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The American Alpine Club Announces 2023 Cutting Edge Grant Winners

PC: Nelson Neirinck

March 2023

The American Alpine Club and Black Diamond Equipment are pleased to announce the 2023 Cutting Edge Grant recipients. The Cutting Edge Grant continues the Club's 120-year tradition by funding individuals planning expeditions to remote areas featuring unexplored mountain ranges, unclimbed peaks, difficult new routes, first-free ascents, or similar world-class pursuits. Six recipients have been awarded a total of $39,000 for this cycle, with objectives featuring a low-impact style and leave-no-trace mentality being looked upon with favor. Black Diamond Equipment is a proud sponsor of the Cutting Edge Grant and a key partner in supporting cutting-edge alpinism. This year we are also grateful for the support of big wall luminary John Middendorf.

Jackson Marvell will receive $8,000 to attempt the north face of Jannu in Nepal (7,710m). This line was climbed nearly two decades ago by a Russian team in siege style over two years. Marvell and his team will be attempting an alpine-style climb of the route. After an attempt in 2021, Marvell felt confident an alpine-style ascent was possible. In 2022, Marvell and his group were turned around due to unfavorable weather. They are excited about another attempt. 

Seth Timpano will receive $8,000 to attempt Pik Koroleva in Kyrgyzstan (5,812m). He has found two unclimbed lines, both of which would be highly technical and require sustained climbing on a rarely climbed mountain. Timpano has first ascents in India, Alaska, and Kyrgyzstan. In 2010, Timpano received the McNeill-Nott Award, and in 2014 he received the Lyman-Spitzer Grant now called the Cutting Edge Award.

Christian Black will receive $8,000 to attempt White Sapphire in Kishtwar, India. White Sapphire (6,040m) lies near the more famous Cerro Kishtwar. Black is drawn to the peak for its technical challenge, beautiful line, and the opportunity to explore with a small team in good style. Christian Black received the Live Your Dream Grant in 2022 for his expedition to British Columbia to attempt a new route on Mt. Bute. You can read more about it here. Vitaliy Musiyenko (bottom left) and Hayden Wyatt (bottom right) will be joining Christian on White Saphier.

Noah Besen will receive $6,000 to climb in Coronation Fjord on Baffin Island, Canada. Besen wants to attempt an adventurous, human-powered expedition to an area on the remote east coast of Baffin Island containing 1,000-meter cliffs on which there have been no previously documented climbing expeditions. All routes climbed will be first ascents. Through university studies of the Coronation Glacier area, Besen has determined there are several areas with massive rock faces for potential big-wall free climbs. This expedition will require climbing, paddling, and wilderness and safety skills to succeed.

Lindsey Hamm will receive $6,000 to visit the Charakusa Valley in the Karakoram, which has produced cutting-edge climbs for nearly forty years. This will be Hamm’s second trip to the Charakusa. In 2022, she, Dakota Walz, and Lane Mathis established a first ascent on a formation between Spanster Brakk and Naisa Brakk (which they named Ishaqu Brakk): Pull Down the Sky (15 pitches, 5.11 R). This year, Hamm along with Holly Mackin, Stephanie Williams, and Thomas Bukowski will attempt routes on Naisa Brakk (~5600m) and Spanster Brakk (height unknown). 

James Gustafson will receive $3,000 to attempt Desdemona Spire (2,150m) on the Stikine Ice Cap of Alaska. The first and only recorded ascent of Desdemona, done in 1975, was completed by Carla Firey, Paula Kregel, Craig Lingle, Jim McCarthy, and Craig McKibben. Their line was largely a glacial route with one rock pitch on the north ridge. After Gustafson contacted the first ascensionists, he realized it is unclear which peak the 1975 team climbed, due to whiteout conditions and conflicting descriptions, meaning Desdemona may be still unclimbed.

Applications for the Cutting Edge Grant are accepted each year from October 1 through November 30.


Contact:

Shane Johnson, Chief Marketing Officer: sjohnson@americanalpineclub.org

Eddie Espinosa, Community Programs Director: eespinosa@americanalpineclub.org

The Line — March 2023

The Line is the monthly newsletter of the American Alpine Journal.

ARRIGETCH ADVENTURES

The next AAJ’s Alaska section will open with a report from the Arrigetch Peaks in the Brooks Range, where Ethan Berkeland and Tristan O’Donoghue traveled with the help of an AAC Mountaineering Fellowship Fund grant for climbers 25 or younger. Their trip was plenty challenging, with a week of storms at the start. But eventually they managed a couple of new routes, including a beautiful long traverse, before packrafting out of the mountains at the end of the expedition. We only have space to publish one photo in the 2023 AAJ, so Ethan and Tristan agreed to share more of their images here. Enjoy!

WILD ALASKA

Red line shows the ascent and main descent route on Mt. Alice. Yellow line is a variation taken by one skier. Photo by Sarah Hermann.

