This Is Our Story: How Getting Off-Route Led to Climb Glacier National Park

Climb Glacier National Park exists because we got off-route.

It really is that simple.

After several years of climbing peaks in Glacier National Park and relying on the written route descriptions available at the time, we began to see a need for something different—a guidebook that didn't just tell climbers where to go, but actually showed them.

It Started on Clements Mountain

The idea began in 2003 on Clements Mountain near Logan Pass.

During the climb, two members of our group got off-route and found themselves in unnecessary Class IV terrain. The climbing was more difficult—and potentially more dangerous—than it needed to be.

Fortunately, we eventually located the goat trail on the Bird Woman Valley side of Clements Mountain and found our way back onto the route.

Afterward, we started talking about what had happened. We realized that a photograph of the mountain with the safest route drawn directly onto the image would have made finding our way much easier.

So that's exactly what we started doing.

We took photographs of Glacier's mountains and drew red lines showing the climbing routes. For the next few years, we shared those photographs with friends. They worked.

That simple idea would eventually become the foundation of the Climb Glacier National Park guidebook series.

We got lucky this day.

From an Idea to the “Passmore Guides”

A few years later, while hiking the Huckleberry Lookout Trail, Blake Passmore shared the idea of creating an actual climbing guidebook using the red-line photographs with his friend John VanArendonk.

John's response was simple: Go for it.

Even better, he agreed to help research routes and contribute to the project.

The Huckleberry Mountain Trail had been named one of America's ten most dangerous hikes by Backpacker magazine because of its grizzly bear activity—which seemed like a fitting place to start talking seriously about a Glacier adventure guidebook. Backpacker

What followed was ten years of climbing, research, photography and repeated trips into Glacier's backcountry.

By the time we finished, the Climb Glacier National Park series included illustrated climbing routes to 99 individual summits.

Every peak featured in our books has been climbed by the authors. That firsthand experience allows us to describe the routes, challenges and options based on actually being there.

Go Explore Glacier

One of the things we love most about Glacier National Park is what exists beyond the maintained trails.

Many visitors assume that all off-trail travel in Glacier is prohibited. It isn't. However, the park does maintain specific areas where off-trail travel is prohibited, along with temporary, wildlife-related and seasonal restrictions. Those closures can change, so climbers should always check current National Park Service information before heading out. NPS regulations and off-trail closures

For those prepared to leave the trail behind, Glacier offers an incredible range of opportunities—from relatively straightforward off-trail adventures to challenging summit routes.

That's what Climb Glacier National Park is all about.

Our guidebooks combine written route descriptions with photographs showing the routes directly on the mountain, helping climbers understand where they're going before they get there.

What began with getting off-route on Clements Mountain has grown into what many climbers now simply call the “Passmore Guides.”

They were created for one reason: to help you explore more of Glacier National Park and do it with better information.

Choose your route. Plan your climb. Go explore Glacier.

Important: Access and wildlife closures can change. Mount Henkel and Altyn Peak, in particular, may be affected by wildlife closures associated with grizzly bear activity. Always check Glacier National Park's current conditions and closures before beginning a climb.

Explore the complete GUIDEBOOK SERIES on this page.