Raffi Bedayn: Shiprock
The first ascent of Shiprock in 1939: tactics and equipment might seem alien to today’s climbers (and the use of bolts controversial at the time!) but the careful planning and tenacity are commendable modern
Don Wilson: The First Ascent of Spider Rock
An account of the 1956 first ascent of Spider Rock by southern Californian youngsters with barely-adequate gear, a grand adventure
Mark Powell: The Totem Pole
The 1957 first ascent of the iconic Totem Pole. The ascent went smoothly, belying the considerable hazards involved: testament to the climbers’ skills
Steve Roper: Cleopatra’s Second Ascent
Entertaining tale of a 1962 repeat of this climb
Chuck Pratt: The View from Deadhorse Point
The classic climbing tale. Pratt’s finest writing, witty, sharp, deep
Huntley Ingalls: The Colorado Plateau
The desert, as seen through Huntley’s sharp eyes
Huntley Ingalls: Castleton Tower
Vivid telling of the 1961 first ascent by Kor and Ingalls.
Layton Kor: The Best of the West
Layton’s homage to the desert and to his friends.
Huntley Ingalls: The Finger of Fate
Climbing the Titan in 1962 was an outrageously bold endeavor.
Harvey Carter: Kingfisher
Kingfisher’s first ascent, the start of Harvey Carter’s Fisher Tower career, 1962
Steve Komito: Standing Rock
One of the best climbing stories ever written, nominally about the first ascent of Standing Rock in 1962, yet really about so much more
Eric Bjornstad: The Rest of the Story
Wonderfully convoluted tale of the first ascent of the Middle Sister
George Hurley: The Mystery Towers
Early exploration in the remote Mystery Towers
Lou Dawson: Harvey’s Raiders
Engaging and funny account of a major new route on the Titan with Harvey Carter
Fred Beckey: The First Ascent of Moses
A giant of mountaineering takes on a giant of the desert in 1972
Ed Webster: The Desert Prophet
The first free ascent of Moses, 1979
John Sherman: Tales from the Gripped
Exploring the Mystery Towers in the early 1990s with Rob Slater and friends
Jim Beyer: World’s End
Beyer’s is a singular vision, expressed on the rock and in print
Duane Raleigh: The Wasteland
The writing wonderful, the rock on this corner of the Titan, not so much…
Alison Sheets: Queen for a Day
The early Moab climbing community of the 1980s, with Charlie Fowler, Kyle Copeland and friends
Tim Toula: Shimá sání do Shí cheii A Cock and Pull Story
A skilled telling of a logistically difficult first ascent on the San Juan River
Todd Gordon: The Whale’s Tale
Todd spent several years teaching on the Navajo Nation, which gave him the opportunity to climb a number of first ascents, the Whale being one of them. Things did not work out as planned…
Andrew Burr: It’s Over
What does it mean to climb Castleton Tower in the 21st century?
Strappo Hughes: The Enigmatic Syringe
Uncertainty and commitment, alone, in the heart of Canyonlands National Park
Dougald MacDonald: The Big Muddy
Exploring a wide-open Monument Basin in the early 1990s
Stevie Haston: Sundevil Chimney Free
Stevie’s staggeringly bold and visionary free ascent from 2002
Greg Child: Excommunication
In 2002, 5.13 climbing comes to Castle Valley
Ben Bransby: The Finger of Fate
The Titan free, in 2005, by its original line of ascent, in a day
Jason Haas: Free Cottontail
Free climbing Harvey Carter’s West Side Story in the Fisher Towers with Rob Pizem, 2009