Speaking of Alaska….. One year ago, four Alaskans took advantage of exceptional conditions to make a possible first ascent and certain first descent of a wild face in the Kenai Mountains. The west face of Mt. Alice rises about 2,500 feet above a high basin, with pitches up to 65 degrees. After a series of storms in March plastered the face in deep maritime powder, Michael Burmeister, Ryan Hokanson, Raven (Samuel) Johnson, and Ben Rininger climbed the face and successfully skied and snowboarded back down on March 21. Johnson’s report for the 2023 AAJ is available now online.

Join the Club—United We Climb.

Get the AAJ Sent to You Annually

Partner-level members receive The American Alpine Journal book every year. Documenting mountain exploration and the year’s most significant ascents through first-person reports and photos, it’s an essential historical record and a feast of inspiration.

Rescue & Medical Expense Coverage

Climbing can be a risky pursuit, but one worth the price of admission. Partner-level members and up receive $7,500 in rescue services and $5,000 in emergency medical expense coverage. Looking for deeper coverage? Sign up for the Leader level and receive $300k in rescue services.

‘ACTIONS SPEAK LOUDER…’

Tackle on a new route near the Tokositna Glacier in 2009. Photo by Jay Smith.

Jack Tackle’s expeditionary climbing career spans nearly 50 years, including more than two dozen Alaska expeditions. Hear his climbing origin story and why he prefers to let his climbing do the talking in the AAC’s latest Legacy Series video (below). Then check out Jack’s beautiful AAJ 2010 article, “Catharsis,” describing an Alaskan comeback tour with longtime partner Jay Smith, following two life-threatening episodes in Jack’s life.

OVERHEARD

“Standing on the hard snow, contemplating the idea of beginning a new route at the late hour of 11:30 a.m., we were struck with ambivalence. Launching now would almost surely bring future misery; not launching now would just as surely inspire future regret. Up we went.”
— Eric Wehrly

The north face of Holliway Mountain, about ten miles north of Washington Pass.

Hoping to climb the first route up the north face of Holliway Mountain in the North Cascades, Rolf Larson and Eric Wehrly made a false start that cost them three hours. After retreating, they wandered along the base of the wall to search for another possible line. As predicted, starting up an unclimbed 2,000-foot alpine route at nearly noon did earn them some hardship, but they still sent. You can read Wehrly’s report for the upcoming AAJ at our website.

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The Line is the newsletter of the American Alpine Journal (AAJ), emailed to more than 75,000 climbers each month. Find the archive of past editions here. Interested in supporting this online publication? Contact Billy Dixon for opportunities. Suggestions? Email us: aaj@americanalpineclub.org.

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CLIMB: Connor Herson Talks "Empath"—One of the Hardest Trad Routes Ever

Connor Herson is a young crusher, having freed the Nose at the age of 15, climbed 50 5.14s by his 18th birthday, and recently sending one of the hardest gear routes in the world, "Empath", 5.14d in Tahoe CA. The AAC is recognizing his overwhelming success so early in his climbing career with the Robert Hicks Bates Award, our annual award for up-and-coming you crushers who show exceptional promise for their future climbing endeavors. He's joining the likes of Kai Lightner, Margo Hayes, Sasha DiGuilian, Alex Honnold, and Colin Haley, among many others.

In this episode, we sat down with Connor to talk about how he sets climbing goals, which of the 5.14s meant the most to him, what inspired him to try "Empath" on gear after sending it on bolts, and more.

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The Liminal Line: A Story from the Live Your Dream Grant

PC: Benjamin Wollant

“The line lived in a liminal space between impossible and just maybe.

Reaching the base of the splitter was an unsolved puzzle. Long runouts were certain. The bolting ban on the Bitterroot National Forest would need to be lifted. So, the south face of Mystery Dome continued to haunt the back of my mind for nearly two years, only coming to the fore every several months when I pulled up photos of the line to ask once again, 'what if?'"

Benjamin Wollant couldn’t get the possibility of the south face of Mystery Dome in the Bitterroot wilderness of Idaho out of his head. In 2020 Wollant put up Bitter Fruit (5.11-) on the west face of Mystery Dome days before he moved to Montana. Join Wollant on his journey back into the Bitterroot wilderness to put up the Liminal Line(5.11b A3 V).

The Liminal Line

CLIMB: Madaleine Sorkin on Climbing the Dunn-Westbay Direct (5.14-)on The Diamond

In the summer of 2022, Madeline Sorkin freed the Dunn-Westbay Direct, the hardest route on the Diamond at 5.14-. She is the fifth person to send the route, and it is also the first female ascent of the climb. Because of how quickly she put down this proud alpine route, Madaleine has been nominated for the 2023 Climb of Year Award, the winner of which will be announced, alongside many other awards, at the AAC’s Annual Benefit Gala, which will be held in NY this year, from March 10th-11th. You can cast your vote and learn about the other nominees here. Beyond being a professional climber, Madeline is also a performance coach and founder of the Climbing Grief Fund. In this episode, we dive into Mad’s process for sending the Dunn-Westbay, focusing on place-based connections within climbing, processing the pressure of self-imposed goals, and the tactic of visualization.

