly sport, some trad, lots of begginners route, but lots of choss too). You need to get a Discover Pass for $30 to be allowed to park and camp here. This pass gives you access to all the rec sites in Washington State for the year. Here's a pretty decent topo we found online. We love this place! And we love our life!