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  • Ryan Driscoll, Justin Guarino and Nick Aiello-Popeo Send The Medusa Face on Mt. Neacola

    From April 18-25, 2021, Ryan Driscoll, Justin Guarino and Nick Aiello-Popeo made the first ascent of the north face (or Medusa Face) of Mt. Neacola, in the Neacola Mountains of Alaska’s Aleutian Range. They followed the line of Topher Donahue and Kennan Harvey’s 1995 attempt for the first roughly 3,500 feet, before adding more than…

  • Brette Harrington and Dylan Cunningham Make the First Ascent of the Northeast Face of Mt. Niblock in Banff National Park

    On April 17, 2021, Brette Harrington and Dylan Cunningham made the first ascent of the northeast face of Mt. Niblock in Banff National Park, in the Canadian Rockies (traditional lands of Stoney Nakoda, Ktunaxa, Blackfoot, and Tsuut’ina Nations). Their 14-pitch route–Just a Nibble (5.10- M6R WI5, 500m)–took 15 hours to climb.

  • Arizonan Trad Testpiece East Coast Fist Bump (5.14a) Gets First Recorded Female and First Recorded Trans Ascents

    On Jan 29, 2021, Brittany Goris made the first recorded female ascent of East Coast Fist Bump (5.14a), a single-pitch trad climb at the Waterfall crag in northern Arizona (Apache, Hopi, Pueblo and Hohokam territory). Just a few weeks later, Lor Sabourin also sent the route for its first recorded trans ascent.

  • The Trango Agility 9.1mm Rope: Red Flags are a good thing

    Mountain Standards Gear Review: IFMGA/AMGA Mountain Guide Mike Lewis has been appreciating the Trango Agility 9.1mm rope for its handling and added safety feature of prominent red markings on each end of the line. He writes: “I believe the red ends will likely become a standard in rope design and manufacturing, and…the tight ‘Spider Wear’…

  • No Room for Hate: Building a Community to Help End Asian and AAPI Invisibility in the Outdoor Industry

    During the pandemic, as hate crimes have risen against Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders in the US, Marinel Malvar de Jesus examines ways to build a safer and more inclusive community in the climbing world, the outdoor industry, and beyond.

  • Cerro Huinay (1430m) in Chilean Patagonia Gets First Ascent

    From February 11 to 25, 2021, 1430-meter Cerro Huinay was climbed by four Chilean climbers: Nicolas Gutierrez, Pancho Herrera, Sebastian Rojas and Hernan Rodriguez. The 1000m, 25 pitch 5.12 A2+ was the first ascent of the wall–one of the biggest in Chilean Patagonia.

  • Alpinist partners with Korean publisher to launch Alpinist Korea

    Alpinist is proud to announce the recent partnership with Mountain Journal in Seoul, South Korea, to launch Alpinist Korea–a magazine that prints Alpinist stories translated into Korean, as well as some original articles by Korean authors.

  • Remembering Karen Stolz (1955-2021)

    A bright light in the Adirondacks went out on April 1 with the passing of Karen Stolz from pancreatic cancer. She was 65. Karen co-owned Adirondack Alpine Guides with her husband R.L., and she was one of the earliest and longest-serving female guides in the region. “All told, she guided 37 years and around 5,000…

  • American Alpine Club announces Catalyst Grant for BIPOC and LBGTQIA+ people

    The American Alpine Club (AAC) is now accepting applications for its new Catalyst Grant, a program intended to support underrepresented groups, including BIPOC and LGBTQIA+ individuals. The application deadline is May 31 and the winners will be announced in June.

  • Metolius Ultralight Offset Master Cams: A good choice for desert aid climbing

    Mountain Standards Gear Review: Alpinist Digital Editor considers the merits of the oft-overlooked Metolius Offset Master Cams during a solo aid-climbing trip to Arches National Park (Ancestral Puebloan, Hopi, Navajo, Ouray, Paiute, Uintah, Ute, Zuni land). While he generally prefers the other brands, Franz notes that the Metolius design has its place on the rack.…

  • Call It Dreaming

    In this Climbing Life story from Alpinist 73–which is now on newsstands and in our online store–Suzana EL Massri reexamines her dreams during years of conflict and pandemic. She writes: “A multitude of decisions, chaos and chance forms our existence. Any sense to it is created by us, and it requires a daring belief in…

  • American Alpine Club moves forward with its Climb United Initiative with a public forum April 21

    The American Alpine Club (AAC) announced the formation of their Climb United initiative in February of this year. In March, Alpinist participated in a meeting of the Climb United Route Naming Task Force, which was formed to try “to build the best publishing practices to avoid harm caused by discriminatory or oppressive route names,” according…

  • Local Hero: Chevon Powell

    In this Local Hero story from Alpinist 73–which is now available on newsstands and in our online store–Anaheed Saatchi celebrates the work of Chevon Powell, organizer of the Refuge Outdoor Festival, to create spaces for “healing and belonging” in nature and ” to advocate for a broader picture of who recreates outside.”

