Steve Swenson
Steve Swenson is an American rock climber, mountaineer, and author. Swenson served as the President of the Board of Directors for the American Alpine Club from 2009 until 2012. Swenson is known for his big-mountain climbing expeditions to the Karakoram range, about which he wrote the book Karakoram: Climbing Through the Kashmir Conflict, published by Mountaineers Books. Swenson has taken part in over 15 expeditions to the area.
In 2012, Swenson along with Mark Richey and Freddie Wilkinson, made the first ascent of Sasser Kangri II. At the time, the peak was the second highest unclimbed mountain in the world. For their climbing, the team was awarded the Piolet d’Or. In 2019, Swenson, along with Graham Zimmerman, Mark Richey, and Chris Wright, climbed Link Sar, for its first ascent. Swenson had attempted to climb it twice before, in 2000 and 2017. Along with his climbing career, Swenson had a 35-year career as a water resources consulting engineer.Notable ascents
- K2, without oxygen.
- Mount Everest, without oxygen.
- Nanga Parbat, ascent of the Mazeno Ridge to Mazeno Gap, 2004
- K7 West, North Ridge, 2004
- Sasser Kangri II, a climb for which he was awarded the Piolet d’Or.
- Link Sar, first ascent, with Graham Zimmerman, Mark Richey, and Chris Wright in 2019.
Writings
Karakoram: Climbing Through the Kashmir Conflict, published by Mountaineers Books in 2017.
