Climbing
Archive
Big-wall climber Quinn Brett fell 100 feet while climbing El Capitan. Now paralyzed, she thinks back to her accident and reimagines her future.
Rob Miller worked for seven years to develop a new line up Yosemite's tallest wall. In the end, it all came down to a few short moves.
After years of controversy, Nepal's Supreme Court has ruled that Pemba Dorje Sherpa's climb was unverifiable, returning the record to its previous holder
From director Jon Glassberg and writer Caroline Treadway, this film documents Heather Weidner's attempt at trad climbing China Doll.
The Himalayan Database has long been considered the place to find stats about climbs on the region's big peaks. Now, for the first time, that data will be free to the public.
Before Amazon and big-box stores, mountain shops like Eastside Sports dotted the West. Now, it's one of the last survivors.
Meet Ray Verseau, widely known as the world's best belayer. Not only has he created a career out of belaying, he's made it into a lifestyle.
Alex Honnold and Cedar Wright are known for sending incredible routes in remote regions around the world.
And why I can't live without personal projects—even if they don't mean anything to anyone else
When he set a new record up Wyoming’s Devils Tower last month, Robert Kelman confirmed what experts say about aging and athletics: use it or lose it
Beckey, who has often been called the country’s ur-dirtbag—a climber who eschews riches to pursue climbing full-time—was widely recognized as North America’s most prolific mountaineer
After two failed attempts, the team of three ascended Nuptse's massive 7,000-foot wall to put up a new route on one of the Himalayas' most difficult mountains
The ReelRock 12 Film Tour highlights this year's best climbing accomplishments from across the globe.
A few months before Junko Tabei died, she looked back on her summit of Everest, and what drove her to keep climbing
Jim Herrington's book 'The Climbers' is a masterful tribute to the formidable characters who shaped the sport
The 27-year-old Kennedy died by suicide after Perkins, his girlfriend, was killed in an avalanche in Bozeman, Montana
A team of some of the top mountaineers attempt the first ski descent of the world's fifth-highest peak.
From the North Face and Camp4 Collective, Life Coach follows climbers Alex Honnold and Renan Ozturk in The Ruth Gorge in Alaska.
And how we can use that data to possibly prevent accidents on the crag
For big projects, I need food that’s tasty, packable, and calorically dense. These blended bars are my answer.
For 19 years, Keir Beck has been behind some of the most complex stunts in the industry
A piece of granite "the size of an apartment building" sheared off while 30 climbers were on the wall
Plotting the sport's first ascents and groundbreaking advances
No one knew if it could be done. But when Reinhold Messner and Peter Habeler climbed Mount Everest without oxygen in 1978, they smashed one of the last barriers of human performance. Almost 40 years later, both legends talk about their first ascent by “fair means”—and the long-running feud that followed.
Change comes for everybody, including a group of adventurous friends who’ve convened for years to climb, swap stories, and hoist a few. These days, their founder is grappling with incurable cancer. On a happier note, their decision to open the doors a little wider has given the gathering a fresh, life-affirming spirit.
For climbers Carlo Traversi, Kevin Jorgeson, and Tommy Caldwell, multi-discipline climbing has become a top priority. Emerging from a conversation about pushing limits these three set up a new challenge: climb a 14'er, a 5.14, and V14 all in the same day.
From Never Not Collective, this the trailer for Pretty Strong which is an upcoming film project starring only women climbers.
The Czech climber continues to dominate the climbing world, sending the world's first 5.15d in Norway
After an injury to his hand, climber Bernd Zangerl tries one of the hardest routes of his life, Into the Sun.
A driven, patient, and injured Vanessa O’Brien becomes the oldest woman—and first American one—to summit the Savage Mountain
Andrew Bob Harris, also known affectionately as Ducky, is officially the first person with Down syndrome to summit the Grand Teton.
When alpinist and photographer Cory Richards dug himself out of an avalanche in 2011, he emerged alive but scarred—an ascendant star in a community that tends to shun the very idea that trauma can have lasting effects. As his profile climbed ever higher, his career and personal life imploded. Six years later, one of the world’s best artist-adventurers comes clean about the panic attacks, PTSD, and alcohol abuse that nearly killed him.
When Daniel Duane was a kid, his father taught him how to climb in Yosemite. Two decades later, when his teenage daughter wanted a valley education of her own, he realized that the old beta no longer applied.
Margaret Wheeler of the American Mountain Guides Association walks us through the steps it takes to clean an anchor.
While living on a portaledge—a suspended platform about the size of a double bed—you still need to perform basic bodily functions, including, yes, answering calls of nature. This is how it works.
The summer heat in Mallorca, Spain is no joke, but climbers have the perfect antidote, deep water soloing.
After three days of climbing and bolting in this area, we headed home, convinced that rural Indonesia has the potential to become a dream destination for outdoor enthusiasts
Patrick Sweeney is on a mission, to ride the seven summits on a bicycle.
