25:
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657:, and confided to Wiessner that he had soloed the route earlier in the week. "Ah, you must vee climbing pretty goot!" Wiessner said. He then took the lead for the second pitch, putting in no protection—effectively soloing the pitch. When his partner reached the top, Fritz grinned impishly. "I must vee climbing pretty good too" Wiessner (then in his middle 70s) said. (The source for this anecdote is
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In 1945, he married Muriel
Schoonmaker. In 1946, their son Andrew was born. In 1947, their daughter Pauline (Polly) was born. Daughter and son both accompanied their father on many later expeditions and climbing trips. Muriel was a trusted climbing, scrambling, and skiing companion to Fritz for the
460:(in an era when a leader fall could easily prove disastrous for the entire party and the maxim of the day was "The leader must never fall"). After meeting Hans Kraus, he relaxed his "lead-climb only" rule (which Kraus had also adopted), and the two men climbed as equal partners.
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560:, coming within 800 feet of the summit before having to turn back. Wiessner recounted that, although the difficulties of the climb had been passed and the remainder was straightforward, he turned back in deference to the wishes of his
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Wiessner's physical qualities were atypical of mountaineering. He was 5 ft 6 in (168 cm) tall, slope-shouldered and stocky. He had a wide and friendly grin and his speciality was
464:
367:, established numerous first ascents in the Gunks, including many climbs that are popular (and intimidating) to this day. Perhaps their best known combined effort is the very popular
576:. The controversy would be reignited after Durrance was convinced to release his personal expedition diary in 1989, which laid blame on the failings of both the deputy party leader
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in the distance. The following weekend he set off in search of the tantalizing cliffs and immediately set about climbing the highest point in the area, a cliff now known as
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572:, and initial accounts of the climb lay much of the blame on expedition leader Wiessner. In a 1956 article Wiessner instead directed criticism towards
623:
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When rock climbing, Wiessner often paired himself with novices, and with women in particular. He always insisted on being the
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During his first years in
America, Wiessner founded a chemical company that specialized in waxes, including a widely used
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Wiessner was also a proficient skier. He was reportedly disappointed that he was not allowed to fight for the U.S. in
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No one came as close to the top of the mountain again until July 31, 1954, when the first ascent was achieved by
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677:, where Fritz would live to the end of his days. Wiessner died after suffering a series of strokes at age 88.
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Once, when climbing with a much younger climber sometime in the mid-1970s, the younger climber led the first
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638:
Wiessner remained an active climber up into his eighties, often stunning onlookers in the
Shawangunks by
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in 1929 and became a U.S. citizen in 1935. In 1939, he made one of the earliest attempts to conquer
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33:
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262:, or off-width, climbing, a technique that demands both technical mastery and uncommon strength.
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Waterman, Laura and Guy (2000). “The Big Little Man from
Dresden,” in Laura and Guy Waterman,
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known as
Wiesner's Wonder Wax. He successfully developed his company during the
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Yankee Rock and Ice: A History of
Climbing in the Northeastern United States
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184:(February 26, 1900 – July 3, 1988) was a German American pioneer of
239:. That was at a time when the hardest free climbing grade in the
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379:. Other notable Wiessner first ascents in the Gunks include:
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In 1935, Wiessner established a climb in
Connecticut called
767:"Fritz Wiessner, 88; Career as a Climber Spanned 8 Decades"
216:
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A Fine Kind of
Madness: Mountain Adventures Tall and True
797:
Kauffman, Andrew; Putnam, William (September 30, 1993).
695:"Mountain Climbing Demands Near Infallible Performance"
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201:
841:
K2: Tragödien und Sieg am Zweithöchsten Berg der Erde.
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Wiessner, often in partnership with fellow immigrant
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In 1939, he led an ill-fated
American expedition to
270:In 1931, Wiessner made contact with members of the
247:. At the age of 25, he made a first ascent of the
235:that have a present-day difficulty rating of up to
212:Wiessner started climbing with his father in the
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618:, serving instead as a technical advisor to the
701:. The Spokesman-Review. 31 Mar 1940. p. B3
624:Quartermaster General of the United States Army
274:and immediately set a new standard in American
796:
642:his early routes. He loved to solo his climb
829:, Seattle, WA: The Mountaineers Books, 2000.
749:"Fritz Wiessner links Stowe and Grand Teton"
568:. The expedition was tainted by the loss of
524:. Unsourced material may be challenged and
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720:Club, American Alpine (31 October 1997).
