CLICK HERE to download the first chapter of The Challenge of Rainier, 40th Anniversary Edition * Special 40th anniversary edition * Featuring 125 photos, 90 illustrations, and 15 maps * Original cover art by Dee Molenaar Originally published in 1971, The Challenge of Rainier is a classic in mountaineering reference and literature, long considered the definitive work on the climbing history of Mount Rainier. Author Dee Molenaar covers geology, glaciology, and climate; early climbs dating before 1900; the pioneering efforts on over 35 routes in winter and summer; notable summit climbs; mountain tragedies on the steep slopes; and the guides who have led summit seekers over the years. For the 40th anniversary edition new information includes more recent ascents, rescues, mountain guides, and climbing trends; updated statistics through 2010; and a new foreword by famed climber (and former Rainier guide) Ed Viesturs.

Details 49 ascent routes, features 5 maps and 75 photos. Includes notes on natural history.

Many of the most accomplished U.S. alpinists have learned their skills on Mount Rainier. And many of the rest of us dream of one day standing on its majestic summit. Whether you're one of these dreamers or an aspiring pro, you need Mount Rainier: A Climbing Guide, written by Mike Gauthier, the park's former Lead Climbing Ranger. This new edition is a major upgrade of the bestselling guidebook, which remains a standard for other climbing guides. New features include an expanded section on glaciers, including how to understand and surmount them, as well as new information on search-and-rescue and additional historical details throughout. Gauthier has also added beta on all major ski routes, as this sport has become a favorite on the mountain.

A compendium of information and trivia about Mount Ranier and the surrounding national park, with fun facts and statistics in sections on early exploration, the human and natural history of the area, the park service, colorful characters, Indian tribes, park facilities, glaciers, landmarks, events, spiritual aspects, trails, roads, wildlife, activities, and volcanology. Includes b&w photos and maps. c. Book News Inc.

Over the past 150 years, people have flocked to the Pacific Northwest in increasing numbers, in part due to the region’s beauty and one of its most exceptional features: volcanoes. This segment of the Pacific Ring of Fire has shaped not only the physical landscape of the region but also the psychological landscape, and with it the narratives we compose about ourselves. Exceptional Mountains is a cultural history of the Northwest volcanoes and the environmental impact of outdoor recreation in this region. It probes the relationship between these volcanoes and regional identity, particularly in the era of mass mountaineering and population growth in the Northwest. O. Alan Weltzien demonstrates how mountaineering is but one conspicuous example of the outdoor recreation industry’s unrestricted and problematic growth. He explores the implications of our assumptions that there are no limits to our outdoor recreation habits and that access to the highest mountains should include amenities for affluent consumers. Each chapter probes the mountain-based regional ethos and the concomitant sense of privilege and entitlement from different vantages to illuminate the consumerist mind-set as a reductive—and deeply problematic—version of experience and identity in and around some of the nation’s most striking mountains.

* 41 principal routes and their variations, with aerial photos and route overlays * Extensive material on Rainier's unique weather, terrain, high altitude and glacier training opportunities, and more * Features sidebars on mountain history, Rainier personalities, and dramatic rescues One of author Mike Gauthier's primary duties as Lead Climbing Ranger for Mount Rainier National Park was advising climbing parties about what to expect on the mountain. Name any route on Rainier, and he can describe its rewards and specific challenges (he's summited Rainier more than 170 times during all seasons and under intense conditions). Whether you choose the classic Liberty Ridge route, the drama of Success Cleaver, or the rarely attempted Mowich Face, Gauthier provides all the details you'll need for a successful and enjoyable climb. This edition presents the information on logistics, regulations, and permits. It includes expanded material on understanding and surmounting Rainier's famed glaciers; tips on selecting a guide service; excellent mountaineering training sites around Rainier for those bound for the world's highest peaks; and bonus routes on adjacent Little Tahoma, Washington's third highest peak.

Edward Curtis was charismatic, handsome, a passionate mountaineer, and a famous photographer, the Annie Leibovitz of his time. He moved in rarefied circles, a friend to presidents, vaudevill stars, leading thinkers. And he was thirty-two years old in 1900 when he gave it all up to pursue his Great Idea: to capture on film the continent's original inhabitants before the old ways disappeared.

Comprehensive climbing approach, route guides to Washington's Cascades.

375 exciting tales of heroism and tragedy drawn from the nearly 150,000 search and rescue missions carried out by the National Park Service since 1872.