Dusting Off: Alpinism

“alpinism”

10/19/11

Dusting Off: Alpinism

As connoisseurs of history, we sometimes find styles, habits and turns of phrase from the past that we wouldn’t mind bringing back to the present, Doc Brown-style. This time around, we’re dusting off alpinism.

It’s hard to know the meaning of our lives.

We muddle through, doing the best we can, but we’re mostly making it up as we go, ignorant of any larger significance our time on earth might have.

So we’re just going to tell you. The fates have guided you to this blog post, and now we’re going to provide you with the purpose of your existence. We’re not even going to put it after the jump.

Your purpose in life is to ascend the tallest mountains on earth, bringing glory upon your name and country.

It sounded strange to us at first too …»

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09/27/11

Big Picture

Denali Style

Denali

Here’s your mug shot of the day, courtesy of An Ambitious Project Collapsing. These Italian gentlemen are part of the first summit of Mount McKinley via the Cassin Ridge, circa 1961. Adjust your stubble accordingly.

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11/10/10

Object

The Alpine Boot

At this point, there may be more classic American boot brands than there are American feet. We can’t help but wonder what they’re wearing in the Alps, if only for variety’s sake.

What they’re wearing is pretty handsome, if these Seil Marschall “Mont Blanc” boots are any indication. They’re hiking boots not work boots, so you’ll skip the steel toe and make do with a lighter rubber sole, but they should hold up against wintry mix just fine.

And if you need a lingering touch of Americana, look at the grain on the upper—that’s bison leather, collected and tanned stateside.

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03/17/10

Object

Going Alpine

Blame the Olympics, the Germans, and all the vintage photos, but mountaineering seems to be having a moment. It’s good to know those beards won’t go to waste…

The good news is, it’s producing some pretty fantastic gear. This Albam Summit Pack was designed for carrying carabiners and ice axes, but it wouldn’t look too out of place carrying a stack of LPs through Brooklyn on the back of a fixed gear. And since it’s from the London-based Albam—who you might remember—the whole thing’s sewn together in England, where they’ll hopefully remember a thing or two about Alpinism.

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