544:Learn how and when to remove this message
69:Learn how and when to remove this message
486:1939 American Karakoram expedition to K2
467:Fritz Wiessner, age 81, climbing on the
462:
32:This article includes a list of general
282:, he established a substantial list of
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793:. Seattle, WA: The Mountaineers Books.
673:In 1952, the Wiessner family moved to
344:, Wiessner spotted the gleaming white
902:German emigrants to the United States
786:Dresden: Sächsischer Bergsteigerbund.
791:K2: The Story of the Savage Mountain
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522:adding citations to reliable sources
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223:. At the age of 12, he climbed the
18:
850:. Golden, CO: American Alpine Club.
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13:
848:Shawangunk Rock Climbs: The Trapps
822:. Bloomington, Indiana: iUniverse.
784:Fritz Wiessner : 1900 – 1988.
38:it lacks sufficient corresponding
14:
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843:Munich: Bergverlag Rudolf Rother.
820:The Remarkable Life of Hans Kraus
753:Vermont Community Newspaper Group
723:The American Alpine Journal, 1989
593:1954 Italian Karakoram expedition
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832:Waterman, Laura and Guy (1993).
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311:Mount Rushmore National Memorial
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650:by the light of the full moon.
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325:(the first free ascent); and
288:Ragged Mountain (Connecticut)
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877:Short Bio of Fritz Wiessner
782:Andreas, Gottfried (2000).
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336:In 1935, while climbing at
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897:American mountain climbers
846:Williams, Richard (2000).
726:. The Mountaineers Books.
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286:at such climbing areas as
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97:Wiessner, age 86, on the
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892:German mountain climbers
856:German Knowledge article
839:Wiessner, Fritz (1955).
815:Schwartz, Susan (2005).
861:Partial lists of climbs
53:more precise citations.
801:. Mountaineers Books.
620:10th Mountain Division
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799:K2: the 1939 Tragedy
789:Curran, Jim (1999).
518:improve this section
307:Adirondack Mountains
272:American Alpine Club
196:, he immigrated to
16:German free climber
771:The New York Times
670:rest of his life.
589:Achille Compagnoni
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475:, Arizona, in 1981
435:. In 1946, he led
354:Millbrook mountain
167:Muriel Schoonmaker
854:de:Fritz Wiessner
817:Into The Unknown:
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300:Wallface Mountain
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148:U.S. (after 1935)
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469:Rupley Towers
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284:first ascents
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280:North America
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276:rock climbing
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241:United States
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703:. Retrieved
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659:Guy Waterman
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616:World War II
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599:Non-climbing
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570:Dudley Wolfe
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540:
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516:Please help
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473:Mount Lemmon
458:lead climber
455:
447:
445:
439:, the first
437:Minnie Belle
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430:Yellow Ridge
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395:White Pillar
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342:Hudson River
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319:Devils Tower
315:South Dakota
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138:(1988-07-03)
136:July 3, 1988
103:Mount Lemmon
65:
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37:
912:1988 deaths
907:1900 births
705:28 November
634:Later years
534:August 2023
423:High Corner
350:Shawangunks
249:Fleischbank
221:World War I
188:. Born in
156:Pioneer of
145:Citizenship
51:introducing
886:Categories
681:References
409:Frogs Head
365:Hans Kraus
260:wide crack
208:Early days
117:1900-02-26
34:references
505:does not
371:buttress
346:quartzite
278:. Across
233:Dolomites
225:Zugspitze
127:, Germany
105:, Arizona
665:Personal
644:Gargoyle
381:Gargoyle
304:New York
231:and the
214:Austrian
172:Children
640:soloing
605:ski wax
591:on the
526:removed
511:sources
448:Vector.
340:on the
323:Wyoming
219:before
194:Germany
190:Dresden
125:Dresden
47:improve
805:
730:
648:Skytop
562:sherpa
377:pitons
229:Saxony
164:Spouse
36:, but
655:pitch
416:Gelsa
253:Tyrol
866:Misc
803:ISBN
728:ISBN
707:2023
587:and
509:any
507:cite
428:and
402:Baby
243:was
237:5.11
217:Alps
133:Died
111:Born
661:).
646:at
626:in
520:by
451:5.8
441:5.8
433:5.7
426:5.7
419:5.4
412:5.6
405:5.6
398:5.7
391:5.5
384:5.5
373:5.6
358:5.5
298:);
251:in
245:5.7
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