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DISCLAIMER!

The topos, grades , and protection ratings provided by The White Cliff are approximate and subjective. The majority of Millbrook routes have seen few, if any, repeat ascents, making accurate reporting more susceptible to error. Loose rock, Death Ledge, lack of chalk, lack of fixed protection, remoteness, and difficulty of retreat all contribute to the overall danger and seriousness of climbing at Millbrook. The information provided by The White Cliff is in no way a substitute for experience and sound judgement.

NEWS:

updated 5/6/2013

* There is a raven's nest on OLD ROUTE with chicks
* There is a Peregrine nest with chicks in the center of the Pissed Off Wall.
* The Mohonk Preserve has placed a suggested closure, please read the following message before planning your next trip to the Bank: Because peregrines are sensitive to the presence of climbers and defend a relatively broad area of cliff in the vicinity of their eyrie, it is strongly suggested that climbers avoid climbing, not only near the eyrie, but also between the regularly used falcon sentry perches north and south of the eyrie. For the past several weeks, these sentry perches have been observed by Mohonk Preserve volunteers who use spotting scopes to monitor falcon activities at Millbrook from a distance of one-mile away. Consequently, the Mohonk Preserve urges climbers to avoid climbing in the section of cliff between Westward Ha (south) and Bank Manager (north) until July 1st. Climbers are also urged not to walk along Death Ledge or the top of the cliff between Westward Ha and Bank Manager.
Climbers should also be prepared to retreat from any climb if peregrine falcons repeatedly fly past them kecking (ornithologist language for a bird making strong shrieks) or wailing, or when they are dive-bombed by falcons.
As in the past, the cooperation of climbers is vital to the continued welfare and population recovery of this state-listed endangered falcon. Please do not hesitate to contact John Thompson at Mohonk Preserve, 255-0919 ext 1270, if you have any questions concerning this suggested closure.

Introduction

This site has been designed to provide historical documentation of the rock climbing routes found at Millbrook in the Shawangunks, NY. This site is in constant flux, refresh or reload your browser to see changes made to the site. If you have done a route and feel the grade or protection needs adjustment please let us know, your feedback will help form the consensus routes at Millbrook lack. Send e-mails to: physicsfrac@gmail.com



On Climbing Loose Rock

Millbrook offers climbing that can resemble sections of the Alps or Canadian Rockies, and special care must be taken when moving over this type of terrain. If you climb loose rock without modifying your solid-rock technique, it will only be a matter of time before you fall from a broken hold. In addition to testing suspect holds before weighting them, the climber needs to consider the direction of force applied to holds relative to fracture lines, evaluate potentially loose blocks for stability, attend to overall weight distribution, and evaluate how protection will react with the rock in the event of being loaded.

Popular crags in the Gunks have been mostly stripped clean of loose holds by generations of climbers, but Millbrook has seen far less traffic and so is in a much more natural, and hence unreliable state. At the Bank, it is wiser to approach climbs with an ice climbing mentality: protection may be questionable, and it is critical to understand when falling is or is not an option. * Due to the fact that the majority of the routes involve some climbing R or X rated climbing between 5.5 and 5.7 the R & X protection ratings have only been added to climbing 5.8 and above.