The Gunks (short for Shawangunks) is one of the premier climbing areas in the country. Located near New Paltz, NY, the Gunks is about 85 miles from the NYC metropolitan area, making it a popular weekend destination. The rock is quartz conglomerate, solid rock with horizontal rather than vertical cracks. Climbing at the Gunks is characterized by roofs, jugs, traverses, big air, and sometimes "sporty" pro. The Gunks is famous for great one-to-three-pitch climbs of all levels of difficulty. You'll find some of the best easy and moderate trad climbs in the country at the Gunks. There are a few bolted climbs at the Gunks, but no sport climbs.

The ratings at the Gunks are stiff; beware of a climb with a "+" at the end of its rating. Climbs like Thin Slabs / Thin Slabs Direct (5.7+), Something Interesting (5.7+), Modern Times (5.8+), Broken Sling (5.8+), Le Teton (5.9+), and Coexistence (5.10+) will seem like sandbags to many climbers. Climbing overhanging rock, even with jugs, requires endurance and commitment. Most climbers new to the Gunks drop down a few grades in their first leads to get a feel for the rock, the ratings, and to learn how to place pro in the horizontal cracks.

The best time to climb at the Gunks is during the fall: September and October are the prime climbing season. Mid-October brings the fall colors to the area, and climbers will have to vie with "leaf peepers" for restaurants and places to stay in New Paltz. Climbing in the spring is also popular, but tends to be wetter and more buggy. Summer is hot and humid (don't miss the swimming hole), and winter offers a few climbable days.

The Gunks is one of the oldest climbing areas in the country. Fritz Wiessner first climbed at the Gunks in 1935, and he and Hans Kraus put up many classic routes in the 1940s. High Exposure, established in 1941, remains one of the most exposed and exciting 5.6 routes any climber will ever do, and should be on every visiting climber's tick list.

Most of the Gunks is part of the Mohonk Preserve, a land trust dedicated to preserving and protecting the northern Shawangunk Ridge. Climbers must purchase a $20 (as of 2018) day pass to climb at the Gunks, or else buy an annual pass ($115 as of 2022). Stop at the Visitor's Center, on Rt. 44/55 just below the cliffs, for more information or to get your pass. Passes are also often available on weekends from rangers at the steel bridge, the West Trapps lot, or at Lower Coxing, among others. If you get a day pass, keep your wristband, as the $20 cost can be credited toward the cost of an annual pass.

Due to the abundance of horizontal cracks and the limited number of vertical cracks, most Gunks routes have "PG" protection: adequate but not great, although many gear ratings were applied before small cams were invented. The horizontal cracks are great for small Tricams: the pink and red are especially useful. Small-to-medium cams with flexible shafts also work well. Climbs rarely need pro larger than 3". Hexes are not often carried, but sometimes work well.

Fixed pro is sometimes available, but many of the pins are "old and rusted and shouldn't be trusted". Bring a screamer or two for the questionable pin or bolt.

A "Standard Rack" for the Gunks:

* a set of micronuts (RPs, HB offsets, BD micro stoppers) - very often useful for 5.10 and above.

* a set of wired nuts (#3-#13 BD Stoppers or equivalent)

* black, pink, red, and brown Tricams (some climbers double up on the smaller sizes)

* blue, green, yellow, gray, and red Aliens (or equivalent)

* #.75, #1, #2, and #3 Camalots (or equivalent)

* 10-12 extendable runners (24" sewn slings)

* 1 or 2 long runners (48" sewn slings or rabbit runners)

* A Yates Screamer

Additional gear that is useful on some climbs:

* extra cams in the .5" to 2" range - very useful for new Gunks leaders

* a very small cam (black Alien or equivalent)

* a large cam (#4 Camalot or equivalent)

* a set of Trango Ball Nutz (#1, #2, #3). There are several 'new' moderate routes in the Nears, put up by Dick Williams and partners, which rely heavily on Ball Nutz for protection; caveat athleta.

* larger Tricams (purple #2, black #2.5)

* medium-sized hexes (BD #6-#8)

The amount of gear that you carry will depend on the climb, your experience, ability, and familiarity with the route and with the Gunks. If you're new to the Gunks, err on the side of taking a little more gear rather than a little less.

Many routes can be climbed and rappelled with a single 60m rope. Double ropes can be handy, however, with the traverses, wandering pro, and roofs encountered on the typical Gunks climb, and come in handy to descend in fewer rappels.

