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Sundance Pinnacle (11,054'). [Photo] Steph Abegg.

Extra Left Klettershoe

After climbing classics every day,” Doug Robinson recalls, “it was easy to assume that the great lines had all been snatched up. Our steps turned homeward, with lingering views of the great Cirque vanishing over Warbonnet’s shoulder. One last wall, Sundance Pinnacle, hesitated our footfall.” In this essay, Robinson recalls his first, first ascent in 1966.

Charlie Raymond on the first ascent of the North Face of Mt. Hooker [Photo] Royal Robbins Collection

Wyoming’s Range of Light

Royal Robbins recounts a sojourn to the Winds in 1964: “Two things that you don’t usually find in the Sierra, but that you can expect in the Wind Rivers, are a thick population of mosquitoes and bad weather in the summer. Also, in certain areas you may encounter enormous herds of sheep.”

Bluemlisalp traverse above Kandersteg, Bernese Alps. [Photo] Abacus Mountain Guides

Mammut Belay Chain: Strong Personal Tether for Anchoring

Climber and guidebook author Stewart M. Green reviews the Mammut Belay Chain: “Unlike the personal anchor systems made by Metolius, Sterling and Black Diamond that use six links of the same size, the Mammut chain links are of two different sizes. The first three links are 11 inches long, and the last three links are 3.5 inches long. These differing lengths allow you to attach to different anchors at a belay station easily and quickly.”

An 1805 map of the Yellowstone River, which historian James P. Ronda writes, was based off drawings or information from the Mandan chief Sheheke and copied by William Clark, who noted that it led "as far as the high mountains." [Photo] Beinecke Library, Yale University

Typologies of Silence

In “Typologies of Silence,” the Sharp End article for Alpinist 55, Editor-in-chief Katie Ives discusses some of the muted stories in accounts of early American mountaineering–as well as the efforts to create a more inclusive history today.

Between the Earth and the Sky

For our Climbing Life department in Alpinist 55, high school student Kai Lightner writes about his first multipitch traditional climb on Stone Mountain, with Yosemite pioneer Doug Robinson. For more, wide-ranging stories from our print magazine contributors, pick up a copy of Alpinist 55.