The Line — February 2023

The Line is the monthly newsletter of the American Alpine Journal.

EIGHT-PITCH CLIMB IN…MISSOURI

Jarod Sickler leads pitch six of The Osage Party Barge (550’, 5.11b). Photo by Matt Nation.

“Yes, that’s right: You are seeing a climb in Missouri in the AAJ  for the first time ever—and perhaps the last.” That’s the start of Jeremy Collins’ report on The Osage Party Barge, an unusual new line at Monegaw Springs Crag in western Missouri. Over a number of years, Collins and other climbers developed the sport climbing at the sandstone crag, and one day, just for the heck of it, he and Jarod Sickler traversed sideways across the Burnside sector at Monegaw. After that 35-meter traverse, Collins thought, We could keep going. The result was an eight-pitch girdle traverse of the 50- to 65-foot-high crag, “a sideways big wall shining in the Osage sun.” Read all about it in Collins’ report for the 2023 AAJ, now online.

The original party barge, a tourist vessel on the Osage River, in 1909. The photo appears in the book "Damming the Osage," by Leland Payton and Crystal Payton.

UNCLIMBED: EAST KARAKORAM

The peaks labeled A, B and C rise above the South Shukpa Kunchang glacier. They range from about 6,260 meters to 6,600 meters, and all are likely unclimbed. Photo by Steve Kempley.

The Rassa Glacier in far northern India’s East Karakoram mountains has seen only three climbing expeditions, starting in 2014. The most recent was in September 2022, when a British team made the first ascent of a 6,365-meter mountain they called Dagarpheth Kangri (Ladakhi for “Halfmoon Peak”). Although the logistics and permissions for expeditions in this area are challenging, there are many attractive unclimbed 6,000m mountains, writes Derek Buckle in his 2023 AAJ report. Three of the unclimbed summits are seen in this photo, taken during the recent ascent of Dagarpheth Kangri.

Join the Club—United We Climb.

Get the AAJ Sent to You Annually

Partner-level members receive The American Alpine Journal book every year. Documenting mountain exploration and the year’s most significant ascents through first-person reports and photos, it’s an essential historical record and a feast of inspiration.

Rescue & Medical Expense Coverage

Climbing can be a risky pursuit, but one worth the price of admission. Partner-level members and up receive $7,500 in rescue services and $5,000 in emergency medical expense coverage. Looking for deeper coverage? Sign up for the Leader level and receive $300k in rescue services.

AT THE MOVIES: MOROCCAN ICE

Moroccan climber Faiçal Bourkiba dreamed of attempting a 500-meter mixed climb on the north face of Tazarhart in the High Atlas mountains, but the line seemed too daunting for his limited experience. An invitation to French ice master Jeff Mercier resulted in the partner of a lifetime. This charming and eye-opening film about their climbs reveals some of the winter climbing potential of the High Atlas.

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AAJ PRO TIP

Thousands of photos, maps, and topos are published with the archived reports at the AAJ website. To see the maximum detail in a photo or topo, drag it from the media gallery to your desktop or save it onto your mobile device. We upload most photos with enough resolution to enlarge them significantly more than they’re displayed at the website; topos and maps are saved at even higher resolution. So, save that photo to your device and zoom right in!

The Line is the newsletter of the American Alpine Journal (AAJ), emailed to more than 75,000 climbers each month. Find the archive of past editions here. Interested in supporting this online publication? Contact Billy Dixon for opportunities. Suggestions? Email us: aaj@americanalpineclub.org.

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Climbing out of the Comfort Zone: A Story from the Catalyst grant

Mika and Tyler descending PC: Jay Louie

Climbing is a way Jay Louie, Mika Kie Weissbuch, and Tyler Poston build strength, deal with difficulty, and rejuvenate. They climbed Castleton Tower via the North Chimney (5.9) in April 2022, thanks to the Catalyst Grant. Jay, Mika, and Tyler are members of the queer, trans, and persons of color community, with jobs in social justice fields that require significant emotional investment and labor.

"Climbing is all about community. Although you can climb on your own and grow from there, if you really want to progress, especially into more advanced climbing styles like trad, big wall, and alpine, you can't learn it alone," said Jay.

The three climbers with different skills and backgrounds came together to cultivate a safe space to pursue a desert tower climb. Dive into their story, told from three different perspectives below!

Climbing out of the Comfort Zone

Foiled by Foliage: A Story From the Live Your Dream Grant

PC: AAC Member Christian Black

“After a couple of hours, we arrived at the base of the slightly steeper climb, which was described to us using the vague phrasing: ‘...from there, I think we climbed some bushes for a little while…’. The next part of the route ended up being at least 1,000ft of dirt-filled cracks and 5.9+ bush climbing, often slinging bushes as the only protection. It felt like someone was actively fighting you while you were trying to climb, brushing branches out of your face as they snag and pull on other parts of your body simultaneously.”

After receiving the Live Your Dream grant, the team bushwacked into the British Columbia wilderness in search of good rock. Continue reading Christian Black, Hayden Wyatt, and Keenan Nowak’s trip report about their expedition to Mount Bute below!

