For the Love of the Climb | Explorer

[Music] I've always equated climbing, Alpine climbing, being in the mountains to, it sounds a little silly, but being in love. Sometimes it's very uncomfortable; it makes you do crazy things. It can be very, very challenging, but at the end of the day, it's the most beautiful experience that you can have. You know, it's being in love with the natural world and experiencing it in relationship.

I have to say that I think growing up in Wyoming was fundamental to learning how to live with the wind and the cold, learning how to build a decent snow cave and had kind of the classic Huck Finn childhood—hunting and fishing. I think I first discovered my relationship with climbing through my parents and just being in the mountains with my dad as a child, with my mom as a child. That led us to have much tighter bonds.

That's what helped, you know, our relationships survive adolescence and everything. I mean, the mountains were something we always had together. When you start going to the big mountains and you're with partners that you are relying on to keep you alive, those bonds are pretty hard to break.

You're not driven by rational decisions; you're driven by passion. You need to try to set aside your passion in moments of extreme danger and make the most rational decision. But in my life, I've been driven entirely by passion and curiosity and the desire to write a story.

You're not going to go out and suffer on a big mountain unless you're passionate about climbing. What's the point? I mean, it's very much like writing a story or writing a book; it's a lot of suffering. So, there's got to be something more going on, and it's the passion for the experience that's happening. It's moving you.