by: Bill Urbanski

Anyone who has driven on I-80 between Pennsylvania and New Jersey has no doubt gazed up at the rugged cliffs that rise up above the banks of the Delaware River and so dominate the surrounding landscape.

For the busy highway traveller, this two-mile stretch provides little more than a brief but remarkable contrast separating eastern Pennsylvania woodland from sprawling New Jersey suburbia.  For the adventurer – those willing to stop and explore the Delaware Water Gap National Recreation Area – the area provides so much more.

My home is just a forty-five minutes from “The Gap,” as it is called by locals, and I too had passed by and gazed up many times.  Recently, with friends Patrick and John, I dared not only to stop and explore but also to climb those ubiquitous and imposing cliffs.

What is surprising about The Gap is that despite such close proximity to the highway, the area does not see a whole lot of climbing traffic.  Indeed, Patrick, John and I are practically locals, and despite many years of climbing experience between us, none of us had ever climbed before at The Gap.

What is also surprising about The Gap is that climbing beta is wanting.  I am lucky to own a copy of Climbing Guide to the Delaware Water Gap, by Michael Steele, a former park ranger who climbed extensively at The Gap in the 1980’s.  It is considered the area’s most comprehensive guidebook, but it has been out of print for more than twenty years.  Online sites sadly offer little to supplement Steele’s book.

Patrick at an overlook along the Red Dot Trail

After reading what I could, I decided I wanted to climb a Gap classic, a 5.4 called Triumvirate, located on Mt. Tammany.  Mt. Tammany is on the New Jersey side of the Delaware River and is one of the two main climbing areas at The Gap.  The other is Mt. Minsi on the Pennsylvania side, which I hope to explore on another trip.

The recommended approach to the Tammany climbs is via the Red Dot Trail.  The trailhead parking lot is immediately off of I-80 West, just before crossing the river into Pennsylvania.  The lot also provides access to the Appalachian Trail which passes through The Gap.  Red Dot gains 1250 feet over 1.5 miles and ultimately joins the Blue Dot and Appalachian Trails to form a four-mile loop.  This loop is popular with hikers and offers several excellent viewpoints overlooking both highway and river as they snake through The Gap.  The Red Dot approach allows climbers to rappel in from the top of the climbs.

The other approach option, which will get you to the base of the climbs, involves bushwhacking between highway and cliff and scrambling up a horrendous scree and talus field.  This characterization comes from personal experience, as this was the post-climb route we chose to take back to our car.  It did provide a bit of adventure, but Red Dot is the better choice.

John tossing the rope for rappel

The trick to the Red Dot approach is finding the appropriate cut-off point for the climbers’ trail.  We took a few wrong turns and ended up doing a bit of bushwhacking after all until we found the cliff top we desired.  Upon arrival, John surveyed the area briefly before deciding on a sturdy hemlock tree for our anchor.  Two 70-meter ropes were lashed together and slung around the tree.  Moments later our party of three was at the base of the wall, looking up and anxious to climb.

John took lead while Patrick belayed and I compared the rock face in front of me with the pictures from the Steele book.  With light waning and perspective poor, I was unable to discern our location and cannot say with any certainty which route we actually climbed.  I can say however that the route John picked out felt like a 5.4, and we did find a piton and some abandoned webbing along the way.  Another reason I say the route felt 5.4 was that Patrick and I climbed the sometimes loose and chossy rock without much difficulty, in the dark, and Patrick didn’t even bother putting on his climbing shoes; he climbed it in sneakers.

Nighttime Rapper

At night, the Gap does not offer the same beauty to passing motorists as it does during the day.  At best the Tammany and Minsi cliffs are silhouettes against a darkened sky.  But on this day, with John belaying from the hemlock as Patrick and I simul-climbed below him, the curiosity of more than a few passing I-80 motorists was surely piqued by the bobbing headlamps in the sky.

Editor’s Note:  If you plan to climb at The Gap, be sure to take a helmet.  Loose rock is common and has been the cause of several accidents at the Gap.  Given the length and difficulty of approach, a headlamp and weather-appropriate gear are recommended as well.