Foiled by Foliage

Prophecies Foretold

A Story from the AAC Grant Archives

by Hannah Provost

Mad Sorkin frees the crux pitch above the clouds. PC: AAC member Emily Stifler Wolfe

In 1963, rock climbing legends Jim McCarthy, Royal Robbins, Layton Kor, and Dick McCracken did the first ascent of Mt. Proboscis in the Cirque of the Unclimables. In 2010, a team of female climbers, including Madaleine Sorkin, Emily Stifler Wolfe, and Lorna Illingworth, were determined to climb the route free. The intertwining of these two expeditions reveals much contrast in the climbing styles and practices of each unique time, but also how climbing can help you speak across a ripple in time.

Getting Sh*t Done

Developer Spotlight: Jeff Jackson

By Hannah Provost

PC: AAC member Drew Sulock

Jeff Jackson is not only an incredibly prolific route developer, he is also the developer of some key iconic routes, includes El Sendero Luminoso, in El Portero Chico. But route development goes beyond just climbing for Jackson. It’s about intimacy. Jackson loves the whole process, from the moment when climbers stand in awe of unclimbed rock faces to the point where a crag is fully developed with public access. Dive into this developer spotlight to learn more about Jeff Jackson, his philosophy of route development, and why climbers are particularly well suited to getting our voices and priorities heard.

CLIMB: Your Craziest Climbing Stories, Reviewed

This episode is rated R for cussing ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

We’re trying something different this episode. We’re getting chatty about your craziest climbing stories—submissions from listeners and online forums about the craziest days we’ve had in the mountains and at the crag. From yacking yaks to eerie alpine ghosts, falling over 100 ft and walking with only a few bruises, and dreams about mimosas with Alex Honnold, AAC staff members explore the absurd and ridiculous climbing shenanigans that you submitted to the podcast, and add a few of our own horror stories to boot.

If you're listening to this epsiode and you're thinking....@#%* I need to make sure I have rescue insurance next time I'm out at the crag....check out the AAC’s rescue benefit.

The Line — January 2023

The Line is the monthly newsletter of the American Alpine Journal.

HARD ROCK IN IDAHO

Above: Zach Cook leads the ninth pitch of Milwaukee’s Best. Top: The northeast face of Storm Dome in the Salmon River Mountains of Idaho. Photos by Michal Matyjasik.

It’s rare that the very first routes up a backcountry wall are 5.12 or harder, but that’s the case for the northeast face of Storm Dome, near McCall, Idaho. The sheer 275-meter wall is reached by a strenuous eight-mile hike from the road, and though attempts had been made, no routes had been completed before 2021. “From the few photos I had seen and based on a scouting mission, the wall seemed devoid of continuous crack systems but highly featured,” writes Michal Matyjasik in his report for the 2023 AAJ.

During the summers of 2021 and 2022, Matyjasik and partners Zach Cook, Duncan Ralph, and Abe Rigeb made numerous trips to the wall and established two high-quality free routes, protected by a mix of bolts and traditional gear: Milwaukee’s Best (9 pitches, IV 5.12 PG-13) and Heart of Diamond (7 pitches, IV 5.13 PG-13), the latter with three 5.13 pitches. Read Matyjasik’s dispatch from Storm Dome at the AAJ website.

SLOVAKS ON THE SLOVAK

Richard Nemec onsighting the crux rock band (M8) of the variation most often climbed on the Slovak Direct route of Denali’s south face. Photo by Michal Sabovčík.

The Slovak Direct on Denali, one of the premier hard alpine climbs in North America, made the news last spring when two American teams climbed the route in less than 24 hours. Less attention went to a pair of Slovak climbers who succeeded with their own single-push ascent of the 9,000-vertical-foot climb in 2022: Richard Nemec and Michal Sabovčík climbed the route in just 40 hours, all free (WI6 M8) and with no bivouac, despite a malfunctioning stove that left them desperately dehydrated on the final push to the summit. Read their report at the AAJ website.

Want more Slovak Direct? Episode 53 of the Cutting Edge podcast featured an in-depth interview with Matt Cornell, Steve House, and Rob Smith, talking about their own single-push climbs of this legendary route.

Join the Club—United We Climb.

Get the AAJ Sent to You Annually

Partner-level members receive The American Alpine Journal book every year. Documenting mountain exploration and the year’s most significant ascents through first-person reports and photos, it’s an essential historical record and a feast of inspiration.

Rescue & Medical Expense Coverage

Climbing can be a risky pursuit, but one worth the price of admission. Partner-level members and up receive $7,500 in rescue services and $5,000 in emergency medical expense coverage. Looking for deeper coverage? Sign up for the Leader level and receive $300k in rescue services.

NEVER TOO LATE

The Tani-Yamada route on the northwest face of Kangchung Nup. Photo by Takeshi Tani.