Female athletes deserve the same respect for their athletic abilities as their male counterparts
Our writer visited the 10,000-square-foot facility in Ventura, California, home to thousands of products-cum-talismans, and came away with more than just an appreciation for the brand's gear heritage
Touchstone Climbing out of California is working on a new series called 'Behind The Set' which profiles their routesetters that make your climbs possible.
Anna Pfaff is a professional alpinist when conditions are right and a trauma nurse the rest of the time
On June 14 at 3 a.m., Katie Bono crawled into basecamp on Alaska’s Mount Denali, frostbitten and exhausted. Bono had left the same camp, located at 7,200 feet, at 6 a.m. the previous morning, summited the 20,310-foot peak (North America’s highest) in minus 40 degree temperatures at 8:46 p.m., then headed back down.
From Outdoor Research and filmmaker Henna Taylor, The Honeymoon Is Over follows climber Madeline Sorkin as she becomes the first woman to send this 5.13c route.
Mammut has teamed up with climbing legends like Ron Kauk to explore some of bouldering's most classic lines. The first route they revisit is Midnight Lighting named after the late Jimmy Hendrix.
The renowned videographer and photographer opens up about filming Alex Honnold's epic free solo climb, how he analyzes risk, and what it's like to be a social media kingpin
Ascending Everest may be easier now that one of the most difficult features en route to the summit has crumbled, veteran mountaineers say.
How to prepare physically and mentally before tackling your first wall
The sandstone boulders of Rocklands, South Africa has drawn many amateur and professional climbers to this proving ground.
Sarah Laine gets to create rock climbing routes for a living, and she's one of few women who do it
We all know Alex is the greatest climber of our generation. I trust him with my life. I trust him a little less with his own.
Rock climbers from around the world suffer under Patxi Usobiaga. But why?
After searching far and wide for a pinnacle project, he found a cave in southern Utah and bolted a route called Bone Tomahawk.
How one of the world’s best mountaineers made a last-second decision that would take his life
The most expensive, complex, and risky recover mission in the mountain's history is about to get underway—and that's a mistake
Mountaineers and Nepalese officials can’t seem to agree about whether the Hillary Step—a forbidding obstacle on the final leg to the summit—still exists
The world’s tallest mountain has claimed 6 lives this season
For professional slackliner Mickey Wilson, the next adventure is wherever he can park the RV
Your guide to the United States of climbing. Plus, tips to stay injury-free and some inspiring words from the world’s best big-waller.
The 29-year-old Spaniard continues breaking speed records on the world’s highest mountains
The products the pros use to keep their hands and feet happy and healthy
Irene Yee, better known as @ladylockoff on Instagram, explains how she shoots climbers of all types with an eye for authenticity
World Champion Boulderer Jule Wurm had a fantastic run within the competitive indoor climbing circuit, but with all the victories came the toll of constantly traveling and training.
A group of the country's top rock climbers traveled to Washington last week to remind Congress that public lands are valuable assets worth protecting. Here's what I had to say.
The 44-year-old Nepali woman broke her own record on the world’s highest peak
Gary Rall opened a rock gym 29 years ago. Then he helped invent indoor climbing.
For Leighan Falley, Alaska is more than home — it’s a calling. Falley spent years as a ski guide and climber on the Alaskan range, focusing much of her energy on Denali. But after becoming a mother, she found herself unwilling to pursue guiding (and the dangers that come with…
The godfather of alpinism shares his thoughts on his fallen comrade, taking risks on mountains, and how his perspective has changed with age
The famous Swiss alpinist's family made the journey to Nepal to handle his remains
Lightning Ascent from Louder Than Eleven, Hi Ball Energy, and director Jon Glassberg follows Adrian Ballinger and Emily Harrington as they ascend Cho Oyu.
The famed climber, who was known for his speed ascents, fell on Sunday, April 30, while preparing for a new route on Everest
Rock climbers are flocking to world-class walls in Catalonia. Here's why.
The man known affectionately as the 'Swiss Machine' lived life on the cutting edge. Here, we gather the remembrances of those who knew him best.
Joe Hanson, Phillip Wright, and Dominic Joyce are three lads from England who challenged themselves to climb the Dawn Wall in 2016.
As a full-time science student at Depaul University in Chicago, Michaela Kiersch trains at First Ascent Climbing to prepare for her weekend road trips to Red River Gorge.
In 1978, a historic expedition put the first women—and first Americans, period—on the summit of Annapurna, the world’s tenth-highest peak. Despite their triumph, the deaths of two climbers stirred controversy. In an oral history weaving together the perspectives of key team members, Sherpa high-altitude staff, admirers, and critics, Katie Ives discovers that debate still lingers—as does the expedition’s power to inspire.
Here's what we learned about the state of the outdoorswoman in 2017 and the still-prevalent gender gap in the outdoor world
As a woman in climbing, I occupy two worlds: one defined by strength and grit, the other by beauty and traditional ideas of femininity. It’s something I still struggle with.
After bursting onto the scene as a teenage gym rat, Beth Rodden became one of the most accomplished climbers of all time. Here, for the first time, she opens up about the price of perfectionism, the kidnapping that almost grounded her, finding love again after her marriage to big-wall prodigy Tommy Caldwell, and balancing motherhood and rock.