1979 First Free-Climb of El Capitan, Yosemite
Mountain 69
September/October 1979
"El Cap Done Free"
In an amazing ascent Ray Jardine and Bill Price managed in May to free climb West Face Route, El Capitan. They worked on the first pitches in the expectation that the seventh pitch would be the crux. "But it went at a reasonable 5.11," was the 'pleasant surprise' for Jardine. Whilst making the complete ascent later, after leaving the first two pitches only fixed, they found three pitches of 5.11 in two days of climbing. The climb was originally done by Royal Robbins and TM Herbert in 1967 and was graded V1,5.9 A4. The 2,000 ft route is now the first all-free way to climb El Capitan and thus represents a landmark in the history of Yosemite climbing.
Ray's historical notes:
- May 14, 1979 - I freed the first 2 pitches, with Susie belaying.
- May 17, 1979 - I jumared the first 2 and belayed Bill Price free. We then alternated leads to the top of the 7th pitch.
- May 20, 1979 - With the first two fixed, we alternated the entire route in a single day. Not two days as indicated in the Mountain article.
This was the First free ascent of a grade VI in the country, and the first free ascent of an El Cap big wall.
Pigeons and the Naked Edge: Climbing mag, July 1970
Mountain 56 Cover Photo Ray Jardine leading the second ascent of Separate Reality (5.12) in Yosemite Valley.: Mountain 56 Cover Photo, July 1977
A New Camming Device has been Developed: Off Belay, June 1978
First Free-Climb of El Capitan, Yosemite: In an amazing ascent, Ray Jardine and Bill Price Free Climb the West Face of El Capitan, Yosemite." Mountain mag, 1979.
A Friend In Need: Eric Perlman discusses the history, construction, and use of Ray Jardine's Friends, Mountain mag, September 1979.
Who's Your Friend?: Alec Sharp interviews Ray Jardine. The routes were hard, no doubt about it, and I heard stories of climbers bursting into tears at the top because the pain in their arms was so great. Mountain mag, September 1979
A Day Free Climbing on El Capitan: "Ray Jardine is well known as the inventor of the FRIENDS. He has marked 50 first ascents of free climbs in Yosemite Valley including seven 5.12's and the first 5.13 on Phoenix route. The first free ascent of grade Vl wall also was made by the author with Bill Price in the spring of 1979 on the West Face route of El Capitan. The present article special to ITY by Jardine and D. Bolster is their diary on a day in their attempt on the Nose route in the spring of 1980." IWA TO YUKI, June 1981
Epic 700-Mile Mexican Kayak Journey: Two San Diego sailors recently completed an epic 700-Mile Mexican Kayak Journey from San Felipe, Mexico, to La Paz, along the Sea of Cortez coast of Baja. This is their story. San Diego Log, November 1981
The Atol Toll: During their round-the-world sailing voyage, Jenny and Ray encountered a number of hurricanes. This article describes what happened to two of their cruising-couple friends. One couple perished by a stroke of bad luck, the other survived by a stroke of good luck. Latitude 38, August 1983.
Handbook Gves Tips for Long-Distance Hikes: Handbook gives tips for long-distance hikes: "More miles under his boots than most people have on their cars" The Bend Bulletin; June 1992.
Extraordinary Lightweight Doctrine: Let me say right away that Ray Jardine is a remarkable character. A scientist, inventor and multi-disciplined outdoorsman, Jardine has taken the accepted doctrine of lightweight back-packing, shaken it up and produced some radical ideas. TGO, March 1995
Jardine's Creativity makes for more Enjoyment: Stienstra, San Francisco Examiner, July 1995
Kayakers-Challenge-the-Arctic: Ridler, The Bulletin, December 1996
Once every two or three decades a book comes along that fundamentally reshapes how we think.: Backpacker mag, December 1996
Homespun ingenuity: Packing Light: Homespun ingenuity means nothing weighs heavily on their shoulders. Seattle Times, June 1997
Experiences with El Niño: Lattitude 38; October 1997 by R.J.
First-Rate Trip of Last Resort: Setbacks turn out serendipitous for ambitious LaPine kayakers. Bend Bulletin, Feb 1998
The Ray Way: When an intellect as big and unencumbered by conventional thinking as Jardine's is focused on a problem, the solution is going to be original, possibly even spectacular, and probably socially unacceptable. Backpacker mag, February 1998
BBC Wilderness Walks: We see Ray and Jenny in a long line of U.S. based wilderness thinkers and philosophers - Muir, Emerson, Thoreau, Abbey etc. We view them as immensely important. BBC2, November 1998
Adventure to the Limit: A successful trip has certain characteristics. Chief among them is finding the inner strength to meet the challenge of unforeseen events and being able to overcome them. Bulletin, October 1999
Profile of Sea Kayak Adventurers: Ray Jardine might be best known for his contributions to the climbing world. But there's another side to him most people don't know - one where he swaps his ropes for a paddle as one of the leading expedition sea kayakers in the country. Paddler mag, Jan 2000
Shortcuts to Wilderness Connection: "Ray Jardine is America's foremost trail walking guru. An advocate of light-weight travel, he also preaches the benefits of getting closer to nature - much closer. Here Ray outlines his short-cut route to getting in-touch with Mother Earth." TGO magazine, January 2000
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