Takeshi Tani, a Japanese climber who lives and guides full-time in Canada, made the first ascent of the much-eyed northwest face of Kangchung Nup in Nepal with his friend Toshiyuki Yamada in 2022. In his new AAJ report, Tani wrote, “Five years earlier, Toshiyuki had asked me to go to the Himalaya, but at the time I was struggling to make a living in Canada, trying to master English, and busy with my Association of Canadian Mountain Guides training course. He asked me again every year. It was just an excuse on my part, but I had never heard of anyone who had just become a guide at the age of 40 going to the Himalaya for a new route.”

In the spring of 2022, the two finally made the trip, and the result was a two-day climb of the 900-meter face (with two more bivouacs on the approach and descent). Once on top of the 6,043-meter peak, Tani wrote, “The feeling was the same as when I climbed in the Japanese Alps for my first time: The surrounding mountains were just so beautiful.”

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A HARD WAY DOWN DENALI

One of the foremost big-mountain skiers of our time is Tiphaine Duperier from France, who contributes regularly to the AAJ. In late May, she and Boris Langenstein skied a wild line down the southwest face of Denali in Alaska, dropping more than 3,800 meters from the summit. AAC board member and pro skier Brody Leven interviewed her for Episode 58 of the Cutting Edge podcast.

LAST CALL FOR AAJ REPORTS

The 2023 American Alpine Journal will go to press in April, and the deadline for new reports is coming up fast. If you or someone you know climbed a long new route in 2022 on rock, ice, or mountain terrain, we want to hear about it. (“Long” depends on the climbing style, difficulty, and area, but in most cases we’re talking at least six pitches.) The deadline for the 2023 book is January 31! Email us at aaj@americanalpineclub.org.

Sign up for AAC Emails

The Line is the newsletter of the American Alpine Journal (AAJ), emailed to more than 75,000 climbers each month. Find the archive of past editions here. Interested in supporting this online publication? Contact Billy Dixon for opportunities. Suggestions? Email us: aaj@americanalpineclub.org.

CLIMB: Confessions of an Ice Climber

According to Tyler Kempney, a competitor for the USA Ice Climbing team, ice climbing is the most human form of climbing. In this episode, we discuss this philosophy of ice climbing, training for competing, risk and decision-making in the mountains in winter, and lessons learned from close calls and technical ascents, like Tyler’s FA of Conditional Love on Long’s Peak. We dig into the ice climbing competitions coming up this winter, and why everyone should try ice climbing. And of course, we talk about Tyler’s favorite shape of ice cube.

Find out how to watch the Ice Climbing World Cups and support the USA Ice Climbing team here.

Episode Resources:

Check out the Ice Coop

Learn about the USA Ice Climbing Team

Watch footage of the FA of Conditional Love (WI5-6 M5 R)

Watch the Ice Climbing World Cups

The Line — October 2022

THE RUBBERNECKER

Over the last two summers, Nathan Hadley and partners established two very hard new free climbs on the southeast face of South Early Winters Spire, near Washington Pass in the North Cascades. The harder of the routes, which Hadley sent on August 22 this year, is Rubbernecker, a seven-pitch, mixed bolt and gear route with three 5.13 pitches (including a 13+ traditionally protected crack) and a 5.14- bolted pitch. Ace photographer Jeremiah Watt shot Hadley on the route and graciously allowed us to share some images from Rubbernecker here.

Hadley’s report for AAJ 2023 and more Jeremiah Watt photos are available now at our website. The Rubbernecker? Hadley explains: “I named the route because of the way I and others always stare up at the Washington Pass spires from our car windows.”

CHILEAN GOLD

In the last few years, Sebastian Pelletti has been contributing fascinating AAJ reports from South America, often from little known peaks and ranges. Pelletti, whose mother is Australian and father is Argentinean, first visited Chilean Patagonia in 2015 and fell in love with the small towns and easy access to wild mountains. “During the pandemic, I built a little cabin on the outskirts of Puerto Natales, from where I’m based most of the year,” he says. In his work as a guide and during his free time, he scouts new lines on lesser known walls of Torres del Paine National Park, as well as the surrounding fjordlands. Here are highlights of three reports from AAJ 2022, describing climbs with a variety of South American partners—Pelletti’s full reports are all at the AAJ website.

Grupo La Paz

Grupo La Paz from the north. The full traverse went from right to left. Photo by Hector Diaz.

Pelletti and friends made two trips from Puerto Natales in 2021 and 2022 to a “mystical looking group of three rock towers situated in the southern Cordillera Riesco. The towers are seldom seen, and we had only a few photographs for reference.” After a six-hour boat ride across Canal Santa María, they first linked the east and central towers of the Grupo La Paz, making the first ascent of Aguja Central. Still drawn to the towers, Pelletti returned in February with two other friends and traversed the entire massif, including the western peak, first climbed by Yvon Chouinard and Jim Donini in 1988. Read the report. 

