Falling into Place
In this On Belay story from Alpinist 72–which is now on newsstands and in our online store–a young Michael Kennedy sets out in 1977 with two of his heroes, Jeff Lowe and George Lowe, on the Alaskan expedition that culminated in the first ascent of the famous Infinite Spur on Mt. Foraker/Sultana. Looking back on that summer, Kennedy recalls how the name of the route grew to represent “far more than the physical dimensions of the climb.”
![George Lowe, during the 1977 first ascent of the Lowe-Kennedy Route on the north face of Mt. Hunter (Begguya, 14,573'), Alaska Range. On an earlier attempt, Jeff Lowe fell near the sun-shadow line. [Photo] Michael Kennedy](https://alpinist.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/a72-on-belay-falling-into-place-1-930x620.jpg)
![[Photos] Michael Kennedy](https://alpinist.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/michael-kennedy-acp-1-930x620.jpg)
![From Conrad Anker's The City and The Blade in Alpinist 38. Mugs Stump on the Spanish Pillar of Meru North (6450m) in 1988. [Photo] Steve Quinlan](https://alpinist.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/mugs-1.jpg)



