Robert Bates (mountaineer)
Robert Hicks Bates (January 14, 1911 – September 13, 2007) was an American
Early life
Bates was born in Philadelphia and was the son of William Bates, a classical scholar at the University of Pennsylvania.[1] He briefly attended the William Penn Charter School, and then Phillips Exeter Academy. He attended Harvard University from 1929 to 1935. At Harvard he was a member of the Harvard Mountaineering Club and with Charles Houston, Adams Carter, Bradford Washburn and Terris Moore was part of the group of climbers later known as the "Harvard Five" who would push forward the standards of American mountaineering in the 1930s.[2][3]
Mount Lucania
In 1937 Bates, with Bradford Washburn, made the first ascent of
K2
In 1937, Charles Houston invited Bates on an
Wartime and after
During the
After the war, Bates taught English at Phillips Exeter Academy. He continued mountaineering throughout his life, and at the age of 74 led an expedition which made the first ascent of Ulugh Muztagh in China.[2] He also spent a year in Kathmandu directing a Peace Corps project,[2] and served as president of the American Alpine Club, which awards the Robert Hicks Bates Award to promising young climbers in his honour.[8]
Author
Bates was the author of several books. With Charles Houston he wrote accounts of their two K2 expeditions as Five Miles High[10] and K2 - The Savage Mountain;[11] the latter being regarded as a mountaineering classic.[12] He also wrote Mystery, Beauty, and Danger, a study of mountaineering literature,[13] and Mountain Man: The Story of Belmore Brown, the biography of an artist and explorer.[14] His autobiography, The Love of Mountains Is Best, was published in 1994.[15]
References
- ^ "Robert Bates Obituary". Brewitt Funeral Home. Retrieved 2008-03-30.
- ^ a b c d e Lambert, Erik (September 19, 2007). "A Tribute to Bob Bates". alpinist.com. Retrieved 2008-03-30.
- ^ a b Marquard, Bryan (September 30, 2007). "Bob Bates, at 96; mountaineer taught English at Phillips Exeter". Boston.com. Boston Globe. Retrieved 2008-03-30.
- ^ a b c Medred, Craig (October 7, 2007). "Climber's exploits earned little recognition". Anchorage Daily News. Archived from the original on October 11, 2007. Retrieved 2008-03-30.
- ISBN 978-0-340-66007-2.
- ^ Curran, pp.73-80
- ^ Curran, pp.95-103
- ^ a b "Awards". American Alpine Club. Archived from the original on 2007-10-26. Retrieved 2008-03-31.
- ISBN 0-930410-44-0.
- ^ Houston, Charles S; Bates, Robert H. (1939). Five Miles High. Dodd, Mead.
- ^ Houston, Charles S; Bates, Robert H. (1954). K2 - The Savage Mountain. Mc-Graw-Hill Book Company Inc.
- ^ MacDonald, Dougald. "Bob Bates Passes". www.climbing.com. Archived from the original on 2008-09-21. Retrieved 2008-03-30.
- ISBN 978-0-914339-91-5.
- ^ Bates, Robert H. (1991). Mountain Man: The Story of Belmore Brown--Hunter, Explorer, Artist, Naturalist. Amwell Press.
- ISBN 978-0-914339-50-2.
Further reading
- ISBN 978-0-7432-2432-1.