Darwin’s Disappointment
In September 1833, Charles Darwin set out for the four peaks of the Sierra de la Ventana alone, lured by local murmurs of caves and
Mammut 8.7mm Serenity Dry: Light, Stiff and Specialized
Although rope technology has greatly improved in the twenty-some years since I started climbing, I was still skeptical when a lime-green Mammut 8.7mm Serenity rope
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Solo Faces: The Camaraderie of Divine or Reckless Brotherhood
Before I left for Chamonix to go hiking in the French Alps, I borrowed Solo Faces by James Salter from the lending library at work.
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Down to the Wire
This story is about Jack Tackle recovering from a debilitating sickness and then traveling to Mt. Augusta (14,072), Saint Elias Mountains, Yukon Territories. High on
Poetry Feature: “Belay”
As an ecologist and a writer, I spend a lot of time contemplating how those two vocations speak to each other. Fundamentally, my research explores
A History of Imaginary Mountains–Thoreau’s Dream: Beyond the Maps
Behind the histories of exploration lie less-visible tales of rumored summits that prove to be nonexistent, and of physical mountains whose shapes and heights transform
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Friends and Family Honor Dave Bridges (1970-1999)
On October 5, 1999, while Dave Bridges and Alex Lowe were investigating a potential ski descent on the southwest face of Shishapangma, an avalanche buried
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A Quartet for Silent Lands: A Photo Essay
We asked Lise Billon and Jerome Sullivan, two of the four authors of “A Quartet for Silent Lands” in Alpinist 53 (the other two authors
Local Hero: Fay Pullen
At seventy-three, Cascades climber Fay Pullen bushwhacks through dense thickets and climbs isolated peaks–generally alone. Cindy Beavon pays a visit to one of Washington’s most
![Jess Roskelley on lead through mixed terrain during the first ascent of Westman's World (VI M7 AI4X A3 70) on the Citadel (8,520') in the Kichatna Spires, Alaska. [Photo] Benjamin Erdmann](https://alpinist.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/citadel-of-ice-and-wind-0495-930x620.jpg)
![David Bridges (left), Conrad Anker (middle) and Alex Lowe sorting gear on a rooftop in Kathmandu before the 1999 Shishapangma trip. [Photo] Andrew McLean](https://alpinist.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/shish1-930x620.jpg)
Andrew McLean Remembers Alex Lowe, David Bridges and the 1999 Shishapangma Avalanche
Andrew McLean shares his reflections on the 1999 expedition, the avalanche that killed Alex Lowe and David Bridges and the void left by their passing.