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Don Frache's mural Chamber of Jewels (acrylic on canvas, 1984)

The Shining Mountains

Popular books recount the early days of Canadian mountaineering as a story of epic discoveries. In this story from Alpinist 50, historians Zac Robinson and Stephen Slemon examine what often gets left out: the extent to which the “explorers” relied on the prior geographic knowledge of Indigenous guides.

Lauret Savoy's Trace: Memory, History, Race, and the American Landscape (2015). [Photo] Katie Ives

Lauret Savoy’s Trace: Exploring Landscapes of Exclusion and Inclusion in American History

Alpinist Editor-in-chief Katie Ives describes some of the reasons Lauret Savoy’s 2015 book, Trace: Memory, History, Race and the American Landscape has become deeply relevant today: “Much of prior mountain literature, all too often, has been solipsistic and exclusionary. More than ever, we need writers like Lauret Savoy, who can help us see our shared land for it has been, what it is, and the many possible futures of what it can be. In a world in which so much seems starkly uncertain, there are much greater risks to all peoples than the individual and self-chosen ones that climbers face. There are also greater responsibilities that we all share.”

Paul Bonnell crosses Dewar Creek on the approach to The Leaning Towers, Purcell Wilderness, British Columbia. [Photo] Aaron Hanson

A Backyard Big Wall Expedition

A group of Idaho climbers venture into the Canadian wilderness to complete the first ascent of a route on Wall Tower (9,560′) that was abandoned by Fred Beckey Carl Dietrich and Bill Ruch. They called their line The White Tiger (VI 5.11 A3, 1,600′).

Stephen Shobe, during Expedition Denali in 2013. [Photo] Hudson Henry

Local Hero: Stephen Shobe

James Edward Mills writes about one of his climbing heroes, Stephen Shobe, a mountain guide and member of Expedition Denali, a group that continues to promote diversity in outdoor education.

Hanniah Tariq, founder of High Altitude Sustainability Pakistan. [Photo] Vanessa Beucher

Local Hero: Hanniah Tariq

Vanessa Beucher writes about Pakistani activist Hanniah Tariq, founder of High Altitude Sustainability Pakistan, an organization dedicated to the well-being of expedition workers, their families and the mountain environment.

The Emperor Face of Mt. Robson (3959m), where Barry Blanchard, Eric Dumerac and Philippe Pellet made the first ascent of Infinite Patience (VI 5.9 M5 WI5, 2200m) in 2002. Fourteen years later, Marc-Andre Leclerc soloed it. [Photo] Jeffrey Pang

Off Route and Out of Time – The Sharp End, Alpinist 56

Back in April 2016, Canadian alpinist Marc-Andre Leclerc described his solo of the Emperor Face of Mt. Robson: “My thoughts had reached a depth and clarity that I had never before experienced. The magic was real…. I was deeply content that I had not carried a watch with me to keep time…. I felt more at peace than I would have had I been counting my rate of kilometers per hour.” In the Editor’s Note for Alpinist 56, Katie Ives looks at the complex relationship that has long existed between evolving visions of mountaineering and the measurement of space and time.