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Roof of the Rockies
A History of Colorado Mountaineering
By William M. Bueler
The British mountaineer R.L.G.
Irving wrote of the sharp peak above Zermatt
that, "When every rib of every facet
of the Matterhorn has been climbed, it will
still be climbed and still admired for what
it is. And future climbers of it will not
find their interest lessened because it
has a history." In other words, the
climber of the Matterhorn can add much to
the enjoyment of the climb by knowing its
history and using his imagination to see
the mountain as Whymper, Mummery, and the
other pioneers saw it.
It is equally true that one derives the
fullest reward from a climb of Longs Peak
only if he has the historical imagination
to relive vicariously the climbs of Old
Man Gun, Powell and Byers, Elkanah Lamb,
Isabella Bird, Professor Alexander, Agnes
Vaille, and the Stettner brothers. Surely
much is lost when walking up today's domesticated
Pikes Peak if one fails to see it mentally
as Pike saw it - unconquerable; or as James
saw it - unconquered. And if the Lizard
Head still seems formidable to the climber
of today, how much more can we appreciate
its peril as well as the intrepidity of
its first assailants if we try to see it
through the eyes of Ellingwood and Hoag
in 1920.
For those who take a historical perspective
with them into the mountains, Colorado is
an excellent place to be, for no other state
has a longer or more bountiful history of
mountaineering. The history of climbing
not only in Colorado but in the West began
with Zebulon Pike and Edwin James; the members
of the government surveys of the nineteenth
century climbed in many states, but nowhere
were their activities more extensive or
more thoroughly recorded than in Colorado;
the history of exploration and climbing
in the Elks, Sangre de Cristos, and San
Juans is surpassed in length and interest
by few other American ranges of comparable
size; and probably only one other mountain
in the West, the Grand Teton, has a history
as colorful as that of Longs Peak.
In this long-awaited revised edition of
what has become a mountaineering classic,
mountaineer and historian William M. Bueler
brings rich history to life with tales of
great adventures in Colorado climbing. Combining
solid research and entertaining prose, Roof
of the Rockies tells the complete story
of 200 years of mountaineering in the state,
from early nineteenth century explorations
and discoveries to the challenges and triumphs
of the present. Fascinating accounts include:
the discovery by Pike of his "Great
Peak", the one-armed major who scaled
"unclimbable" summits, the tragedy
of Agnes Vaille, the conquering of the Diamond
on Longs Peak and much more. This new edition
has been completely revised and is beautifully
illustrated with artist's drawings, informative
maps, and dozens of vintage photographs.
Whether an active climber, or an arm-chair
mountaineer, every fan of mountaineering
literature will want to add this classic
to their personal collection.
Author William M. Bueler is a retired instructor
of Chinese at the Defense Language Institute
in Monterey, California He finished climbing
the Colorado 14ers in 1952, which was only
the beginning of a lifetime interest in
climbing and writing about the state's mountains.
His extensive travels in mountain regions
around the world have taken him to five
continents.
256 pages, 6" x 9", 15 b &
w maps, 65 b & w photos, paperbound,
$16.95, ISBN 0-9671466-1-5
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