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25 Awesome Photos of Early 1900s Mountain Climbers

There's something invigorating about looking at badass old timey mountain-climbing photos. The audacity these athletes had to make these treks, without modern crampons, axes, and other safety gear, is, itself, breathtaking. The accoutrements of mountaineers pre-1960 just plain look cool, too. Before every other American started sporting North Face gear like it was government-issued, old-school mountaineers were schelpping up mountains wearing natural fibers; their equipment was braced with leather straps; and their steps were steadied with wooden poles. Some lady climbers even just hiked up their long skirts and got to it. The gallery below features cool, historic mountaineering photos from the decades roughly spanning 1880-1960. These vintage mountain climbing pictures capture a simpler, less synthetic, and far more badass era in the history of the pursuit.

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  1. 1

    Summit Of Pinnacle Peak, Near Mt. Tacoma Or Rainier, Washington, 1906

    94% upvoted
  2. 2

    Group Of Men And Women Climbing Paradise Glacier In Mt. Rainier National Park, Washington, 1911-1920

    91% upvoted
  3. 3

    Two Slovakian Climbers, 1940

    91% upvoted
  4. 4

    Rock Climbing In The English Lake District, 1900

    92% upvoted
  5. 5

    Climbing Guide Fairman B. Lee With A Party Of Hikers On Nisqually Glacier, Mount Rainier, 1919

    95% upvoted
  6. 6

    Mont Blanc, 1862

    92% upvoted
  7. 7

    Group Of Mountaineers With The American Flag On The Summit Of Mount Rainier, 1925

    95% upvoted
  8. 8

    Climbing Party In An Ice Field, Date Unknown

    95% upvoted
  9. 9

    Mountain Climbers, Zermatt, Switzerland, 1954

    92% upvoted
  10. 10

    Guide And Climbers On Their Way To The Summit Of Mt. Rainier, Washington, 1906

    93% upvoted