Famous Mountain Climbers Through the Years

As mountain climbing enjoys something of a new renaissance amongst extreme sports enthusiasts, it is important to take a pause and look back at the trailblazers who forged paths through the earliest and most treacherous mountain passages. To borrow a television cliché, these brave men and women chose to go “where no man had gone before,” and as such, deserve great amounts of credit for their integral roles in making mountain climbing the sport and event it is today.

Vitaly Mikhaylovich Abalakov was not only a mountaineer, but he was also an inventor. Along with his brother Yevgeniy Abalakov, he was one of the first people to climb Lenin Peak, in 1934. He is also well known for climbing Khan Tengri, and is a Russian hero for many mountain climbers in the region. As for his inventions, he saw needs of ice, mountain and rock climbing enthusiasts, and invented camming devices, as well as ice climbing anchors. Unfortunately, he was arrested in the late 1930s and accused of being a German spy. Although he escaped the harshest punishment, many associates of his, who were climbing with him, were executed. After that nastiness was put behind him, he was heavily honored, including induction into the Order of Lenin, Order of the Badge of Honor, and Honoured Master of Sports of the USSR. I guess it turns out he wasn’t a spy after all. Oops, their bad.

Major H.P.S. Ahluwalia was the leader of the first Indian expedition through Mt. Everest. Although his climbing career was cut short by a spinal injury suffered in the Indio Pak War in 1965, his interest in climbing never wavered and he went on to write many books about climbing. He also founded the Indian Spinal Injury Society in the early 1990s, thanks to his success with books such as “Higher than Everest,” “Beyond the Himalayas,” and Everest Is Within You.” He has also received many awards, mostly for his work with and for the disabled.

Christian Almer was a Swiss mountain guide who came to prominence for being one of the first people to ascend the Swiss Alps. He was extremely well-known during the “golden age” of climbing, and was a guide for some of the other best-known climbers of the time, including W.A.B. Coolidge and Gottileb Samuel Studer. His son, Ulrich Almer, also followed in his father’s footsteps, though not literally, because the snow covered them over time, and became a mountain guide himself.

Conrad Anker is a popular modern day mountaineer, author, and rock climbing expert. He is known for being one of the leaders of the search team that had the unfortunate task of seeking the body of George Mallory, who perished during a climb of Mount Everest. Anker actually wrote a book, along with David Roberts, about the specific expedition and the toll it took on them. He has also been in films, including a The Endless Knot and Light of the Himalaya.

Toni Kurz is a tragic story of an early mountain climber from Germany who died while attempting to descend the Eiger after a successful ascension. All his partners died in an avalanche, and while people tried to rescue Kurz, they were unable to do. He actually hung from the mountain, alive, for a whole night, before attempting the descent again the next day. Due to freezing extremities, he was unable to secure the knots necessary for his successful descent and died, as well. This is one of the saddest stories of a well-known mountain climber known to man.

As you can see, there are many different types of mountain climbers who are well known for different reasons around the world. Some are heroes, others are trailblazers, and yet others suffered unfortunate tragedies that led to untimely deaths. These brave climbers are but a few of the people who helped to make mountain climbing what it is today – and who also did a lot to ensure that it is far safer than it was in its earliest incarnations. Respect.