Climbing History
A selected history of climbing and mountaineering through the climbers, climbs and media.
4099 Climbers
7952 Climbs
21051 Ascents
Featured
Silence | 9c Sport route at Flatanger Cave
Silence was established by Adam Ondra in 2017. It was the first route to be graded 9c and is still a contender for the hardest sport climb in the world. Bolted by Ondra and originally dubbed Project Hard, it features a notoriously strange boulder problem crux with feet-first jamming through a slopey crack. Ondra rated this section alone 8C, whilst Will Bosi thought 8C+ was more appropriate.
Bosi and Stefano Ghisolfi have put serious time into trying to repeat the route, with both climbers linking the crux section.
Silence was established by Adam Ondra in 2017. It was the first route to be graded 9c and is still a contender for the hardest sport climb in the world. Bolted by Ondra and originally dubbed Project Hard, it features a notoriously strange boulder problem crux with feet-first jamming through a slopey crack. Ondra rated this section alone 8C, whilst Will Bosi thought 8C+ was more appropriate.
Bosi and Stefano Ghisolfi have put serious time into trying to repeat the route, with both climbers linking the crux section.
Pics + Vids
Featuring 10225 pictures and videos. Try searching for a climber, climb or summit to see pics and videos.
Frances Bensley on Brad Pit 7C
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 4147 podcasts. Try searching for a climber to see podcasts with them, or check out some of these podcasts:
- Katie Lambert on The Enormocast (2018)
- Steve Maisch on The Nugget (2022)
- Alex Honnold, Fitz Cahall, Jonathan Siegrist and Leici Hendrix on Climbing Gold (2025)
- Nasim Eshqi on Climbing Gold (2026)
Library
Featuring 15185 items in the library. Try a search to see what you can find, or check out these library items:
- Shock of the New Film
- Extreme Rock - 66 - Preter, Krapp's Last Tape and Think Pink (1987) Journal
- Llanberis (1987) Guidebook
Recent updates
"Rach ‘the Mus’ Musgrave is arguably one of New Zealand’s most enduring hard climbers. Despite pushing 50, suffering shoulder damage that would leave the hardest of folk crying themselves to sleep at night, and a demanding Uni and work schedule, she still heads out at every opportunity to get her climbing fix.
Infamous for having unlimited endurance ("just one more go!"), her baffling, unique sequences, and not giving a f**k about what other people say, think or do, she’s been one of New Zealand's best female climbers for more than 20 years, but you wouldn't know about it, and she doesn't care either. She has little interest in her own stats or numbers game, and is instead far more invested in her friends’ ascents and rad adventures"[1]
References
[1] The Climber NZAC, Issue 102 Pages 18 - 23