I climbed Bloody Bush yesterday. What a terrific route. And the great weather added to the enjoyment. First pitch corner is so much fun and the traverses under and around the overhangs on the second pitch look so intimidating but are great fun to do. Only in the Gunks. Even though Williams gives this route three well deserved stars, it has been hiding under my radar for quite a while. I am surprised not to hear it mentioned more often as a Gunks 5.6 classic along with High E, Shockley's and Madame G's. If you haven't done it, give it a try.

I also appreciated the shade in the corner after baking on Maria.

Where did you belay after P2? The guide (I think) mentioned a tree with a rap station after the traverse. That looked to have been cleaned so we just did a third "pitch" / short scramble up to the climber's left (back over the overhang we just traversed under) to the top and another tree with slings. Maybe I was supposed to continue up to the climber's right... I don't recall what it looked like any more.

I agree abut the shade, very nice, even on a cool day.

The are two pine trees after and slightly above the traverse. We belayed from the one on climber's right (as you face the cliff). It had no rap slings. I think this is the tree you mention as having been cleaned. I thought the same when I first led up to it. But on the same ledge to climber's left there was a second pine with (as of yesterday) two rap slings and rings. We rappelled from that tree to the ground with two 60 meter ropes. That rappel is not a good idea. It goes through a pine tree and past a very dead tree with very old rap slings on it. We had to be mindful not to touch the dead tree for fear of knocking it down on a party below. And, rappelling through a pine is never much fun. Also, I don/t think the rap route would work with one rope. The only intermediate station I saw was the old dead tree from which no one would want to hang.

So, I think your "third" pitch was a good idea.

That's the rap that was discussed quite a bit here 2 yr ago. It goes down over lots of loose rock, and as you mention, there is no single rope option. Rgold and others advocated at that time for the fixed slings to go; sounds like they have. The upper tree you saw is the usual end of Wrist.

Yeah, that rap was one of the most dangerous in the gunks at the time because of the quantity of loose rock waiting to be knocked off on anyone unlucky enough to be below during the rappel. I did urge cutting down those slings, and apparently a good samaritan has done just that.

Now we just have to hope that another "good samaritan" doesn't "fix" the missing station by constructing a new one.

Mike and RG, unless I'm misreading Bill's post, I think you must have missed the point (second paragraph) where he says there are rap rings on a tree right next to where the old ones were. And it sounds like (from his description of rapping off them) their position is just as bad.

GO

GO is correct. Looks like the good deed of cutting the old rings on the one tree has been undone by someone putting new ones on the tree just to the left. And the rap from them is not good, especially if one is rapping with only one rope in the expectation/hope (ALWAYS A BAD IDEA) of finding an intermidiate station. Now that I have rapped down (even with two ropes) from the the new rap slings/rings on the second tree, I agree we would be much better off without them. Someone would do a favor by removing them.

About a year ago we belayed at the tree after the traverve then did the last short bit of wrist as a third pitch. Then it was a one rope rap to a big ledge, a walk to the right and then onto the ribs rap. One rap to bolts, then one more to the ground, no problems.