Washington State
Climbing
There are numerous climbing areas in Washington state. Many of them tend to be drier than Squamish, so they make for good destinations when the showers start coming to Vancouver.
- Exit 38
- Leavenworth
- Vantage aka Frenchman's Coulee
We stumbled upon this place and were surprised that no one had ever heard of it before. It has excellent sport climbing, but little trad. Many crags were exposed with the creation of an old and defunct railway line. The crags have been vigoursly cleaned for you safety and many have excellent bases. Not exactly a traditional climbers ideal spot.
Topo's are available on-line at deceptioncrags.com,
There is unofficial camping along the river. Go to exit 34, drive north through the trucking area. Take a right on north fork road. Drive until you find the river. There are a number of unmarked camp grounds between the road and the river. They are not mantained, and thus are "free". The river provides water, I recommend purifying it. There are no toilets, make sure you go at the crags or in town.
Leavenworth
The climber's campground is called "8-mile campground". The rock is granite. There's a variety of stuff to do in the area, from bouldering to multi-pitch alpine climbing (Prusik peak).
Vantage
Ever climbed on columnar basalts? Really interesting rock that is very similar to a gym. The rock is very chossy, so make sure that you wear a helmet. A guide book is impossible to buy until spring 2007 (I bought the last one). The VOC club has one in their library that can be borrowed. There is a camp ground with toilets, but no water. The camp ground does cost money, and you must pay at the local grocery store, gas station. Climbing and parking is free.
Do not go in the summer, it is brutally hot and exposed. There is swimming in the Columbia river if you keep following the access road. Vantage is super dry, so is a good alternative to Squamish when Squamish is wet. I hear November and February are not a bad time to visit, but that is second hand information.