Climbing History
A selected history of climbing and mountaineering through the climbers, climbs and media.
3623 Climbers
7216 Climbs
18813 Ascents
Featured
Jerry Moffatt
Jerry Moffatt was at the forefront of British climbing from the early eighties to mid-nineties. Along with Ben Moon Jerry established many hard firsts in the UK, Germany, France and USA including historic ascents such as The Face, Revelations and Liquid Ambar, all at the cutting edge of difficulty at the time they were established.
Jerry was an early proponent of bouldering in it's own right. From early ascents on The Bowderstone he went on to put up a host of hard classics such as The Ace at Stanage and Dominator in Yosemite.
References
[1] The Real Thing https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=brbxoKEgsw0
[2] Stone Love https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FguueX9jM78
[3] 80's Birth of Extreme https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jkj3Buhfi2k
[4] Statement of Youth https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zeqI9axxrco
[5] Portrait by Chris Gore https://www.facebook.com/climbing.in.the.80s/photos/a.270388289694020/3456311291101688
[6] https://www.facebook.com/climbing.in.the.80s/photos/a.270388289694020/2732067140192777
[7] https://www.facebook.com/climbing.in.the.80s/photos/a.270388289694020/876401569092686
[8] One Summer by Ben Pritchard, 1994 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RnGf69g6Igc
[9] Interview with Wedge Climbing, 2022 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DBmqm3VTrn4
[10] Photoshoot for DMM 1995 https://www.instagram.com/p/Cu8uyrStQ6I/
[11] https://open.spotify.com/episode/0ixcvxW0xNrX07Hxwxw8fE
[12] https://open.spotify.com/episode/6ITuiLGEgJB8kpavKkNOIK
Jerry Moffatt was at the forefront of British climbing from the early eighties to mid-nineties. Along with Ben Moon Jerry established many hard firsts in the UK, Germany, France and USA including historic ascents such as The Face, Revelations and Liquid Ambar, all at the cutting edge of difficulty at the time they were established.
Jerry was an early proponent of bouldering in it's own right. From early ascents on The Bowderstone he went on to put up a host of hard classics such as The Ace at Stanage and Dominator in Yosemite.
References
[1] The Real Thing https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=brbxoKEgsw0
[2] Stone Love https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FguueX9jM78
[3] 80's Birth of Extreme https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jkj3Buhfi2k
[4] Statement of Youth https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zeqI9axxrco
[5] Portrait by Chris Gore https://www.facebook.com/climbing.in.the.80s/photos/a.270388289694020/3456311291101688
[6] https://www.facebook.com/climbing.in.the.80s/photos/a.270388289694020/2732067140192777
[7] https://www.facebook.com/climbing.in.the.80s/photos/a.270388289694020/876401569092686
[8] One Summer by Ben Pritchard, 1994 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RnGf69g6Igc
[9] Interview with Wedge Climbing, 2022 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DBmqm3VTrn4
[10] Photoshoot for DMM 1995 https://www.instagram.com/p/Cu8uyrStQ6I/
[11] https://open.spotify.com/episode/0ixcvxW0xNrX07Hxwxw8fE
[12] https://open.spotify.com/episode/6ITuiLGEgJB8kpavKkNOIK
Pics + Vids
Featuring 9141 pictures and videos. Try searching for a climber, climb or summit to see pics and videos.
Jules Marchaland on Scarred For Life 8B+
Support
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You may also be interested in the Mountain Heritage Trust, a charity dedicated to preserving the rich history of climbing and mountaineering. Their collection includes many unique and valuable items, from rare guidebooks through to the boots worn by Doug Scott on the 1977 Ogre expedition.
Explore
Fancy a look around? You can browse by climber or by climbs, or you can check out some lists. For example
- All sport ascents of 9b or above
- British women who have climbed 7C or above
- British men who have climbed 8c or above
Podcasts
Featuring 4030 podcasts. Try searching for a climber to see podcasts with them, or check out some of these podcasts:
- Caroline Ciavaldini on Allez Podcast, April 2023
- Hazel Findlay on Strong Mind, December 2025
- Eric Hörst on TrainingBeta, January 2021
- April Davidson on First Ascent, March 2025
Library
Featuring 11023 items in the library. Try a search to see what you can find, or check out these library items:
- Orbayu (2016) Film
- Alpine Journal 1873 Vol 6 220-231 Ball Atlas (1873) Journal
- Pembroke (1985) Guidebook
Recent updates
References
Royal Robbins was an extremely influential climber from the USA in the late 1950s and 1960s. He was part of a generation of climbers who established Yosemite as a world class climbing destination and made first ascents and repeats of many now-famous routes there.
Robbins was also very influential in terms of the climbing style and ethics he espoused. Many of the values he championed, such as minimising reliance on fixed ropes, minimising the use of bolts and climbing from the ground up remain core to what is considered good style in modern big wall climbing. After visiting the UK and using nuts and chockstones for protection Robbins, together with Yvon Chouinard, Robbins became an early proponent of 'clean climbing': the use of chocks over pitons as a means of minimising damage to the rock.
In later life Robbins struggled with arthritis in his hands which made climbing difficult. Because of this Robbins focused his energy on his business ventures and, later, on white water kayaking. He made first descents of several rivers in the US and further abroad.
References
[1] https://www.instagram.com/p/CU4qXc5J8i7/
[2] https://www.facebook.com/photo/?fbid=6849687261751921&set=a.126453404075374
[3] Smart, D. (2023). Royal Robbins: The American Climber. United States: Mountaineers Books.
[4] Ament, P. (1998). Royal Robbins: Spirit of the Age. United States: Stackpole Books.
[5] Robbins, R. (2010). To Be Brave: My Life. United Kingdom: Pink Moment Productions.
[6] Robbins, R. (2010). Fail Falling. United States: Pink Moment Press.
References
References
[1] Interview with Sonnie Trotter https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yCk7vW2CSZs
Isabelle Faus is an American boulderer with many hard ascents to her name. Alongside contemporaries like Alex Puccio she was one of the first women to become established at 8B+. She was also one of the first women to start opening new, hard boulders in the 8B and upwards range.