American Alpine Club : the legacy series

Tom Hornbein, Jim McCarthy & Arlene Blum

The American Alpine Club, “the largest community of rock-scaling misfits in the country” as they describe themselves, created a series of videos called Legacy Series to pay tribute to the visionary climbers who made the sport what it is today and stands as a commitment to securing their legacies. Episodes five and six of the series are focusing on Tom Hornbein and Jim McCarthy. A mountaineer that did the 1963 ascent of the West Ridge of Everest and a climber who shaped the birth of modern ice climbing ( and helped save Camp 4 from being shut down in the 1990s). 

The last episode that aired is about Arlene Blum, part of the first American and first all-female ascent of Annapurna in 1978. In the video, she reflects more deeply on the tragedy of the ascent.

Other great episodes are available on American Alpine Club’s youtube account !