On the way back westward from the Ochoco Mountain Day hikes, I stopped at Smith Rock for a sunrise hike. When I arrived at the park around 5:30 there were less than 10 cars in the entire parking lot. When I came back to leave around noon, the parking lot was full and cars waiting to park. Earlier this year at the campground, a handful of cars, this time it too was full.
Sunrise
Arriving at the right time (early morning for me) has its advantages. The light is perfect for a camera and not enough people are around to stain the photo. When I arrived, the nesting chicks calls for food were echoing off the rocks.
If the views of the rock are not sufficient, climb a bit higher and look to the west. I was not the only one doing this …
That was the first balloon I’ve seen over Smith Rock (the photo was not manipulated), but it totally made sense that this would be spectacular!
Birds
Nesting raptors are one of the reasons I drop by Smith Rock whenever I can. This year did not disappoint, and in fact, the first time nestlings were photo’d.
Other observers
When one arrives early, others are up and around as well. But once the humans start showing up, these folks go away.
I can’t remember the specific trails I took. I just rambled around for several hours trying to avoid the crowds. The climbers were out in force by 10:00 am and the valley filled with people … time to move on.