Magic Line
The son of legendary climber Ron Kauk and Ahwahneechee descendant Lucy Parker, Lonnie Kauk has long felt a deep connection to the rocks of his home in Yosemite Valley. In this oral history recorded by Alpinist Managing Editor Paula Wright and featured as the cover story for Alpinist 66, Lonnie, friends and family recount his journey from growing up beneath the granite cliffs of Tu-Tok-A-Nu-La (El Capitan) to making the first redpoint ascent of his father’s Magic Line, once considered the most difficult single-pitch climb in the Valley.