In his 1969 classic, Challenge of the North Cascades, Fred Beckey described the Picket Range of Washington State as "fortresses ringed by cliffs and jungle." And with names such as Terror, Fury, Challenger and Phantom, their summits have long seemed like part of some mythological realm beyond the reach of modern development. Fifty Years after the passage of the Wilderness Act, designed to protect such places, Forest McBrian explores the evolving ways that climbers here have imagined and approached the "wild" through this issue's Mountain Profile of the Pickets. Meanwhile, Alex Honnold looks beyond the momentary purity of ascent he reached on his free solo of Sendero Luminoso (5.12+), El Potrero Chico, at the complex impacts of professional climbing. And when Charlie Porter died on February 23, 2014, he left behind a legacy of underreported adventures. Yet his friends never forgot their experiences with him. Gary Bocarde, Sibylle Hechtel, Alan Burgess, Russell McLean and Stephen Venables share a few memories of one of the twentieth century's greatest climbers.

Features

Mountain Profile: The Picket Range

In his 1969 classic, Challenge of the North Cascades, Fred Beckey described the Picket Range of Washington State as "fortresses ringed by cliffs and jungle." And with names such as Terror, Fury, Challenger and Phantom, their summits have long seemed like part of some mythological realm beyond the reach of modern development. Fifty years after the passage of the Wilderness Act, designed to protect such places, Forest McBrian explores the evolving ways that climbers here have imagined and approached the "wild." Ed Cooper, Carla Firey, Wayne Wallace and Jens Holsten recount their own alpine quests in one of the most isolated regions of the Lower 48.

Sendero Luminoso

In January 2014, Alex Honnold free soloed El Sendero Luminoso, a big wall in Mexico's El Potrero Chico. Today, he looks beyond the momentary purity of ascent at the complex impacts of professional climbing.

Visions of Charlie Porter

When Charlie Porter died on February 23, 2014, he left behind a legacy of underreported adventures. Yet his friends never forgot their experiences with him. Gary Bocarde, Sibylle Hechtel, Alan Burgess, Russell McLean and Stephen Venables share a few memories of one of the twentieth century's greatest climbers. With an introduction by Matt Samet.

Departments

The Sharp End

A Wild of One's Own.

Letters

A climber reminds us of his first ascent on Mitre Peak. A cartographer maps vanishing glaciers. A reader proposes a more genteel form of saying "#@%!"And Alpinist's history guru recalls a meeting with Sun-woo Nam.

On Belay

David Pickford travels across three continents to examine the intersections between climbing and rock art. Peter Haan braves a Secret Storm.

Tool User

Matt Samet peels back the history of the Wart Hog from tusk to tail.

The Climbing Life

Tico Allulee reads between the lines of gobie scars. Mark Conrad Rodell dreams of Yosemite during the Thailand coup. Derek Franz finds both doors and mirrors in the cliffs.

Wired

On April 18, 2014, an avalanche in the Khumbu Icefall left sixteen Nepali expedition workers dead. Tashi Sherpa and Jemima Diki Sherpa join a growing number of Sherpa writers who are calling for a re-examination of the mythology, history and business of Everest tourism.

Off Belay

James Lucas searches for an assistant dirtbag.