Cuerno Este

On January 8, 2022, Pelletti, Pepe Jurado (Ecuador), and Romano Marcotti (Chile) pulled off a rare feat: the first ascent of a significant summit in Torres del Paine. Cuerno Este looks like some kind of mad layer cake, with golden granite below and dark, loose metamorphic rock frosting the top. Their 600-meter route, Vacaciones Metamorficas, shared some pitches with an earlier route that didn’t quite reach the summit, and it went all free at 5.11-. Read the Cuerno Este report here.

Cerro San Luis

Bushwhacking through dense forest to reach Cerro San Luis; it took eight hours to travel five kilometers. Photo by Nicolás “Nico” Secul.

Last August, Camilo Pedreros, Nicolás “Nico” Secul (both from Chile), and Pelletti kayaked west from Estancia Perales across Fiordo Última Esperanza to reach the northern Cordón Monumento Moore. On the second day of this adventure, they bushwhacked “through very dense subpolar forest, at times progressing on our hands and knees. It took approximately eight hours to travel five kilometers to the base of the broad south face of Cerro San Luis,” their objective. The made the second known ascent of the peak and named their route Memoria Kawésqar (750m, AI4 80°), “in honor of the Kawésqar, an indigenous people who navigated these fjords by canoes thousands of years ago.” Read the report here.

Seba Pelletti is already sure to have at least one report in the 2023 AAJ: This past summer, he and friends from South America climbed several new routes in the Vampire Spires of Canada’s Northwest Territories.

MINI-EPIC

Prolific Sierra climbers Vitaliy Musiyenko, Brian Prince, and Brandon Thau joined forces on a new line at the Spring Lake Wall last summer. Establishing the route required two trips into the mountains (about four hours of steep hiking for each approach). For the second trip, Musiyenko writes in AAJ 2022, “I brought along a cheap backpack covered with images from the popular show Friends, which I’d bought from Walmart with the intention of using it as a lightweight haul bag. However, the pack lasted only half a pitch of hauling before exploding. All of our extra cams, headlamps, water, and food fell to the talus field. The only logical solution was for me to hike out, drive home, and grab the extra rack…and a real haul pack. I didn’t get much sleep but was back at the base of the wall at 8 o’clock the next morning.” The new route is Friends (8 pitches, 5.11b).

The Line is the newsletter of the American Alpine Journal (AAJ), emailed to more than 45,000 climbers each month. Find the archive of past editions here. Interested in supporting this online publication? Contact Billy Dixon for opportunities. Suggestions? Email us: aaj@americanalpineclub.org.

An Alaskan Dream: A Story from the Mountaineering Fellowship Fund Grant

“The remoteness, the lack of people, and the complexities all work to create an atmosphere of real adventure...The 60-degree terrain had my heart racing and coated with the perfect snow; it made for a moment I could only dream of. I stopped to hammer in a picket 30 meters up and then again at the end of the rope, where I took a seat and belayed. Glory!”

Tanner Josey's dream of an Alaskan adventure turned into a reality in May of 2021. Josey attempted to climb Mount Foraker, the third highest peak in the United States.

Dive into the details and epic photos of his trip report and be transported into the Alaska Range. Face avalanche danger, navigate crevasses, and ascend steep snow slopes alongside Josey.

Mount Foraker, AK

A Second Chance: A Story from the McNeill Nott Award

"We established a camp at 4600m and decided our best ascent option would be to use a gully on the west side of the peak to gain access to the south ridge. Leaving camp at 3 am, the gully proved to be reasonably pleasant second and easy third-class terrain. Unfortunately, by the time we reached the base of the south ridge at 9 am, a storm had moved in.

Not having access to weather forecasts at base camp, we were limited to a forecast we had received just before leaving the village several days ago, thanks to a cell phone tower constructed there two years ago. Based on that, clear skies were expected for the next two days, so we decided to dig in under a boulder and see what happened.”

Tess Smith and Alan Goldbetter set out to summit Mount Starikatchan, an unclimbed peak in India in 2022 after attempting it in 2019. Smith received the McNeill Nott award, this past year, helping to make their trip possible. Immerse yourself in Smith’s trip report and these stunning photos of India’s Zanskar Range.

Mount Starikatchan,India

The Line — September 2022

Last spring, Mike Dunn and Arthur Herlitzka made the second known traverse of the Towers of the Virgin (going left to right in the photo) in Zion National Park. Mike Dunn

BIG YEAR FOR ZION CLIMBING

The upcoming AAJ will include eight Climbs and Expeditions reports from Zion, one of the richest years in memory for noteworthy climbs in this southwest Utah national park. Below are a few teasers—just in time for autumn Zion season.

Nat Bailey about to whip off the 5.13a R third pitch of The Crack in the Cosmic Egg. Jérôme St-Michel

The Crack in the Cosmic Egg, First Free Ascent: We loved Canadian Nat Bailey’s story about freeing this nearly 40-year-old route on the east face of Mt. Moroni. After many days of work last November, Bailey and partners went for the send, but Bailey struggled to redpoint the 5.13a R third pitch. He eventually turned over that lead to his friend Drew Marshall, giving up his dream of making a one-day free ascent. Two days later, Bailey returned and fired the pitch. “I didn’t feel euphoria so much as a sort of peaceful sadness,” he writes in the AAJ. “I’m learning that when you give something life, you inherently give it a death as well.”

