Mountains are the coolest. Created by the most dramatic of geologic forces – the clashing of tectonic plates or the volcanic uprising of lava from the Earth’s interior – mountains are perhaps Mother Nature’s best geographic gift to the world. They are playgrounds for adventurers, landmarks for explorers, protectors from invaders, metaphors for the human spirit, provender for poets, home of gods, and hideouts for mythical creatures. Their diverse personalities range from terrifying vertical spires to peaceful rolling hills, and their moods are just as diverse: from a warm summer afternoon’s invitation to lull about in the sun, to a summit lashed by a deadly winter storm, to an explosive volcano.
Mountains have called to me from my earliest memories. They are a magnet for my camera, a primary source of inspiration, the frequent background to laughter and friendship, and among much else, the target of ambition. Throughout my time in the mountains – spent mostly in my backyard of the Cascades and Rockies, but including many climbs in the Andes and the Himalaya, with other visits to the Alps and Alaska – I’ve developed some favorites. In my mind, these are the most aesthetic mountains for photographers, climbers, and explorers.
Full disclosure: this is a list in progress. It does not consider mountains in the Karakoram, Antarctica or parts of the Arctic, or the Chinese or Tibetan Himalaya – all areas I still need to visit. If you have recommendations for other mountains that should be on this list, please let me know.
As John Muir famously said, “The mountains are calling and I must go.”
#10 – Mt. Hood, Oregon, USA
Mt. Hood (elevation 11,250 ft/3,429m) is perhaps my favorite mountain in the entire world. It’s accessible. It’s iconic. It’s historic. It has both friendly and terrifying aspects, and enjoys stable summer weather but is the dramatic center of vicious winter storms. You can ski from the summit to your car for much of the year. It is also a joy to photograph.
Star vortex over Mt. Hood
#9 – Grand Teton, Wyoming, USA
As a Yank, I am duty-bound to include the Grand Teton (elevation: 13,776 ft/4,199m) into my top-10 list. From the valley floor, it’s powerful summit tooth juts upward at an improbable and curious angle, and is the focal point of an area particularly blessed by beautiful lakes, streams, wildlife, and forests.
Light Beams on the Grand Teton
#8 – Mt. Assiniboine, British Columbia, Canada
Hidden amongst the pointy windswept and glaciated peaks of the Canadian Rockies is the gem of Mt. Assiniboine (elevation: 11,870 ft/3,618m). Everything about the mountain bespeaks superlatives, from its striking summit, to the copious grizzly bears and moose on its flanks, to the crystal clear glacial lakes, to the rolling larch forests that turn brilliant orange in the fall. Mother Nature was in a particularly artistic mood when she created this place.
Autumn Afternoon light on Mt. Assiniboine
#7 – Bugaboo Spire, British Columbia, Canada
The very thought of the Bugaboos is enough to cause a paroxysm of chills – one part stoke and one part fear – in most people. Climbers speak of the area with wide eyes and reverence, often while re-telling an epic. Hikers are left aghast or in awe, depending on their predisposition to towering, violent spires and crashing glaciers. Imperturbable spires, massive and broken glaciers, and notorious storms all conspire to make the Bugaboos particularly unfit for all but the most adventurous of humans. Bugaboo Spire (elevation: 10,512 ft/3,204m) proudly stands as the often-malevolent king of the Bugaboos.
Getting at it with Bugaboo Spire in the background
#6 – Nuptse, Nepal
Everest is all the craze these days, but its Nuptse (elevation: 25,791 ft/7,861m) that steals the show for the thousands each year that make the Everest Base Camp Trek. Her graceful, almost dainty, summit stands in stark contrast to the gross pile of rubble that is Mt. Everest. Comprised solely of steep rock and ice, with nary a tree for many miles, she is not welcoming… but she is beautiful.
Last light on Nuptse (right) and Everest (left)
#5 – Cerro Torre, Patagonia, Argentina
The most storied and fearful spire on Planet Earth, Cerro Torre’s (elevation 10,262 ft/3,128m) summit is the least accessible and most dangerous place of all the mountains on this Top-10 list. She is the cruel but irresistible mistress for many mountaineers, and while thousands have trekked to Lago Torre – where one can (theoretically) gaze upon Cerro Torre’s striking summit – the near-constant storms rolling off the Southern Patagonia Ice Field ensure that only the lucky few see it.
A stream gushes under Cerro Torre
#4 – Alpamayo, Peru
Once voted the “Most Beautiful Mountain in the World” by an international survey in the 1960s, Alpamayo (elevation: 19,511 ft/5,947m) is a particularly stunning mountain in my favorite mountain range: the Cordillera Blanca. Unlike any other mountain on this list, Alpamayo’s famed summit is draped entirely in white and is impossible to see without technical mountaineering equipment (or a helicopter).
Watching sunrise on the approach to Alpamayo
#3 – Ama Dablam, Nepal
The celebrated belle of the Himalayan ball, Ama Dablam (elevation: 22,349 ft/6,812m) is the visual fixture of the Mt. Everest region. From every aspect, its diminutive summit (by Himalayan standards) commands grand attention and admiration. This sentinel peak stands as the guardian and protective overseer of the high elevation Sherpa villages and trekking trails surrounding its flanks. If you’re in the area, check Everest off your list and then go and stare at Ama Dablam.
Ama Dablam stands proud in the evening light
#2 – Mt. Robson, British Columbia Canada
The probable home of mystical fairies, the spellbinding giant that is Mt. Robson (elevation: 12,972 ft/3,954m) is the coup de grace of the Canadian Rockies. Its dizzying summit is encircled by the most enchanted of landscapes: crashing glaciers, brilliant blue lakes, waterfalls, crystal clear streams, and unfettered mountains as far as the eye can see. Mt. Robson’s gigantic south side can be seen from a nearby highway, but the mountain saves its true alpine sexiness for those that make the long trek to Berg Lake, at the base of its north side.
The illuminated summit of Mt. Robson
#1 – Fitz Roy, Patagonia, Argentina
A finer alpine centerpiece, there never was. Fitz Roy (11,020 ft/3,359m) stands as the de facto king of a dreamland of forests, streams, glaciers, and lakes. Royal analogies abound in this kingdom: next to Fitz Roy is the fierce but beautiful queen (Aguja Poincenot), surrounded by a court of jesters, priests, advisors, and supplicants. But it’s the beauty of the area that is most memorable. Here, even the most critical eye would have great difficulty in finding the slightest fault with Mother Nature’s work… when the weather clears enough to see it.
An explosion of fall colors under Fitz Roy
Last blush of daylight above Fitz Roy
Honorable Mentions:
It is impossible to create this list without naming a few other spectacular mountains. Honorable mention goes to the following peaks: (1) Mt. Cook & the Minarets, New Zealand, (2) Cotopaxi, Ecuador, (4) Mt. Logan, Yukon, (5) Mt. McKinley, Alaska, and (5) the Matterhorn, Switzerland.