Jeff Lowe (climber)
Encyclopedia
Jeff Lowe is an American
alpinist
from Ogden, Utah
. He is known for his visionary climbs and first ascents established in the US and Canadian Rockies
, Alps
and Himalayas
. He is a proponent of the "Alpine style
" philosophy of climbing
, where small teams travel fast with minimal gear. Lowe has made over 1000 first ascents.
Lowe is the brother of Lowe Alpine
founder and sometimes climbing partner Greg Lowe
. He is not to be confused with the late Alex Lowe
(b. 1958), noted climber and first ascencionist.
to the US from Europe
as well as inventing Mixed climbing
. He founded the companies Latok Mountain Gear and Cloudwalker. He introduced the world's first softshell jacket while at Latok Mountain Gear. Lowe was featured ice climbing on the cover of the December 11, 1978 issue of Sports Illustrated. Lowe worked for the Colorado Outward Bound
School in his earlier years.
Jeff Lowe is credited with introducing ice climbing in the Winter X Games as well as starting the Ouray Ice Festival. Lowe received an honorary membership in the American Alpine Club
, the club's highest honor, for his climbing achievements, contributions to the climbing community, and vision. He was awarded Honorary Membership in the British Alpine Club.
His attempt on the north ridge of Latok
I with Jim Donini
, Michael Kennedy (climber)
, and George Lowe in 1978 is considered by many to be the most difficult unfinished climb in the world.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
alpinist
Alpinist
Alpinist is a quarterly American magazine focused on mountaineering ascents worldwide. It was originally published out of Jackson, Wyoming and was founded in 2002...
from Ogden, Utah
Ogden, Utah
Ogden is a city in Weber County, Utah, United States. Ogden serves as the county seat of Weber County. The population was 82,825 according to the 2010 Census. The city served as a major railway hub through much of its history, and still handles a great deal of freight rail traffic which makes it a...
. He is known for his visionary climbs and first ascents established in the US and Canadian Rockies
Rocky Mountains
The Rocky Mountains are a major mountain range in western North America. The Rocky Mountains stretch more than from the northernmost part of British Columbia, in western Canada, to New Mexico, in the southwestern United States...
, Alps
Alps
The Alps is one of the great mountain range systems of Europe, stretching from Austria and Slovenia in the east through Italy, Switzerland, Liechtenstein and Germany to France in the west....
and Himalayas
Himalayas
The Himalaya Range or Himalaya Mountains Sanskrit: Devanagari: हिमालय, literally "abode of snow"), usually called the Himalayas or Himalaya for short, is a mountain range in Asia, separating the Indian subcontinent from the Tibetan Plateau...
. He is a proponent of the "Alpine style
Alpine style
Alpine style refers to mountaineering in a self-sufficient manner, thereby carrying all of one's food, shelter, equipment etc. as one climbs, as opposed to expedition style mountaineering which involves setting up a fixed line of stocked camps on the mountain which can be accessed at one's leisure...
" philosophy of climbing
Climbing
Climbing is the activity of using one's hands and feet to ascend a steep object. It is done both for recreation and professionally, as part of activities such as maintenance of a structure, or military operations.Climbing activities include:* Bouldering: Ascending boulders or small...
, where small teams travel fast with minimal gear. Lowe has made over 1000 first ascents.
Lowe is the brother of Lowe Alpine
Lowe Alpine
Lowe Alpine is an outdoor equipment manufacturer and supplier that originated in Colorado and is now an international company. The company is currently owned by ....
founder and sometimes climbing partner Greg Lowe
Greg Lowe (climber)
Greg Lowe is a noted climber, photographer, Academy Award nominated cinematographer, and founder of Lowe Alpine.Lowe established Lowe Alpine in his workshed in Colorado in 1967. In addition to backpacking gear Lowe is a pioneer in rock climbing hardware, developing some of the first cam-lever...
. He is not to be confused with the late Alex Lowe
Alex Lowe
Stuart Alexander "Alex" Lowe , was widely considered one of his generation's finest all-around mountaineers...
