Type: Trad, 80 ft (24 m)
FA: Bill Robins & Thomas Koch, 1986
Page Views: 3,589 total · 21/month
Shared By: Boissal . on Nov 9, 2009
Admins: Andrew Gram, Nathan Fisher, Perin Blanchard, GRK, D C

You & This Route


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Warning Access Issue: Gate Buttress Area Recreational Lease: Climbs on Church Buttress above vault remain closed DetailsDrop down

The looks Suggest change

A few feet of groove / hand crack climbing will get you to the feature that gave the route its name: a scary looking arch formed by two stacked slabs of granite. Either worm your way behind the arch, trying not to knock the precarious pile on your belayer, or step out and lieback the damn thing, doing your best to pry it off the buttress. Both choices will bring you above the arch into a beautiful but desperately short finger crack.
This turns out to be splitting a massive detached flake (there's a pattern here). Fear not, scamper up, clip a bolt and launch into the short face above, solving a chickenhead puzzle on the way. A few 5.easy slab moves will bring you to the anchors.

The second pitch follows the slab above the moves left into a corner following rotten crack. Stay away.

Classic in a weird way, well protected and way easier than the guidebook's 5.10 rating.

The place Suggest change

This route sits on a short buttress on the lower part of the Dragon Arch area, east of the tall faces and mondo roofs. It can be reached from the Egg by following a loose gully that skirts low-angle slabs, heading up and east without requiring much scrambling.
Look for two detached stacked blocks about 20' up and a red patina face above.

The gear Suggest change

1 bolt, gear from red C3 up to a #3 (BD cams), nuts. A #4 fits behind the arch if you feel like lugging it up there.
2 bolt anchor with fresh webbing and quicklinks shared with Two Heads Are Better Than One. Rap off to save your rope.

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