Paul Petzoldt

Paul Petzoldt
Born(1908-01-16)January 16, 1908
Creston, Iowa, US
DiedOctober 6, 1999(1999-10-06) (aged 91)
Topsham, Maine, US
OccupationMountaineer
Known forFounder of the National Outdoor Leadership School (NOLS); involved in the introduction of Outward Bound to the US

Paul Kiesow Petzoldt (January 16, 1908 – October 6, 1999) was an American mountaineer and wilderness educator known for establishing the National Outdoor Leadership School in 1965.[1]

Early life

Petzoldt was born in Creston, Iowa. The youngest of nine children, he lived on an Iowa homestead but his father, Charles, died in 1911.[2] He left with his mother, Emma, to farm in Idaho.[2] From 1929 to 1932, Petzoldt attended the University of Idaho, the University of Wyoming, and the University of Utah but did not earn a degree.[1]

Career

Along with friend Ralph Herron, he made his first ascent of the Grand Teton in 1924 at the age of 16, likely only the fourth or fifth ascent.[3] Along with Glenn Exum, he founded what is now Exum Mountain Guides, the oldest Alpine guiding service in the U.S.[4] He developed several techniques mountaineers still use such as specific voice signals and a snow-climbing belay system.[2]

In 1931 Petzoldt made the fourth ascent of Exum Ridge in order to create a video documenting the new route.[5] Created by Park Ranger George Waters, it is some of the earliest North American climbing footage in existence.[5]

In 1934 he traversed the Matterhorn, then retraced the route on the same day.[1] He and Dan Bryant, from New Zealand, were the first climbers ever to traverse the Matterhorn twice in one day.

In 1938 he was a member of the first American team to attempt a climb on K2.[5] During the climb he went to 26,000 feet without supplementary oxygen, a record height at the time.[1]

During World War II Petzoldt served in the U.S. Army's 10th Mountain Division,[6] fighting on the Italian Front. He also helped train the ski and mountaineering troops.[2] A documentary, Fire on the Mountain, chronicles the creation of the division, their time in Italy, and their post-war lives.[7]

In 1955 Petzoldt sold his portion of the guide school to Exum.[8]

He testified in favor of the Wilderness Act which created a formal mechanism for designating wilderness.[9] The growing interest in the wilderness paired with little training inspired Petzoldt to create his own school.[9]

From 1963 to 1965,[1] Petzoldt was the chief instructor for Outward Bound Colorado prior to establishing NOLS, the National Outdoor Leadership School.[10] Noted in his introduction to The New Wilderness Handbook, his experience in NOLS, Outward Bound, and love of the wilderness evolved into the Wilderness Education Association. Started in 1977,[9] the courses, certification and knowledge of the WEA are still helping many advocates of the environment learn to have low-impact adventures in the environment.[11]

Petzholdt climbed Grand Teton more than 300 times.[1] His last successful ascent was in 1984.[2] He pioneered numerous, now classic routes in the Tetons, Wind River Range, Sawtooths and in Columbia’s Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta.[2] He died October 6, 1999 in Maine.

Legacy

He was given an honorary doctorate by Kansas State University and by Unity College in Maine.[2] He received the Conservation Award from the Department of Interior for his search of The Tribesman II plane crash on Mount Moran.[12] He received the Banquet of the Golden Plate Award from the American Academy of Achievement.[2]

He was inducted into The Explorers Club.[2] He received the Eddie Bauer Award for conservation.[2] The American Mountain Guides Association honored him as a senior guide.[2]

In January 2026 a Wyoming PBS documentary “A Life Outside: American Mountain Guides” premiered at AlpinFilm festival in Jackson, Wyoming.[13] It highlights the legacy of Petzoldt and follows Exum guides on the Grand Teton and NOLS students in the Wind River Range.[13]

See also

References

  1. ^ a b c d e f Wren, Christopher S. (1999-10-09). "Paul Petzoldt Is Dead at 91; Innovator in Rock Climbing". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved March 5, 2026.
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k Wise Carson, Nancy (2000). "Paul Kiesow Petzoldt, 1908-1999". American Alpine Club. Retrieved 6 March 2026.
  3. ^ Leverone, Kyle (July 9, 2024). "Petzoldt's first ascent of the Grand turns 100". Exum Mountain Guides. Jackson Hole News & Guide. Retrieved 6 March 2026.
  4. ^ Quinn, Henry (October 16, 2025). "Devotion to the craft: Alpine guiding heritage in the Tetons". Buckrail. Retrieved 5 March 2026.
  5. ^ a b c Waters, Tim (August 27, 2007). "1931 Exum Ridge Video". Alpinist. Retrieved 6 March 2026.
  6. ^ Ringholz, Raye Carleson (May 2000). On Belay!: The Life of Legendary Mountaineer Paul Petzoldt. Mountaineers Books. ISBN 0-89886-725-8.
  7. ^ Maslin, Janet (December 6, 1996). "Heroes on Skis, Courageous and Cold". New York Times. Retrieved 6 March 2026.
  8. ^ "Glenn Exum; Climped peaks of Alps, Rockies". Chicago Tribune. April 3, 2000.
  9. ^ a b c "Paul Petzoldt". Wyoming Game & Fish Department. 2005. Retrieved 6 March 2026.
  10. ^ Olson, Martha Stevenson (2001-05-27). "PRACTICAL TRAVELER; Roughing It, And Not for TV". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2021-12-13.
  11. ^ "The Unauthorized Eckankar Page". Archived from the original on 2009-10-26. Outward Bound, and his own NOLS.
  12. ^ "The History of NPS Awards for Heroism" (PDF). Ranger. Spring 1992. p. 27. Retrieved 7 March 2026.
  13. ^ a b Stout, Monica (December 16, 2025). "Film on mountaineering history, Petzoldt's legacy to debut at AlpinFilm". Buckrail. Retrieved 6 March 2026.

Further reading

  • Howard, Jane. "Survival Expert Paul Petzoldt: So Long as He Can Help It, He'll Never be the Last Mountain Man". Life Magazine December 19, 1969, Page 48.
  • Jones, Chris. Climbing in North America. Mountaineers Books. 1997.
  • Petzoldt, Patricia. On top of the world; My adventures with my mountain-climbing husband. Thomas Y. Crowell Company. 1953.
  • Petzoldt, Paul, Raye Carlson Ringholz. The New Wilderness Handbook. WW Norton & Company. New York: 1975.
  • Petzoldt, Paul K. Teton Tales and Other Petzoldt Anecdotes. ICS Books, Inc. Merrillville, Indiana: 1995.
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