(b. 1958), noted climber and first ascencionist.
Career achievements
Lowe is credited with bringing modern ice climbingIce climbing
Ice climbing, as the term indicates, is the activity of ascending inclined ice formations. Usually, ice climbing refers to roped and protected climbing of features such as icefalls, frozen waterfalls, and cliffs and rock slabs covered with ice refrozen from flows of water. For the purposes of...
to the US from Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
as well as inventing Mixed climbing
Mixed climbing
Mixed climbing is a combination of ice climbing and rock climbing generally using ice climbing equipment such as crampons and ice tools. Mixed climbing has inspired its own specialized gear such as boots which are similar to climbing shoes but feature built in crampons...
. He founded the companies Latok Mountain Gear and Cloudwalker. He introduced the world's first softshell jacket while at Latok Mountain Gear. Lowe was featured ice climbing on the cover of the December 11, 1978 issue of Sports Illustrated. Lowe worked for the Colorado Outward Bound
Outward Bound
Outward Bound is an international, non-profit, independent, outdoor educationorganization with approximately 40 schools around the world and 200,000 participants per year...
School in his earlier years.
Jeff Lowe is credited with introducing ice climbing in the Winter X Games as well as starting the Ouray Ice Festival. Lowe received an honorary membership in the American Alpine Club
American Alpine Club
The American Alpine Club, or AAC, was founded in 1902 by Charles Ernest Fay, and is the leading national organization in the United States devoted to mountaineering, climbing, and the multitude of issues facing climbers...
, the club's highest honor, for his climbing achievements, contributions to the climbing community, and vision. He was awarded Honorary Membership in the British Alpine Club.
Notable ascents
- 1957 Grand TetonGrand TetonGrand Teton is the highest mountain in Wyoming's Grand Teton National Park, and a classic destination in American mountaineering.- Geography :...
, WyomingWyomingWyoming is a state in the mountain region of the Western United States. The western two thirds of the state is covered mostly with the mountain ranges and rangelands in the foothills of the Eastern Rocky Mountains, while the eastern third of the state is high elevation prairie known as the High...
with father - 1971 Moonlight Buttress, Zion National ParkZion National ParkZion National Park is located in the Southwestern United States, near Springdale, Utah. A prominent feature of the park is Zion Canyon, which is 15 miles long and up to half a mile deep, cut through the reddish and tan-colored Navajo Sandstone by the North Fork of the Virgin River...
, Utah, USA. FA with Mike Weis - 1972 first winter ascent of Grand Teton's west face with Greg Lowe (climber)Greg Lowe (climber)Greg Lowe is a noted climber, photographer, Academy Award nominated cinematographer, and founder of Lowe Alpine.Lowe established Lowe Alpine in his workshed in Colorado in 1967. In addition to backpacking gear Lowe is a pioneer in rock climbing hardware, developing some of the first cam-lever...
- 1973 North Face, Wetterhorn PeakWetterhorn PeakWetterhorn Peak is a fourteen thousand foot mountain peak in the U.S. state of Colorado. It is located in the Uncompahgre Wilderness of the northern San Juan Mountains, in northwestern Hinsdale County and southeastern Ouray County, east of the town of Ouray...
, San Juan MountainsSan Juan MountainsThe San Juan Mountains are a high and rugged mountain range in the Rocky Mountains in southwestern Colorado. The area is highly mineralized and figured in the gold and silver mining industry of early Colorado. Major towns, all old mining camps, include Creede, Lake City, Silverton, Ouray, and...
, ColoradoColoradoColorado is a U.S. state that encompasses much of the Rocky Mountains as well as the northeastern portion of the Colorado Plateau and the western edge of the Great Plains...
