Just right of Samael is a crack.  Climb it to the tree below the roof.  Start is harder than it looks.  This was the last of the natural starts to the midway ledge to be done.

The Last Start

Jacobbear

No Country For Old Men

Easy Flake

Fissures Of Men

Thanks Este!

The Illuminati

Lost Puppies

Black Bear Flake

Jesus Athletics

Purgatory

The Devil's Rejects

Curpin Crack

The Middle Way

Misquoted

Merovingian Line

Black Bear Roof

Desposyni

Samael

Jam Sandwich

Opus Dei and The Knights

Just right of Fissures of Men is a low roof.  Pull it and climb up and slightly left to a belay below the roof.  A fun, one move wonder.

Samael is an important archangel, a figure who is accuser, seducer, and destroyer. He has been regarded as both good and evil.

Pitch 1: Step onto the wall, climb incut edges past two bolts.  There is a TCU placement and/or a bush to sling higher up.  Mantle onto a moss covered ledge and belay at the tree.  5.6

Pitch 2:  Climb the obvious corner nearest the tree.  Pull the roof to the right.  continue to the top of the pedestal and belay off a tree.  To descend, scramble down and north to the rings above No Country For Old Men.  Two ropes needed to get down.

Left of pitch 2 of Jacobbear, climb the left facing corner to the roof.  Pull around left under the roof to an airy perch below another roof split by twin fat cracks.  Pull this roof (crux) and climb the face above to a pair of rings.  Two ropes needed for getting down and helpful for getting up due to rope drag issues.

Above the second boulder at base (counting right to left) is a lone bolt.  climb the thin layback flake to the pine tree.  Easiest way to middle ledge.

At left end of main cliff is a clean blocky crack.  Ascend it to a ledge of sorts below the obvious Z crack roof.  see photo

From the fourth block (counting right to left) along the base, take the right leaning line past one bolt to the mid-height ledge.

P1. Climb face past two bolts to a ramp.  From top of ramp cut right to belay.

P2. Climb up past two bolts (crux) to a crack.  Follow face up and left to belay shared w/ other routes.

"The Illuminated Ones" are the masterminds behind events that will lead to the establishment of a New World Order.

From ledge beneath Z crack roof, climb the thin finger crack to the right side of the roof.  Pull right side of roof to top.

From the third boulder at the base, climb the obvious right facing corner to the pine tree.  Some rotten rock down low.

Climb to middle ledge.  Take the prominent line between the roofs.  Heavenly!

From the third block, climb the corner to the roof.  Reach left, clip the bolt and pull onto the face.  Hellish moves lead to the pine tree.

From the third block at the base (counting right to left) step up, traverse left a few moves to a sweet finger crack sporting a piton for some ungodly reason.  Belay at tree.

Climb Fissures of Men to the ledge.  Either belay or continue up the right facing corner left of the Z crack roof, to the top.

From the pine tree, climb the left wall to and out the overhanging arete until you hit a hanging belay.  Lower off into space.

We had some reporters from Raleigh tagging along that day and we feared we would be....

A needless concern as it turned out.  The "story" was only a few photos and 4 lines of print.

There are four large blocks along the base of the wall.  From the fourth one (counting right to left) take the obvious line up and left to the ledge.  Directly above looms a large roof.

At the right side of the cliff is a big steep slab.  At the left side of the slab is an obvious line.  Climb past three bolts to the crack and follow it to a run out section with two far spaced bolts then up to a bolted belay right of a pine tree.

The Merovingians were a Frankish dynasty that came to rule the region largely corresponding to ancient Gaul from the mid fifth to the mid eighth century.

Merovingians were also claimed to be the descendants of Jesus Christ; this is seen as popular pseudo-history by most academicians.

From the pine tree climb the left wall up and right to the roof.  Pull the roof and headwall above to a hanging belay.

Middle of steep slab wall at right side of cliff.  Climb past two bolts to a bowl.  Climb up and left, then pull the crux bulge back right.  Head up and right to a short crack, then slab back left past two bolts to the bolted belay right of pine tree.

Name refers to the blood relatives of Jesus (he had brothers and sister ya know).

This is the Z crack roof. At left end of cliff, climb a route to the mid height ledge.  Jam, heel hook and contort your way out and over the lip of the Z crack roof.  Belay at a tree.  Learning to climb in the Gunks has its advantages.

At right side of slab at right end of cliff, climb past three bolts to a belay ledge.  Second pitch is incomplete, but step right from belay to easier ground to bolt, then it will get hard.

Opus Dei = a shadowy Catholic sect = means "work of God".

Knights = Knights Templar

Band in Animal House = Otis Day and The Nights

combine them all and this is the mess you get.

Description

Location

Protection

Routes in Black Bear Buttress