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He made the first attempts on K2 and Kanchenjunga, and was
a visionary rock climber putting up difficult routes in the late 1800s,
Aleister Crowley (October 12, 1875 – December 1,
1947), English mountaineer, more commonly known as an occultist
and the founder of the Thelema religious movement. novelist, playwright, poet, and painter.
While his climbing accomplishments are lesser-known, Crowley is
notable as the first Westerner to attempt K2 (8,611 meters), in 1902,
with Oscar Eckenstein, and for leading an attempt on Kanchenjunga (8,586
meters). The latter expedition, although also unsuccessful, purportedly
reached the highest point that any human being had achieved on any
mountain at the time (7,620 meters/25,000 feet). Both peaks were not
summited until over 50 years after Crowley’s attempts.
1902: English author, occultist, magician
and mountaineer Aleister Crowley (1875 – 1947)
(second from left) with
companions during an expedition. (Photo: Picture Post/Hulton Archive/Getty Images)
Aleister Crowley Climbing Accomplishments
Crowley’s accomplishments as an alpinist
were significant for the time. In addition to his unsuccessful
expeditions on K2 and Kanchenjunga, he successfully climbed several
peaks in the Alps and put up a string of hard first ascents on rock in
the Lake District and Beachy Head, as well as other sites in the United
Kingdom, during the 1890s.
- Eiger (13,015 ft), Bernese Alps, Switzerland
- Wetterhorn (12,113 ft), Bernese Alps, Switzerland
- Jungfrau (13,642 ft), Bernese Alps, Switzerland
- Mönch (13,480 ft), Bernese Alps, Switzerland
- Dent Blanche (14,298 ft), Pennine Alps, Switzerland
- Matterhorn (14,692 ft), Pennine Alps, Switzerland
- Iztaccíhuatl (17,160 feet), Trans-Mexican Volcanic Belt, Mexico
- Popocatépetl (17,802 feet), Trans-Mexican Volcanic Belt, Mexico
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