1967: Layton Kor Topping Out on the Salathé Wall

This is one of the best and most famous pictures of Layton, taken by Galen Rowell as they topped out on the Salathé Wall of El Cap. This was Layton’s last big climb. Shortly after this he became a Jehovah’s Witness and gave up serious climbing. Kor was the biggest influence on my climbing. He had a relentless drive for upward movement and had only one equal in the world, Royal Robbins.

I got this image off the internet where it appears widely. Galen Rowell was a renowned and prolific adventurer and photographer whose work became famous not long after this photo was taken after he landed a National Geographic cover story. Sadly, Galen and his wife Barbara were killed in a plane crash in 2002 just a few miles from their home in Bishop, California. The beautiful Mountainlight Gallery, a community exhibit space they created in Bishop, continued to offer educational photo workshops, exhibits, and print and stock sales for 15 years after their deaths but shut its doors four years ago. Thus, I share this image in the spirit of honoring his work that captured so eloquently the mountains and the many legendary climbers who spent time in them.