aid climbing milestones - help me

Hi guys, I'm Fabio from Italy, doctor piton's partner in writing the big book...

I always read this forum, much better than italians'...

I'm about to start a new adventure, writing about aid climbing history, but something much longer than history chapter in-da-book.

I'd like to know what you do consider the real milestones in aid climbing, from the beginning to 2022. 

People, routes, gear, ascents, what you'd like to find in such a book... everything that could help me!

a big thanx in advance to everyone who will help me!

fabio

{crickets}

Canna someone help-a my paisan??

Perhaps start here:

https://www.bigwallgear.com/p/tita-piaz-partd-big-wall-climber

Have you not noticed that John has been doing the exact same thing for the last year or so?

By the way, this is Rudatis version of pre-WWI climbing history from 1931, which appears to have been used as secondary reference countless times, including classics like Scott's Big Wall Climbing.  There is more to the story from other regions, hence my recent endeavors to sussing out a bit more research on the development and use of new tools.  More details on bigwallgear.com post about 1930's histories.

First wall could be considered as Tomasson's route on Marmolada.

(excerpt from bigwallgear.com post)

Route Timeline per Rudatis

• 1884 Croda da Lago: Guide Michele Innerkofler and Roland Von Eötvös

• 1886 Cima della Madonna: Georg Winkler and Alois Zott

• 1887 Vajolet: Georg Winkler

• 1890 Cima Piccola: Hans Helversen 

• 1891 Punta dell Cinque Dita (2nd): Antonio Dimai and Jeanne Immink

• 1892 Rosetta in Pale di S. Martino: Antonio Tavernaro, Bortolo Zagonel, Antonio Crescini.

• 1893 Cimon della Pala (‘Matterhorn of Dolomites’): Antonio Dimai with Leon Treptow.

• 1895 Vajolet: Hermann Delago

• 1896 North wall of Hochtor in Gesäuse: Heinrich Pfannl and Thomas Maischberger

• 1897 West wall of Laurino: Luigi and Simone Rizzi with Emil Munk

• 1898 Marmolada west ridge (later ‘armed with metal ladders’): Luigi Rizi w/ Hans Seyffert and Eugen Dittmann

• 1899 Basso di Brenta: Karl Berger and Otto Ampferer

• 1899(): traverse of three southern Vajolet towers: Eduard Pichl and Hans Barth

• 1899(): NW della Civetta: Dimai with Swinnerton Phillimor and Arthur Guy Anders Raynor.

• 1899/1900 NE Punta Emma: Tita Piaz

• (Vajolet: Stabeler)

• 1901 Totenkirchl Pfann chimney

• 1901 North wall of Admonter Reichenstein Heinrich Pfannl and Thomas Maischberger.

• 1901-1904 Kaisergebirge: Hans Pfann, Franz Neiberl, Georg Leuchs

• 1902 Campanile di Val Montanaia: Viktor Wolf von Glanvell and Günther von Saar

• 1903 Torre de Pissadù in Sella group: Leo Heiss from Monaco, ‘emient solo climber’

• 1904 Basso ‘Pooli’

• 1905 Teston del Pomagagnon South Wall: Anonio Dimai Agostino Verzi with Roland and Ilona von Eötvös. —> Campanile Dimai

• 1905 SW wall of Cimone, Georg Leuchs ‘Altarpiece’

• 1906 Campanile Toro: Piaz and Bernard Trier

• 1907 Torre Leo in the Cadini di Misurina: Angelo Dibona and Johann von Pauer

• 1907 East wall Cima Piccola di Lavaredo: Otto Langl, F Horn

• 1908 Roda di Vael west wall: Dibona and Verzi with Alfred Broon and Hanson Kelly Corning

• 1908 Basso SW: Rudolf Fehrman and Oliver Perry-Smith (variant by Luigi Scotini)

• 1908 Totenkirchl West Wall: Tita Piaz, Josef Klammer, Rudolf Schietzold, Franz Schoffenegger.

• 1909 Cima Piccola di Lavaredo N face western chimney: Fehrman and Oliver Perry-Smith

• 1910 Feldkopf Zsigmondyspitze NE face; Hans Fiechtl Hans Hotter. most difficult granite climb of its time.

• 1910 Piccola Civetta: Gabriel Haupt and Karl Lömpel

• 1911 Punta della Cinque Dita “Diagonal Crack”: Haupt and Kurt Kiene

• 1911 Basso Preuss

• 1911 Lalider North wall: Dibona, Mayer, Luigi Rizzi

• 1912 Lalider: Otto Herzog and Georg Sixt

East wall Fleischbank (400m): hans Dülfer and Werner Schaarschmid (attempted previously by Fiechtl, Sixt, Herzog, Adolf Deye), then repeated 7 times in 1912 by Sixt, Deye, Pfann, and others.