Many popular routes have bolted rap stations, but sometimes trees are used for rap anchors. Bring some webbing along in case you need to beef up a sling anchor on a tree.

Two-way radios can be useful for communicating past the big roofs often encountered on Gunks climbs. High Exposure, Disneyland, and especially The Ceiling are routes where radios can be much more effective than shouting.

Visit Rock & Snow, the local climbing shop, at 44 Main St. in New Paltz, for all your gear and beta needs.

Published by Wolverine in early 2020, a new full-color guidebook is available: Gunks Climbing, by Andy Salo, Christian Fracchia, and Eric Ratkowski. This book covers the Trapps to the Slime Wall and the Near Trapps to the end of the Workout Wall. It features route descriptions and photographs produced in sync with the Gunks App, as well as extensive historical articles and orientation maps.

The most comprehensive print guide books to the Gunks are the The Climber's Guide to the Shawangunks: The Trapps and The Climber's Guide to the Shawangunks: The Near Trapps and Millbrook; from Dick Williams.

For mobile devices, get the Gunks App - both iPhone and Android versions are available. Guides to the Trapps, Nears, Peterskill, Trapps Bouldering and Peterskill Bouldering are each offered. This app offers GPS navigation and high-res cliff images.

Mike Rawdon and Marty Molitoris recently published A Rock Climber's Guide to the Peter's Kill Climbing Area - find it at Rock & Snow, the Peterskill center, or on on Ebay. A mobile version is available through the Gunks App.

Other guides include The Gunks Select, a best-of selection covering the Trapps, Nears and Skytop by Dick Williams, Vulgarian Press, 1996 (out of print); The Gunks Guide, Third Edition, Todd Swain, Falcon Press, 1995; and THE GUNKS, from Zach Orenczak and Rachael Lynn (Extreme Angles Publishing).

New Paltz is a college town (the State University of New York has a campus here), with many excellent bars and restaurants. Many local chefs are graduates of the Culinary Institute in Hyde Park, so expect to eat well here!

Near the cliff:

Mountain Market at the junction of Rt. 299 and Rt. 44/55: stock up on Gatorade or bars on your way up to the cliff. The new owners kept a lot of the same sandwich items and added some of their own. The large parking lot and porch mean it's still a very popular meet-up spot for climbers in the morning.

Mountain Brauhaus, corner of Route 299 & Route 44-55: authentic German food and beer;  you can sit out on the porch overlooking the cliff.

In town:

The Bakery, 13A North Front St.: another great breakfast place, and to load up on carbs for the day.

Main Street Bistro, 59 Main St.: have a breakfast special that is $2 for a sizeable breakfast. For lunch, don't miss the soup & slab.

Mudd Puddle on Water Street has coffee roasted on the premises and a variety of plates.

Bacchus is the original climber's haunt, with 14 beers on tap and hundreds more in the bottle. The food is all excellent, and the menu varies widely between bar fare like nachos, to tuna tartare.

Restaurant formerly known as Gilded Otter, 3 Main St.: a great brew-pub for after-climbing drinks and dinner.  It changed ownership in 2019, and ... they need to work some kinks out.

P&G's, 91 Main St.: excellent pub food and beer.

Main Course, 175 Main St.: eclectic gourmet fare and many ready-to-eat options.

Bangkok Cafe - also Thai, on Main Street.

Karma Road, on Main St. All-vegan cafe and deli. Opens earlier than most places (8am), so a useful place to grab coffee / smoothie / sandwich on the way to climbing in the morning. Good food, obviously vegetarian-friendly, and seating indoors and out (so you don't have to smell each other).

Crazy Bowlz on Main Street is an Asian Fusion/Tex Mex restaurant with good bowls.

Garvan's is a high-quality upscale restaurant in the Huguenot Village, so a bit away from the maddening crowds.

The Cheese Plate, Water Street Market, offers all natural, local ice cream, cheese plates, grilled cheese and cheese sandwiches, which can be packed for a trip to the mountains.

Ice Cream options:

Huguenot Creamery, 78 Main St. (next to Anatoli's),

Outside of New Paltz, in Gardiner:

Rough Cut Brewing is over the ridge in Kerhonkson, and is well worth the 10 minutes it takes to get there.

In Rosendale: Garden House (tasty artisan pizza & middle eastern food).

In Highland: Gunks Haus (German, nice view).