New York City to the Gunks without a car possible?

I am flying into New York City 18-27 and would like to climb in the Gunks and would like to know if it is possible to get from the city to the climbing without a car or, if this is a serious pain in the but. If anyone could tell me if this is possible I would be very greatful!
Thanks!

WHen I was in grad school in NYC we use to take a Metro North train to Poughkeepsie and then hitch to New Paltz. I think they are about twenty minutes apart. There may even be a shuttle at this point. Check out the Metro North website.

If I remember correctly, you can take a bus from the Port Authority
terminal in NYC straight to New Paltz. From there, walk a few blocks
towards the cliffs and you should be able to hitch the six miles
to the cliffs easily.
You might also check out gunks.com for info.

Adrian is right on here. My brother and I did this one weekend last fall, and it worked very well. If you get in later at night, and don't want to hitch, the local cab company will take ya' up there for around 20 bucks (they'll also do pickups at the preserve). split a few ways, and that's not too bad.

downside: no secure place for your camping/climbing gear, and you are on the buses schedule. also, if it's prime climbing season (we did it in october), the last bus back to NY on a sunday was packed, so show up early to the bus terminal to guarantee a spot.

dude,

Here's the bus schedule and fares page [url] trailwaysny.com/html/englis…[/url]
If you take the early bus,especially on weekends, just walk about three blocks west to Rock and Snow, and maybe chat up the staff or patrons you'll be sure to scare up a ride. I don't know that the local constabulary takes too kindly to people hitching for rides on Main Street.
I know a girl who takes Metro North,(so she can bring her dog, which isn't allowed on the bus) but she has a student who picks her up in Poughkeepsie for a tidy fee ($20 maybe)
You could also peruse the forums on [url]climbnyc.com[/url] where people in the city post for partners and ride shares.
Good luck getting a ride, it would be a shame if you came here and couldn't climb for lack of a ride. I'd offer you a ride myself, but I'm going to avoid the holiday rush and go up the following weekend.

Jim

depending on the time of morning, especially on a weekend, you can probably hitch hike up to the trapps once your in new paltz.

Thanks a bunch peoples!

Jim Sweeney wrote:I know a girl who takes Metro North,(so she can bring her dog, which isn't allowed on the bus) but she has a student who picks her up in Poughkeepsie for a tidy fee ($20 maybe)

That's me! And Teddy.

No need to take MetroNorth to Poughkeepsie(unless you have a dog, or a bicycle). As someone gave the bus from Port Authority info above, that's the way to go. The Sunday night return trip IS always sucky. Lots of people, and getting there early doesn't guarantee a spot(unless you get on an EARLIER bus(before 5pm). When the bus is expected to pull in, people do a free for all trying to get to where they think it will stop, so they can be on line. The good news is that they know there are a lot of people, and DO have a second bus available.

But still, the bus coming from New Paltz back to the city is often late, and the traffic on the highway can add travel time.

When I go up there without Teddy, I take the bus. Then I walk down Main Street and hitch a ride on front of the Gilded Otter restaurant(5-10 minute walk). This is a good spot because it give drivers time to see you and decide about picking you up, and also has a safe place for them to pull over and stop. If you have your b/pack, people will know you're going to the cliffs and usually you can get a ride pretty easy.

Going back to town, I go to the Overlook parking area(near the cliffs) and see if anyone is headed back to town. If not, I hitch a ride from that are. A little sketchy, because the road is really busy, but I've always gotten a ride pretty quickly from there.

If you get up to the cliffs via the bus etc, you can probably get a ride back to NYC by asking climbers at the cliff. Many drive up from the city each weekend.

Hello from the future. Would this be doable with modern technology? (uber, lyft, etc). Thanks.

Hey yeah very doable. You can take a trailways bus from port authority to new paltz, and then uber to the crag. I have t-mobile and don't get service in the west trapps parking lot, so I call my uber from carriage road when it's time to go home. 

Once I got a ride from the Gunks, to the metro north in pughkeepsie, to Harlem, and it took me about 3 hours to get there. Never again. Not worth the hassle IMO. 

Great info, thank you.

Lyle Dickie wrote: Hello from the future. Would this be doable with modern technology? (uber, lyft, etc). Thanks.

I don't think you'll have a problem getting a car service to take you from the New Paltz to the Gunks, but getting a car service to drive out to the Gunks to pick you up might be a problem. I think you'd have better luck if you prearrange pickup with the taxi service in town and throw them a few bucks for their time spent driving out to the cliff. More expensive? Yes, but it would be worth it to me to not worry about getting stuck.

There's someone that takes an uber from the city to the trapps and back almost every week.  It's possible if you are willing to spend some cash.
Before I had a car, I took the earliest trailways bus and then hitched from the station to the crag countless times.  

My real advice though is:  buy a car.  You will find very few people in the city serious about climbing that aren't spending the extra money to have a car.  Begging for rides gets old very very fast and trust me, and in many cases, it's a bummer to drive to wherever you are to pick you up.  So, you're going to end up having to wake up much earlier to get a train to the pickup spot, and then get home much later because you're taking the train home from your partner's place. 

My real advice though is:  buy a car

An easy to park, gas efficient car. I'm finding that unlike the west, new england is very unfriendly to squatting in your car. Maybe for a night, but for prolonged trips you're going to need a legit campsite. Day trips seem to be the name of the game otherwise.

I’ve personally always found the cost difference (on weekdays at least) between a one-day car rental + gas and a round trip bus ticket + round trip taxi / uber to be minimal (if not zero / slightly cheaper to rent a car), especially considering that driving yourself is far more convenient than getting the bus timings right and hoping you have signal to call a ride. And especially cheaper if your climbing partner is sharing a ride with you. I can see rental costs exceeding bus+taxi costs if we’re talking multiple days or potentially day trips on weekends. 

When I was a kid, 14-15, we used to take the Trailways Bus from Albany straight to New Paltz and hitchhike up to the crag. Climbers always pick you up, it’s easy. You can (or could? I think they still run) take the bus from Port Authority straight to NP. 

I suppose the posh version would be take the train to Poughkeepsie and then Lyft for $60 or something. 

Nathaniel Ward wrote: When I was a kid, 14-15, we used to take the Trailways Bus from Albany straight to New Paltz and hitchhike up to the crag. Climbers always pick you up, it’s easy. You can (or could? I think they still run) take the bus from Port Authority straight to NP.

I suppose the posh version would be take the train to Poughkeepsie and then Lyft for $60 or something. 

There's a shuttle that meets the train in Poughkeepsie and goes to New Pz. I'm not sure but I think it meets every incoming MetroNorth train. It's called the UPL, Ulster-Poughkeepsie Link. No idea about cost.

Really appreciate all the information. I've done some google mapping with public transit and I think the best bet is right outside New Haven, Connecticut for convenience from NYC. It's day trippable by train to new haven and then a 2-3 mile walk or taxi to about 70-80 boulder problems in West Rock Ridge State Park. I'm not sure how developed it is but it must be more interesting than central park. Sorry if that's way off topic, but I thought it might be of interest for those without reliable access to a car and are feeling the itch with all the climbing gyms in the city closed. I'm going to try and go check it out this weekend or next.