The History of Mountaineering
Boiled down to its essence, mountaineering is the art of climbing mountains. Man has always sought to challenge nature by climbing the Earth's highest peaks, which means the history of mountaineering predates the written word. While the sport's history cannot be completely told, a handful of important mountaineering milestones --including climbing the highest points on each of Earth's seven continents--have been reached during the last century and a half.
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Mount Elbrus
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Located in the Caucasus mountain range, Mount Elbrus stands 18,510 feet tall at its highest point. It is Europe's highest peak and was first ascended in 1874 by a team of English climbers led by Florence Crauford Grove. While it stands tall in Europe, Mount Elbrus is not among the world's 100 highest peaks and is more than 10,000 feet shorter than Mount Everest.
Mount Aconcaugua
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At 22,841 feet tall, Mount Aconcagua is the highest peak in South America. The mountain is located in the Andes mountain range in Argentina. Aconcagua was first ascended in 1897 by a Swiss mountaineer named Matthias Zubriggen. Despite being the highest mountain in the Western Hemisphere, Aconcagua is not one of the 50 highest peaks in the world.
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Mount McKinley
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Mount McKinley, also known as Mount Denali, is located in Alaska and, at 20,320 feet tall, is the highest peak in North America. The mountain was first ascended in 1913 by a climbing team led by Englishman Hudson Stuck. Reaching the summit of McKinley is especially difficult because its height and latitude make it one of the coldest mountains in the world outside of Antarctica.
Mount Everest
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There is no greater goal for a mountaineer than reaching the summit of Mount Everest. At 29,035, Everest is the highest point on earth and 785 feet taller than the world's second highest peak, K2. Dozens of unsuccessful attempts to reach Everest's summit were made before New Zealander Edmund Hillary and Indian Sherpa Tenzing Norgay finally reached the top in 1953.
Seven Summits
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American climber Richard Bass was the first person to reach the top of the seven summits, marking an enormous milestone in mountaineering history. Born in 1929, the Yale-educated Bass finished his goal in 1985 by ascending Mount Everest. Prior to Everest, he climbed Mount Elbrus, Mount Kosciuszko, the Carstenz Pyramid, Mount Kilimanjaro, Mount Vinson, Mount Aconcagua and Mount McKinley.
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References
- Photo Credit mount Pumori Himalayas image by Rover from Fotolia.com