. FA with Paul Hogan - 1973 Northeast Corner, Keeler Needle, Sierra Nevada, California USA; NCCS V F9 or F10 A2, FA with John Weiland
- 1974 Bridal Veil FallsBridal Veil Falls (Telluride)Bridal Veil Falls is a 365 foot waterfall at the end of the box canyon overlooking Telluride, Colorado. Hiking and off-road trails pass by the falls and the power plant at its top. In winter the frozen shape of the falls forms an imposing challenge to intrepid ice climbers.Bridal Veil Falls is a...
, Telluride, Colorado, FA with Mike Weis; - 1974 Green River Lake Dihedral, Squaretop, Wind River RangeWind River RangeThe Wind River Range , is a mountain range of the Rocky Mountains in western Wyoming in the United States. The range runs roughly NW-SE for approximately 100 miles . The Continental Divide follows the crest of the range and includes Gannett Peak, which at 13,804 feet , is the highest peak...
, Wyoming, USA - NCCS V F9, FA with Greg Lowe - 1975 Mount Kitchener'sMount KitchenerMount Kitchener is a mountain located within the Columbia Icefield of Jasper National Park, which is part of the Canadian Rockies. The mountain can be seen from the Icefields Parkway near Sunwapta Pass....
Grand Central CouloirCouloirA couloir is a narrow gully with a steep gradient in a mountainous terrain. A couloir may be a seam, scar, or fissure, or vertical crevasse in an otherwise solid mountain mass...
with Mike Weis - 1979 Ama DablamAma DablamAma Dablam is a mountain in the Himalaya range of eastern Nepal. The main peak is , the lower western peak is . Ama Dablam means "Mother's necklace"; the long ridges on each side like the arms of a mother protecting her child, and the hanging glacier thought of as the dablam, the traditional...
, NepalNepalNepal , officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal, is a landlocked sovereign state located in South Asia. It is located in the Himalayas and bordered to the north by the People's Republic of China, and to the south, east, and west by the Republic of India...
solo - 1980 Skyang KangriSkyang KangriSkyang Kangri, or Staircase Peak, is a high peak of the Baltoro Muztagh, a subrange of the Karakoram range. It lies on the Pakistan-China border, about 7 km northeast of K2, the world's second-highest mountain...
- 1982 Kwangde Ri's north face, Nepal with David BreashearsDavid BreashearsDavid Breashears is an American mountaineer and filmmaker. In 1985, he became the first American to reach the summit of Mount Everest twice...
- 1985 Bird Brain Boulevard, Ouray, ColoradoOuray, ColoradoThe historic City of Ouray is a Home Rule Municipality that is the county seat and the most populous city of Ouray County, Colorado, United States. The city population was 813 at the U.S. Census 2000 and 1,000 as of the U.S. Census 2010...
- 1991 Metanoia, Eiger North Face, Switzerland, Solo,
- 1994 Octapussy, Vail, ColoradoVail, ColoradoThe Town of Vail is a Home Rule Municipality in Eagle County, Colorado, United States. The population of the town was 4,589 in 2005. The town was established and built as the base village to Vail Ski Resort, with which it was originally conceived...
His attempt on the north ridge of Latok
Latok
Latok I was first climbed in 1979 by a Japanese expedition led by Naoki Takada; the first summit party comprised Sin'e Matsumi, Tsuneo Shigehiro, Yu Watanabe, and they were followed three days later by Hideo Muto, Jun'ichi Oku, and Kota Endo...
I with Jim Donini
Jim Donini
Jim Donini is an American rock climber and alpinist, noted for a long history of cutting-edge climbs in Alaska and Patagonia...
, Michael Kennedy (climber)
Michael Kennedy (climber)
Michael Kennedy is an American rock climber, alpinist, photographer, writer and editor.From 1974 to 1998 he was the editor of Climbing magazine, the most influential of American climbing magazines...
, and George Lowe in 1978 is considered by many to be the most difficult unfinished climb in the world.
Publications and instructional videos
- The Ice Experience - 1979
- Climbing - 1986
- Alpine Ice: Jeff Lowe's Climbing Techniques - 1997
- Waterfall Ice - 1996
- Clean Walls - 2004