Bonnie’s Roof, located in the Shawangunk Mountains, commonly known as the Gunks, near New Paltz, N.Y., stands as one of the most iconic trad climbing routes in North America. This two-pitch 5.9 in the Trapps area draws climbers for its exposure, history, and challenge. To understand Bonnie’s Roof, one must delve into its place within the broader context of trad climbing’s evolution on the East Coast, where the Gunks played a pivotal role in shaping the sport.
The Gunks, around 150 kilometres north of New York City, emerged as a hub for trad climbing in the 1930s. Fritz Wiessner, a German immigrant with mountaineering experience, documented the first technical climb in 1935, the Old Route 5.5, on Millbrook. Wiessner, alongside Hans Kraus, established routes like High Exposure 5.6 in 1941,…
