Good quality rock for the Prettyboy/Gunpowder area.  A form of schist.  But tilted slightly, which makes the climbing awkward.  This crack is not as straightforward as it appears.  Crux begins about halfway up where a slot opens up.  Somewhat sustained.  The crux involves a series of moves.  Because of the tilted bedding of the rock you never feel quite solid.  Fun, nevertheless.  Pro is solid.Named after our canine friend Dane, who had a great day at the crag.

Dane's Delight

Give it Some Thought

Kelp City

Six  Ticks

Sea of Kelp

Almost Almost Alpine

The Slab

Prettyboy Murder Hornets

Begin on Prettyboy Murder Hornets at the left end of the main face.  Climb to just below the big ledge, then traverse up and right following the obvious crack.  Cams and big stoppers.  Keep traversing until you come to a vertical exit crack.  Head straight up.  Anchor off of trees on the slab above.  Walk off or rap the slab.  Pay attention as the slab is steep and littered with leaves, pine needles, and other debris.  Named after the total number of tick bites received by the fools to first explore this area.  Bring bug spray.  It's Maryland.

Slightly overhanging.  Climb up to the obvious right-leaning horizonal, then move right to connect with Prettyboy Murder Hornets.  Can be top-roped or led.  Protect with cams.  #4 Camelot for the obvious pocket down low.  Followed by a medium TCU, then a #3 Camelot.  Link up with Six Ticks or Prettyboy Murder Hornets.

Follows the right-facing corner to the right of Dane's Delight.  Start on the face directly below the corner.  Boulder up through the "kelp" to good handholds at the bottom of the dihedral.  This is  the crux.  Place a very small nut in the slot on the left below the dihedral.  A number 5 Black Diamond stopper fits best.  Not great, but OK.  Climb up into the corner.  The rock is irregular. so be creative with protection.  Tricams and nuts work better than cams.  Exit the corner moving left and up.  Look for nut placements as you top out.  Not hard.  But mind the lichen and kelp underfoot.The alternative start begins in the crack at the bottom of Dane's Delight.  Place some bomber cams in the crack.  Step right and move up to place the critical small stopper in the slot overhead.Named after the leaf-like lichen covering the wall that locals affectionately call "kelp". 

Launch into the Sea of Kelp.  Crux is down low.  Get dirty.  Explore the kelp.  The placements are there.  You just have to look.  

A real multi-pitch climb in the Prettyboy Reservoir.  Named in homage to Almost Alpine, the greatest climbing film ever made, which features the mind-blowing 7000’ traverse of West Virginia's North Fork Mountain. A towering achievement. (Another such tribute can be found on The Overlook in the Hereford area of the Big Gunpowder Falls.)

 This is a link-up of parts of several existing routes plus some new territory.  Sort of a girdle traverse, but not really.  The climb moves up and across the face.  Only pitch three is a true traverse.  Place gear carefully where necessary to protect the second.  Long runners minimize rope drag on pitch three.Pitch One (5.6, 35 feet)Climb the slab to a small ledge on the right.  Build a belay here in the right-facing corner at waist height.  A hanging belay is best to avoid rope drag on the corner. 

Pitch Two (5.8, 30 feet)Step down off the ledge to place gear and follow the obvious right-learning crack upward.  (This is the upper section of Six Ticks.)  The pitch eats gear.  Primarily cams and nuts.  Climb to another hanging belay at the top of Dane’s Delight.  

Pitch Three (5.4, 60 feet)Begin the traverse across the Sea of Kelp.  The placements are there (small cams and Tricams).  You just need to look under the kelp.  A little run out here and there.  Ascend as you move right to a large horizontal on the far upper side of the cliff.  Please a couple of large cams in this horizontal.  Belay at the end of the horizontal near the bottom of a shallow, dirty right-facing corner.   A #5 Camalot or equivalent helps here.   A small tree stump is available too.   With cleaning, some of the nearby horizontals likely have placements.

Pitch Four (5.4, 40 feet).Move straight up the face, aiming for a crack in the summit roof.  Find small cam placements in horizontals along the way.  Place a cam at the lip of the roof.  Pull the roof and belay off of the tree in front of you. DescentWalk off or rap from a tree with an obvious crotch near the cliff edge, lower down.

Climbing is low angle until the final moves.  Place gear to your left in the overlaps.  Mainly small cams and Tricams.  As you ascend, the roof overhead grows.  The slab ends at an obvious ledge.  Continue up and left, through the overhang on Prettyboy Murder Hornets.  This is the crux.  Alternatively, build an anchor for pitch #1 on a multi-pitch link-up with six Ticks, Sea of Kelp, and parts unknown.

Nice crack and face climb.  Crux is the bottom section.  Protection is excellent.  The crack eats gear.  Follow it to the ledge, then up and through the overhang with the crack in the middle. Pretty straightforward--though the tilted bedding makes it feel weird.  Anchor off of trees on the slab above.  Walk off or rap the slab.  Pay attention as the slab is steep and littered with leaves, pine needles, and other debris.  Named after a clutch of evil looking hornets attached to a foothold.  Watch your step.

A beautiful crag in a beautiful setting. Close to the dam but completely out of sight. Feels quite remote. Thirty to 55 feet in height. Fairly solid rock for the Gunpowder River area. The rock is similar to The Fin in Big Gunpowder Falls, which is a form of schist.

Description

Location

Protection

Routes in The Reservoir Wall