Who I Am

Hello, my name Bill.  The reason for this site is two fold, one for family and friends and the other is to post information about the areas that I climb at.

Now for the info about me.  I’m retired from the US Air Force after 20 years of service.  I have been stationed at; Osan AB, Korea; Tyndall AFB, Florida; Elgin AFB, Florida; Kingsley Field, Oregon.  The first three bases were when I was Active Duty AF.  The last base was as an AGR with the Oregon Air National Guard, that is the base that I retired at.  My time in the Air Force was a great time in my life and a great honor.  I worked as a Jet Engine Mechanic on F-15, F-16 and A-10 Aircraft.  In September of 2009 I got a flight in the back seat of an F-15.  It was the greatest ride ever and would go again even though I got sick.  The flight was a little over an hour and we pulled 8.3 G’s and did a lot of low level flying.

I have two hobbies, rock climbing and photography.  The two hobbies work great together; as most of the places that I climb give me great opportunities for outstanding landscape photos.

I stated photography when I was in high school and continued with it for a few years, then had other things that pushed it aside.  After getting in to climbing I got back into  photography.  Most of my pictures are not any better than the ones everybody takes, but some I feel are great shots and really show what I was trying to get across; if it was the view that I had or the action of a climber.  I try to take my shots from a different point of view than most people, but I guess that is what most people are trying to do. The camera that I’m shooting with now is a Nikon D5000 with two lenses, Nikkor 55-200mm f/4-5.6G and  NIKKOR 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6G.

Now for my climbing!  I started climbing back in November 2002.  I went out with a coworker just to give it a try and loved it.  I bought the basic gear and a little more and never looked back.  Since that time I have gotten more gear to allow me to trad lead and aid climb.  Since my first time climbing I have climbed at: Smith Rock State Park, Oregon; Yosemite National Park, Castle Crag State Park both in California and have climbed in Plovdiv, Bulgaria.  Most of my climbing as been in the areas around Klamath Falls, OR.  I have done several types of climbing: top rope, sport lead, trad lead, aid climbing and big wall.  I love sport climbing as it allows me push myself and try harder routes.  I have astablished new routes at the Williamson Cliffs in Klamath Falls, OR USA.  That was my local climbing area where I learned to climb and met a lot of great people.  The hardest route that I have climbing is a 5.11d sport route that I put up back in 2006.  Since retiring and moving to the Philippines I’m trying to get out and climb as much as I can.  The Philippines is a great place to retire and live on a fixed income as the cost of living is lower than a lot of places.  Please enjoy your visit to my site and I’m open to ideas to improve.

Bill