  • Blue Ice Akila Ice Axe: An excellent hybrid multitasker

    Mountain Standards Gear Review: IFMGA/AMGA mountain guide Mike Lewis has been using the Blue Ice Akila ice axes for a variety of missions. He writes: “The Akilas kick butt for skiing and light and fast technical mountaineering because they are light, have technical picks and curved shafts (so knuckles don’t slam into ice when ice…

  • Remembering Evelio A. Echevarria (1926-2020)

    One of the greatest South American mountain scholars has passed. Evelio Echevarria died in October 2020 of colon cancer. Echevarria stands out in the mountaineering world for the massive amount of exploration and research of the Andes he did over the course of his life. He wrote more than 90 reports for the American Alpine…

  • Make It Real

    In this story from The Climbing Life section of Alpinist 73–which is now available on newsstands and in our online store–Lim Joel and his friends train for Himalayan peaks in their tropical Singapore home.

  • Peter Zabrok and Fabio Elli’s “Hooking Up” big wall aid climbing manual is fun as well as informative

    Of Peter Zabrok and Fabio Elli’s recent book “Hooking Up: The Ultimate Big Wall and Aid Climbing Manual,” John Climaco writes: “Until recently and despite 40 years of climbing, I knew almost nothing about big walls. Oh sure, I’ve managed to drag myself up Leaning Tower, Half Dome and even an El Cap route…. But…

  • Remembering George Whitmore (1931-2021)

    George Whitmore, one of the first ascensionists of the Nose of El Capitan (Tu-Tok-A-Nu-La) in 1958, passed away on New Year’s Day in Fresno, California, from complications of COVID-19 at age 89. Steve Grossman recounts his influential life.

  • Running into the Shadows

    In this On Belay story from Alpinist 73–which is now available on newsstands and in our online store–Uisdean Hawthorn writes about a new route that he and Ethan Berman climbed on the Emperor Face of Yexyexescen (Mt. Robson), which they named Running in the Shadows (VI AI5 M6 A0, 2000m). Hawthorn writes: “People will say,…

  • Sean Villanueva O’Driscoll and Jon Griffin complete big (and wide) new line on Fitz Roy

    On March 3, Sean Villanueva O’Driscoll and Jon Griffin completed the first ascent of a 350-meter offwidth that splits Fitz Roy’s south face. They topped out at 3:40 a.m. on March 4 and shiver-bivied on the summit for a few hours before heading down. Both suffered frost-nipped toes. They named the crack La Chaltenense (5.11+,…

  • The End of One Beginning

    In this Sharp End story from Alpinist 73–which is now available on newsstands and in our online store–Editor-in-Chief Katie Ives writes, “By learning to see beyond one beginning [to histories of mountaineering], we might recall alternative ways to climb and to live.”

  • American Alpine Club announces 2021 Cutting Edge Grant winners

    The American Alpine Club (AAC) has announced this year’s recipients of the Cutting Edge Grant: Nick Aiello-Popeo, Matthew Cornell, Ryan Driscoll, Sam Hennessey and Vitaliy Musiyenko will attempt objectives in Alaska and Nepal. Black Diamond is sponsoring the grant this year, and a total of $25,000 is being divvied up between the six winners.

  • 2021 Grit and Rock Award recipients announced

    A jury panel chaired by Victor Saunders recently announced the recipients of the 2021 Grit and Rock Award, a grant intended to bolster female participation and leadership in exploration and alpine-style ascents. Teams of any nationality that are led by, or composed mostly of women are eligible. This year’s winners include Sara Jaklic and Marija…

  • The Trango Vergo: Assisted braking made easier for belays

    Mountain Standards Gear Review: IFMGA/AMGA Mountain Guide Mike Lewis announces that the Trango Vergo has replaced the Petzl Grigri in his kit, awarding the Trango Vergo five stars. He writes: “Having been a die-hard fan of the…Grigri for more than 20 years, I now proclaim that after less than three months of using the Trango…