• Schüsselkarspitze south wall, in the Wetterstein: Herzog and Fiechtl

• 1913 Direct west wall Totenkirchl: Dülfer and Villi von Redwitz

• Cima Grande west wall: Dülfer and Walter von Bernuth

• Cima di Mezzo of Predigtstuhl

Jumps to 1919-1920

• 1919 EAST FACE Predigtstuhl (900m) EAST FACE Predigtstuhl (climbed 16 times in next two years)

• 1921 West face of North summit Predigtstuhl: Paul Diem Karl Schüle

• 1921 HaHe-Verschneidung on Dreizinkenspitze (Karwendel): Gustav Haber and Herzog

• 1921 Cima Ovest of the Praxmarerkarspitze

• (controversy with repeat ascent with pitons lost and rescue)

• 1923 direct Predigstuhl: Franz Weinberger and Fiechtl

• 1923 Hochwanner in Wetterstein (700m): Ludwig Bauer, Georg Gruber

• 1923; Mandelkogen north edge (1913: Preuss RIP): Karl Schreiner, E. Hein from Graz

• 1924: Pelmo north wall: Roland Rossi and Felix Simon

• 1925: SE Wall Fleischbank: Roland Rossi and Fritz Weissner (extensive use of nails)

• Aug.1925 La Furchetta—tried by Dibona-Mayer-Rizzi and Dülfer-Trenker (to Pulpit Dülfer), then death of J. Verrà, then another attempt. Then Solleder and Weissner

• Aug.7,1925 Civetta Nw wall: Solleder and Gustav Lettenbauer (15 hours)

(TKO: also prior—Dibona also on Croz d’Altissimo upper part of the corner. rope traverse. Piaz represented but mostly for his free climbing skill, his technical breakthroughs are not especially noted).

(this is one of several histories that could be further researched)

Most impressive. But “Wiessner” if you please.
(-:

Andy Wiesner wrote:

Most impressive. But “Wiessner” if you please.
(-:

Exactly.  The Rudatis history, though one of the most comprehensive for many decades, is far from complete.  The routes in the Tatras and the Julian Alps also under-represented.  Written during the Italian fascist era, which no doubt influenced the commentary.

hi guys, thanks!

yes, i had seen john's work, and it's awesome! 

but, first, i don't wanna copy his work, and, second, what i have to do is more focused on modern aid and have to be very yosemite-centric.

if you have to choose the 6 major aid achievements in the valley history, what would they be?

Would have to include Half Dome NWF, the Nose, the WOTEML, Cosmos, the Shield, and maybe Mescalito FAs.

Fabio, feel free to borrow all you want from my recent research.  That is why I am putting it online.  In general, I am trying to fill in some holes in common histories,  so will probably be more brief in the next era of Dülfer to Cassin, as that era has already been covered extensively, as the 1930’s in USA is actually more interesting to me, and there are still some sweet secrets I am currently discovering.

i hope after reading my work no one ever says again that Fiechtl invented the piton and Herzog the carabiner, as the real story is much more interesting.

in terms of Yosemite, the Pacific Ocean wall would be a top milestone, the “first wall to cross the line into the absurd” —Werner Braun.

after the golden age, Hugh Burton + Steve Sutton, Chuck Kroger, Jimmy Dunn, Charlie Porter, and Bridwell and others of course all pushed the vision of the possible on big walls, so pick some routes from each of them, perhaps.  Cole and Grossman both took it up a notch, too.  So many…

This cover blew a few minds…  

I remember that cover and it certainly did blow my mind! 

Cool. What route is that cover shot from John?

Son of Heart on El Cap. 

I thought that could be the Heart! Might have to go garden my way up there someday...

Actually, I believe the 1971 climbing cover is Chuck Kroger on the Heart Route.  Interesting in the tribal tradition too as Chuck was not a Sierran.

Sylvester's route Son of Heart some years later was also a stunning route, hard-man off-widthing in high exposure.

Oh, right, The Heart Route. 

You're right, the PO more so than Mescalito. Jim said it was a watermark for him.

I'm up for a garden-fest and bolt replacement binge on Heart Route with anyone anytime like Brandon as it's a route I've not yet done. 

Those pitches up the centre of the Heart look "interesting" these days ... bring your own machete. 

The climber on the cover photo of Climbing is Scott Davis.  He was the long-term partner of Chuck Kroger.  In 1970 they climbed 5 routes on El Capitan including the 3rd ascent of the West Buttress, the 4th ascent of the Dihedral Wall, the 3rd ascent of the North America Wall and the 1st ascent of the Heart Route.  Scott recently passed away in Seattle, Washington--where he was a long time resident.  A memorial for him is being included in the 2023 edition of the American Alpine Journal.  Note that the free ascent(s) of the Heart Route use significant variations--most prominently avoiding the dirty grass covered cracks in the back side of the Heart recess.  Almost nobody climbs this anymore--preferring to do the upper pitches only as part of Golden Gate.