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Kim's early days in the North Cascades. [Photo] Thomas Matthiesen collection

A dusty box of golden memories: photos from the life of Kim Schmitz (1946-2016)

Savannah Cummins befriended the legendary alpinist Kim Schmitz in recent years when they were living in Jackson, Wyoming. Schmitz gave Cummins a box of old photos shortly before he died in a one-car accident in September 2016 at age 70. Rick Ridgeway, John Roskelley and Jack Tackle assisted in identifying some of the images, and in honor of Kim’s memory, we share some of his collection with you now.

The author hiking into Bear's Den in Rocky Mountain National Park for dry tooling. Note the (fruit) boots fastened to the side clips. [Photo] Colby Rickard

Spacious and multi-use: the Patagonia Cragsmith 45

The Cragsmith 45 is Patagonia’s largest backpack, which the company refers to as the “gear dumpster.” Chris Van Leuven has been lugging it around for several months and enjoys the pack’s durability, convenient loading options and how well it encapsulates just about anything he wants, from clothes and a sleeping bag to ice tools, in addition to the standard rock climbing kit. Four stars.