Joseph Puryear
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Joseph Nicholi Puryear (1973 – October 27, 2010) was an American
mountain climber Mountaineering, mountain climbing, or alpinism is a set of outdoor activities that involves ascending mountains. Mountaineering-related activities include traditional outdoor climbing, skiing, and traversing via ferratas that have become mounta ...
and photographer. Puryear was known for his first ascents on unclimbed mountains in the
Himalayas The Himalayas, or Himalaya ( ), is a mountain range in Asia, separating the plains of the Indian subcontinent from the Tibetan Plateau. The range has some of the Earth's highest peaks, including the highest, Mount Everest. More than list of h ...
with climbing partner David Gottlieb, where he climbed Kang Nachugo, Takargo and Jobo Rinjang. Puryear died while climbing Labuche Kang (7367m) in Tibet.


Early life

Puryear was born in 1973 to Gail and Shirley Puryear and was raised on their winery in Yakima Valley,
Washington Washington most commonly refers to: * George Washington (1732–1799), the first president of the United States * Washington (state), a state in the Pacific Northwest of the United States * Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States ** A ...
. In his youth, he took up carpentry, winemaking and farm work, and developed an interest in mountain climbing after his parents took him to Mount Adams when he was fifteen. He attended the
University of Washington The University of Washington (UW and informally U-Dub or U Dub) is a public research university in Seattle, Washington, United States. Founded in 1861, the University of Washington is one of the oldest universities on the West Coast of the Uni ...
, where he earned a degree in mathematics.


Mountaineering

Beginning in 1996, Puryear worked for four seasons as a climbing ranger at
Mount Rainier National Park Mount Rainier National Park is a List of national parks of the United States, national park of the United States located in southeast Pierce County, Washington, Pierce County and northeast Lewis County, Washington, Lewis County in Washington (sta ...
, where he met fellow ranger Mark Westman. Puryear and Westman climbed together in the
North Cascades The North Cascades are a section of the Cascade Range of western North America. They span the border between the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of British Columbia and the U.S. state of Washington (state), Washington and ...
,
Yosemite National Park Yosemite National Park ( ) is a List of national parks of the United States, national park of the United States in California. It is bordered on the southeast by Sierra National Forest and on the northwest by Stanislaus National Forest. The p ...
,
Patagonia Patagonia () is a geographical region that includes parts of Argentina and Chile at the southern end of South America. The region includes the southern section of the Andes mountain chain with lakes, fjords, temperate rainforests, and glaciers ...
, and most frequently, the
Alaska Range The Alaska Range is a relatively narrow, mountain range in the Southcentral Alaska, southcentral region of the U.S. state of Alaska, from Lake Clark at its southwest endSources differ as to the exact delineation of the Alaska Range. ThBoard on G ...
. In Alaska, they made ascents of
Mount McKinley Denali (), federally designated as Mount McKinley, is the highest mountain peak in North America, with a summit elevation of above sea level. It is the tallest mountain in the world from base to peak on land, measuring . On p. 20 of Helma ...
's south buttress and Cassin Ridge (2000) and
Mount Foraker Mount is often used as part of the name of specific mountains, e.g. Mount Everest. Mount or Mounts may also refer to: Places * Mount, Cornwall, a village in Warleggan parish, England * Mount, Perranzabuloe, a hamlet in Perranzabuloe parish, ...
's Infinite Spur (2001). Puryear's other achievements in the Alaska Range included the first ascent of the Black Crystal Arête route on the Kichatna Spire, the Goldfinger route on the Stump, the Harvard Route on Mount Huntington, the Mount Silverthrone's west face, and the first speed ascent of Mount Barill via the Cobra Pillar. Using his own photographs and graphic design, and based on 30 ascents and a decade's worth of climbing in the region, Puryear wrote a guidebook to the Alaska Range, which was published by SuperTopo in 2006. Shortly afterwards, he was hired by Sherpa Adventure Gear as a photographer and the editor of their product catalog, which allowed him to finance his climbing trips after leaving his job at the
National Park Service The National Park Service (NPS) is an List of federal agencies in the United States, agency of the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government, within the US Department of the Interior. The service manages all List ...
. Puryear began climbing in the
Himalayas The Himalayas, or Himalaya ( ), is a mountain range in Asia, separating the plains of the Indian subcontinent from the Tibetan Plateau. The range has some of the Earth's highest peaks, including the highest, Mount Everest. More than list of h ...
in 2003, attracting sponsorship from companies and winning a climbing grant to support his attempts to ascend unclimbed mountains in China and Nepal. Over seven years, he made seven trips to the Himalayas. In China, he and Chad Kellogg made the first ascents of Lara Shan, Mount Daogou and the Angry Wife; in Nepal, he and David Gottlieb made the first ascents of Kang Nachugo, Takargo and Jobo Rinjang.