Cowboy Killer, The Altar of Sacrifice: Mike Dunn, who traversed the Towers of the Virgin in the spring (see photo at top), returned in late November with Ky Hart to attempt the east face of one of the biggest towers: The Altar of Sacrifice. Their route, Cowboy Killer (VI 5.10 A4 X), was climbed over six days, with a crux headwall climbed by a “grotesque gash, with rock the consistency of a sugar cookie.”

Looking down the crux pitch of Cowboy Killer (VI 5.10 A4 X), the first route up the east face of the Altar of Sacrifice. Ky Hart

Forest Altherr on the bouldery crux of the Mo’ Splitter Pitch (5.12), the ninth pitch on Na-Gah’s Wall. Alex Parker

Na-Gah’s Wall, Oak Creek Drainage: When Forest Altherr spotted a striking splitter 1,000 feet above the ground on a wall south of Meridian Tower, he was smitten. During an attempt a week later, however, he discovered fixed gear atop the first pitch. The route had been climbed with aid in 1993 (Allen-Funsten-Rourke, 1993), he learned later, but a free ascent looked possible. After more than a year of attempts, alone and with half a dozen different partners, Altherr linked all 11 pitches free in a single day.

All eight Zion reports from the 2022 AAJ can be found by searching at publications.americanalpineclub.org.

BAFFIN KAYAKING AND CLIMBING

Over the last few years, Sarah McNair-Landry and Erik Boomer have been passing their summers with exploratory adventures around their home of Baffin Island, Canada, using skis, kayaks, and climbing gear. (McNair-Landry hails from Iqaluit, capital of Nunavut territory.) In 2021, the pair ventured south from the community of Clyde River to reach remote Inuksuit Fjord, rarely visited by climbers, and put up first ascents and first descents on nearby rivers. Their report for AAJ 2022 is available online, and some of their beautiful photos are highlighted below.

THE CUTTING EDGE: JIRISHANCA

In 2019, Vince Anderson and Josh Wharton turned back just below the summit of Jirishanca in Peru after an extremely difficult climb. In this clip from Episode 50 of the Cutting Edge podcast, Vince describes the decision to retreat. The pair returned this July to complete the route, and they tell the whole story for the podcast.

Josh Wharton (left) and Vince Anderson at base camp. Drew Smith

DOWNLOAD THE AAJ

The 2022 AAJ will be in the mail later this fall. In the meantime, AAC members can download the 336-page PDF of the book at the AAC website. Log in to your member profile, open the AAJ drop-down menu, and select “Download.”

DIRECT QUOTE

“This was a direttissima, but the kind where a drop of water would linger on its way down.”— Spencer Gray, channeling Emilio Comici while describing a new route on A Peak in Montana, climbed with Kate Mylan in late July of last year.

Kate Mylan leading the 11th pitch of Feefeyefoh (14 pitches, 5.11+) on A Peak. Spencer Gray

The Line is the newsletter of the American Alpine Journal (AAJ), emailed to more than 45,000 climbers each month. Interested in supporting this online publication? Contact Billy Dixon for opportunities. Content suggestions? Email us: aaj@americanalpineclub.org.

CLIMB: The Full Circle Everest Team Talks Joy, Partnership, and Climate Change

CLIMB: The Full Circle Everest Team Talks Joy, Partnership, and Climate Change

The Full Circle Everest team was the first all-Black team to attempt Everest, and with the majority of their team summiting, they nearly doubled the number of Black climbers who have summited the highest mountain in the world. In this episode, we sit down with three members of the team—leader and longtime climber Philip Henderson, North Face Athlete Fred Campbell, and Kenyan guide and mountaineer James “KG” Kagambi, who is the first Black African to summit Denali, Aconcagua, and now Everest. We talked about moments of joy on the mountain, what they learned working alongside their expert Sherpa team, what motivated them to join this all-Black expedition, the evidence of climate change they witnessed, the challenges of mountaineering judgment on mountains with unstable conditions, and much more.

Dive in for a dose of inspiration and insights you won’t want to miss.

Members of the Full Circle Everest team will be giving a keynote speech for the AAC’s 2023 Annual Gala. Don’t forget to save the date and join us for the biggest, and fanciest, get-together of dirtbags around.

The Denali Damsels

Photo courtesy of Arlene Blum.

In 1970, Grace Hoeman, Margaret Young, Dana Isherwood, Arlene Blum, Margaret Clark, and Faye Kerr, set out on a journey to be the first-all female team to ascend and summit Denali. Although the sport had seen its small share of women climbers, climbing was traditionally a man’s sport, and many men of the time were content to keep it that way. Although the intention of the expedition was not to create a women’s liberation, their journey would push the door open for future female climber’s everywhere.

Explore this exhibit to learn about the expedition, the women who shaped it, and experience artifacts from the expedition, thanks to the AAC Library.

