Yosemite Speed, Patagonian SummitsExploring Chouinard’s maxim four decades onby Timothy O’NeillThe imploring yell, “Go, go, go!” echoes from above. My jeans pockets bulge with keys, coins and paraphernalia; I’ve been in the Valley for one week. We...
A Belayer's Thoughts …. Yosemite Valley, Spring 1952. Yo- semite again! The transition period between winter and spring brought its compelling force into play, drawing us to the bleak rockface barring the way to the Tree up on the face of El Capit...
RECENT GROWTH OF GLACIERS IN THE PACIFIC NORTHWESTApproximately 90 per cent of the total area covered by glaciers in the United States is found in the Olympic and Cascade Mountains of Washington State. Altogether, Washington’s glaciers cover a cum...
FALL ON ROCK, NUT PULLED OUT, NO HARD HATNew Mexico, Sandia MountainsOn September 16, Jim Ladd (40) and John Wright (39 had underestimated the time for approaching the South West Ridge route on the Needle (they had left the car at 1100) as they we...
Annapurna, Solo Autumn Ascent, 1990.1 approached Annapurna in May of 1989 but did not make a real attempt to climb the mountain because of bad weather. In the autumn of 1990,1 returned. I flew to Jomosom and continued on with seven porters to the ...
Mt. Kongur, Attempt. Our group this year tried to climb Mt. Kongur (7719m) in the Kashgar Range. The extremely bad weather did not allow us to even approach the summit tower. The route (Bonington, 1981) is very long and indirect. We dug our last s...
The Debt We Owe the AmericansThe Alpine Club of Canada reflects on its mentor’s centennialR.W. Sandford Vice President, Publications — The Alpine Club of CanadaWithout the influence of Americans, it may have taken a long time for Canadians to deve...
Clouds from Both Sides, Julie Tullis’ autobiography (with a final chapter by Peter Gillman), takes us through her lifetime of climbing, starting with her meeting Terry Tullis and beginning to rock climb with him. They married, had two children and...
Liayliak Valley, Rocky Ak-su, north face, Odessa Route. In July and August Ukrainians V. Cheban, A. Lavrinenko, T. Tsushko, and V. Mogi- la (leader) climbed a new 6A route up the right side of the north face of Rocky Ak-su (a.k.a. Aksu North, 5,21...
Far, Far the Mountain Peak, by John Masters. New York: The Viking Press, 1957. 471 pages. Price $5.00.A climber reading a novel about mountaineering finds himself considering it from two angles—as a story, and as a picture of the sport.This book t...
FALL ON ROCK, OFF ROUTE, PARTY SEPARATED - CLIMBING ALONE, INADEQUATE CLOTHING, EXCEEDING ABILITIESCalifornia, Kings Canyon National Park, Thunderbolt PeakOn August 21, Robert Levin (62), Steven Most (60’s), and Mathew Most (20s) hiked from South ...
Half Dome, with the south face on the right. Photo by Edward Cooper I am watching the alpenglow fade rapidly on the summits of the High Sierra. Overhead a rhythmical tap-tap-tap breaks the tranquility of a summer evening. I have been sitting ...
Walking the FenceThe Southern Picket enchainment, WashingtonWayne WallaceLet’s face it: we don’t live in the Himalaya or Antarctica. So, I wondered: is it possible to find a world-class climbing adventure here in the lower 48—specifically, in my o...
On June 12 an all Canadian party made the second ascent of Mount Logan’s east peak by the route first made in 1957 (AAJ 1958, pp. 31-38). Our party consisted of Willy Pfisterer, guide, Phil de la Salle, Ron Smylie, Don Lyon, Karl Rickmer and Hans ...
Miso Soup and M&Ms on Baffin IslandCross-cultural big-wall adventuresby Mike J. LibeckiThe bold Baffin Island, that wonderland of majestic granite thrones, lost in time landscapes and hypnotisms of solitude—after a whirlwind of planning betwee...
Middle Tooth, West Face, Three Teeth. In October Jack Roberts and I climbed this direct route on the west face following a single crack system at the left edge of the prominent orange pillar. Entry was made from the gully on the left, with a trave...
K2’s Magic Line Janusz Majer, Klub Wysokogórski, Katowice, Poland We dedicate our route to the memory of Americans Alan Pennington and John Smolich, Italian Renato Casarotto and Pole Wojciech Wróz, who died while struggling on this “Mag...
Kyajo Ri, first recorded ascent of newly opened peak. Sitting at home in front of the computer for a week with a broken leg can be a wonderful source of inspiration. So it was for me in January 2002. The Nepalese government had just opened 103 new...
Adi (a.k.a. Chota or Little) Kailash (5,925m), first ascent; Nikarchu Qilla (The Fortress of Nikarchu, 5,750m), first ascent. An international team of climbers has made the first ascent of Adi (aka Chota or Little) Kailash (5,925m). The mountain i...
Simian Outing Society. The activities of the club were curtailed severely this year by the ban on climbing placed at Portland Arch. The 60-foot sandstone bluff and surrounding area were recently made into a nature preserve after being turned over ...