Death on Labuche Kang

In October 2010, Puryear and Gottlieb traveled to Tibet to climb Labuche Kang, a remote mountain in the Himalayas. While he was climbing unroped on the mountain, on October 27 Puryear broke through a
cornice In architecture, a cornice (from the Italian ''cornice'' meaning "ledge") is generally any horizontal decorative Moulding (decorative), moulding that crowns a building or furniture element—for example, the cornice over a door or window, ar ...
and fell to his death. At the time of his death, the ''
Seattle Times ''The Seattle Times'' is an American daily newspaper based in Seattle, Washington. Founded in 1891, ''The Seattle Times'' has the largest circulation of any newspaper in the state of Washington and the Pacific Northwest region. The Seattle Time ...
'' referred to Puryear as "one of the country's most elite alpinists".


Notable climbs

* Mt. Silverthrone, West Face, first ascent, April 1997. * Kichatna Spire (8,985′), Alaska. ''The Black Crystal Arete'' (VI 5.10 A2, 3,000′). Chad Kellogg and Joe Puryear made the first ascent of this route July 13-14, 2005. * Raindog Arête, Qionglai Mountains. ''The Angry Wife'' (5,020 m), first peak ascent, IV 5.10c October 2005. * Lara Shan (5,700m),
Qionglai Mountains Qionglai Mountains () is a mountain range in the Sichuan Province of China. It runs in the general north-south direction, and is located mostly within the Ngawa Tibetan and Qiang Autonomous Prefecture, in the north-central part of the province ...
, Sichuan, China. ''American Standard'' (65 degree ice, 1060m). Joe Puryear, Chad Kellogg and Jay Janousek made the first ascent of this peak on April 18, 2007. * Peak 5965m in the Genyen Massif, Shaluli Shan, Sichuan Province, China. Jay Janousek, Michelle Puryear, Peter Inglis, Julie Hodson and Joe Puryear made the first documented ascent of this peak in honor of in honor of
Charlie Fowler Charlie Fowler (February 18, 1954 – November 14, 2006) was an American mountain climber, writer, and photographer. He was one of North America's most experienced mountain climbers, and successfully climbed many of the world's highest peaks. ...
and
Christine Boskoff Christine Boskoff (September 7, 1967 – November 14, 2006 (estimated)) was an American mountaineer. Early life Christine Joyce Feld (her maiden name) was the youngest of four children (with three older brothers) of Robin and Joyce Feld. She was ...
on October 22, 2007. * Kang Nachuago, Rolwaling Himalaya. Joe Puryear and David Gottlieb made the first ascent of this peak on October 17, 2008. * Jobo Rinjang, Lunag massif, Khumbu Region, Nepal. First ascent by Joseph Puryear and David Gottlieb on April 22, 2009. * Dragkar-Go /Takargo, Rolwaling valley, Nepal. Joseph Puryear and David Gottlieb made the first ascent (6771 meters) via its East Face on March 12, 2010.


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Puryear, Joe 1973 births 2010 deaths American mountain climbers Mountaineering deaths Sportspeople from Yakima, Washington University of Washington College of Arts and Sciences alumni People from Leavenworth, Washington Sport deaths in Nepal