Spend July 4 Long Weekend Climbing Trad in the Gunks
If you like plugging gear then be sure to make a plan to visit this New York State location
Around 150 kilometres from New York City is one of the best, most revered trad climbing areas in America. The routes are steep, the grades are sandbagged and the gear is run-out. Countless climbers have cut their teeth on classic climbs like Modern Times 5.8+ and Le Teton 5.9+, where the “+” indicates a solid sandbag. The jugs will pump you out, the traverses will confuse you and the roofs will intimidate you, but there’s no better place to enjoy some time plugging gear on the sharp end.
The Gunks are found near New Paltz and the rock is composed of quartz conglomerate. It features long horizontal cracks with vertical ones. October is one of the best times of the year to climb in The Gunks, as the temperature cools and the leaves turn. Climbers started ascending the cliffs back in the 1930s, and some of the original hardware can still be found. The Shawangunk ridge extends west along the Hudson River toward Virginia.
The hills in this region have been inhabited for thousands of years. The Hudson River area was home to the Lenape Native Americans, a group that first encountered Dutch colonists in the 1600s. The result was the Esopus Wars, two conflicts between the new Netherlanders and the Indigenous People of the area. The hundreds of years of known history is worth learning more about before visiting.
Much of the rock in The Gunks are on the Mohonk Preserve, which is a land trust aimed o protect and preserve the northern Shawangunk Ridge. Climbers must purchase a day or annual pass to enter the area. The main climbing areas are The Near Trapps and The Trapps, long crags that range from 10 metres to nearly 100 metres. There are trails that weave through the forests below the routes, but the area is easy to navigate.
Other popular areas include Millbrook, which is more remote but offers some classic lines in an adventurous setting. The Nears have climbs up to 70 metres, with the best climbs found at the north end. Sky Top is another great crag, but you must be a client of Alpine Endeavors guiding service to use it. Peterskill has fun one-pitch climbs in Minnewaska State Park, you just need to purchase a different day pass to enter. Other fun walls include Bonticou and Lost City, two places fewer climbers visit.
The routes range from one to three pitches, and from easy to as hard as trad climbing can get. The moderates will keep you entertained, climbs like High Exposure 5.5 and Something Interesting 5.7+, the former is likely the most-climbed route at The Gunks. It was first climbed in 1941 by Fritz Wiessner and Hans Kraus and the name is more than fitting. The first pitch climbs a stem corner to a fun traverse that ends at a perfect ledge. It’s a full rope length 5.4, so manage your ropes. The second pitch is around 30 metres but is one of the best in the U.S.A. at the grade. Start up and head right to where you pull an exposed move through a roof, it’s always exciting. The top continues up past fun jugs to a piton anchor. This wasn’t Wiessner’s first climb, as that was back in 1935 with Peggy and John Navas. They climbed Old Route 5.5 for the first established climb in the crag.
After Wiessner began to open the first climbs, others quickly arrived looking for first ascent. At the time, most climbers went by the mantra “the leader must not fall” to ensure a safe day out. Protection and harnesses weren’t designed to keep the climber comfortable, just to keep them from dying. In he mid-20th century, two groups rose to prominence in The Gunks: the Vulgarians and the Appies – named for the Appalachian Mountain Club. The Vulgarians were the Warren Harding of The Gunks and the Appies, with their by the book techniques and early belay tests, were the Royal Robbins.
The Vulgarians were bold climbers living a counter-culture lifestyle. They pushed the limits, climbed nude and partied – a lot. Led by Dick Williams, other top climbers included Richard Goldstone, who opened Coexistence 5.10d in 1968. Goldstone made the first no-piton all-stopper ascent of a climb with Double Crack 5.8. John Stannard ran with the idea and joined Yvon Chouinard in leading a hammerless revolution, climbing clean without pounding iron. In the 1980s, a bolting war led to the Mohonk Preserve declaring a moratorium that put a stop to adding fixed protection.
In the 1980s, Lynn Hill arrived and made an onsight first ascent of Yellow Crack 5.12c and Vandals 5.13a. Vandals, first freed by Jeff Gruenberg, was the most difficult route on the East Coast at the time and the area’s first climb of its grade. Her lead of Yellow Crack was dangerous, and left fellow Gunks climber Russ Ruffa, who worked for Patagonia at the time, saying, “It was one of the boldest leads I’ve ever seen. I had tried leading it. I knew you had to totally commit to doing the moves, otherwise the chance of surviving would be minimal. Those are the moments that really stand out—when you see someone totally on the edge.” Not long after, Hill made the first free ascent of Running Man 5.13d at the Gunks.
Fast forward to 2023 when William Moss, 18, made the first ascent of Best Things in Life Are Free 5.14dR in the Trapps. The route is the direct line to Friend Zone 5.14c, which Moss made the first ascent of two years ago. It took Moss two seasons of projecting. He said it’s his proudest route to date, noting, “It is the original aid line that was called Best Things in Life Aren’t Free. It was always the obvious and hardest project on the Buttress, but it had been too hard and too scary in the past for me to send. It is by far my proudest ascent to date. The R is the safety rating. I gave it that because at the crux I am runout about 20 feet above my last piece of protection and the sequence requires climbing upside down which leads to the potential of hitting my head or back in a big fall. This made it scary to climb and was the reason I wore a helmet.”
For nearly a century, The Gunks have been home to epic trad climbs that make lasting memories. Each route has its own unforgettable crux or roof to pull. If you’re looking to plug some cams in solid horizontal cracks with big exposure then be sure to visit these ancient cliffs in New York.
Know Before You Go
Where to Stay: Several great places can be booked ahead of time such as the New Paltz Hostel, Mohonk Mountain House, The American Alpine Club Gunks Campground, Yogi Bear’s Jellystone Park: Lazy River, and The Minnewaska Lodge.
Guidebooks: There are several, but the best resource is the Gunks App. Printed books include The Climber’s Guide to the Shawangunks: The Near Trapps and Millbrook written by Dick Williams. A Rock Climber’s Guide to the Peter’s Kill Climbing Area written by Mike Rawdon and Mary Molitoris. Shawangunk Rock Climbs: Sky Top written by Dick Williams.
Gear: A standard rack in The Gunks is big, and includes micronuts (RPs, HB offsets), wired nuts, tricams, Aliens, Camalots, runners, and helmets. Double ropes are handy. Two-way radios are recommended.
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