The Denali Damsels



*This story is best told with the help of vibrant and dynamic photography. Dive into this Spark Exhibit to see these photos come alive alongside this story.

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The American Alpine Club Announces 2022 Cutting Edge Grant Recipients

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PC: Priti Wright, K6 Central

March 2022

The American Alpine Club and Black Diamond Equipment are pleased to announce the 2022 Cutting Edge Grant recipients. The Cutting Edge Grant continues the Club's 100-year tradition and seeks to fund individuals planning expeditions to remote areas featuring unexplored mountain ranges, unclimbed peaks, difficult new routes, first free ascents, or similar world-class pursuits. Four recipients have been awarded a total of $37,000 for this cycle, with objectives featuring a low-impact style and leave-no-trace mentality being looked upon with favor. Black Diamond Equipment is a proud sponsor of the Cutting Edge Grant and a key partner in supporting cutting-edge alpinism.

PC: JThompson

Chantel Astorga will receive a grant for $10,000 to attempt a new route on Lunag Ri (6,895m) in Nepal. Chantel, alongside Anne Gilbert Chase & Jason Thompson will hope to establish a new line on Lunag Ri in alpine style. Chantel recently grabbed the first female solo ascent of the Cassin Ridge in under 15 hours on Denali in 2021. Anne, Jason, and Chantel established a new route on the unclimbed SW Face, Mount Nilkantha (6,500m), India in 2017.

Jerome Sullivan will receive a grant for $10,000 to attempt the first ascent of Pumari Chhish East (6,850m) in the Pakistani Karakoram. Pumari Chhish East is one of the major unclimbed technical summits of Karakoram. Located on the Hispar glacier, it presents three characteristic granite pillars and a 2,000m face. Jerome will attempt the climb alongside Martin Elias, Victor Saucede, and Jeremy Stagnetto. Recently the team climbed K13 west by the new route Harvest Moon. Jerome & Jeremy did the first ascent of the southeast ridge of Cerro Murallon (Patagonia) and the first ascent of Pyramid Peak in the Revelation Range (Alaska).

Alan Rousseau will receive $10,000 to attempt an alpine style ascent of the North Face of Jannu (7,710m) in Nepal. Given its aspect, elevation, and sheer scale (3,200 vertical meters), Jannu is considered one of the most complex alpine objectives in the world. The upper north face headwall has yet to see an alpine style ascent. Jackson Marvell will join Alan on this attempt. Jackson & Alan climbed a new route on the east face of Mount Dickey Ruth Gorge Grinder (1,600m, M7, AI6+) and repeated Trailer Park on London Tower (3,000' WI6, M6), both located in the Ruth Gorge of the Alaska Range.

Priti Wright will receive $7,000 to attempt a new route on K7 in the Pakistani Karakoram. Priti & Jeffrey Wright will attempt the unclimbed peak K7 Central (6,858m) by establishing an entirely new technical route in alpine style. During Priti and Jeff's first Karakoram expedition, they were successful in establishing the first ascent of K6 Central (7,155m) in 2020.

FA of K6 Central, Priti and Jeff Wright. PC: Jeff Wright.

The American Alpine Club has inspired and supported cutting-edge climbing achievements for over 100 years. From funding the first ascent of Mt. Logan in 1925 and the exploration of the Karakoram in 1938 to the 2006 first ascent of Nanga Parbat's Rupal Face, and the countless expeditions in between, the AAC has stood to encourage climbers to push their physical and mental limits, supported their pursuits, and celebrated their accomplishments.

The Cutting Edge Grant continues this tradition, aiming to fund advanced climbing athletes in pursuit of world-class climbing and mountaineering objectives.

The Cutting Edge Grant is sponsored by Black Diamond Equipment, whose equipment has helped climbers and alpinists to reach their summits for decades. Black Diamond Equipment is an integral partner in supporting climbers of all abilities and disciplines, with a long history of supporting climbers and their dreams through grants like the Cutting Edge Grant.

Applications for the Cutting Edge Grant are accepted each year from October 1 through November 30.

Contact:

Shane Johnson, Chief Marketing Officer: sjohnson@americanalpineclub.org
Eddie Espinosa, Community Programs Director: eespinosa@americanalpineclub.org

About American Alpine Club

The American Alpine Club is a 501(c)(3) charitable organization whose vision is a united community of competent climbers and healthy climbing landscapes. Together with our members, the AAC advocates for American climbers domestically and around the world; provides grants and volunteer opportunities to protect and conserve the places we climb; hosts local and national climbing festivals and events; publishes two of the world's most sought-after climbing annuals, the American Alpine Journal and Accidents in North American Climbing; cares for the world's leading climbing library and country's leading mountaineering museum; manages the Hueco Rock Ranch, New River Gorge Campground, Samuel F. Pryor Shawangunk Gateway Campground, and Grand Teton Climbers' Ranch as part of a larger lodging network for climbers; and annually gives $100,000+ toward climbing, conservation, and research grants that fund adventurers who travel the world. Learn about additional programs and become a member
at americanalpineclub.org.