Conrad Kain
Encyclopedia
Conrad Kain was an Austrian mountain guide who guided extensively in Europe, Canada, and New Zealand, and was responsible for the first ascents of more than 60 routes in British Columbia. He is particularly known for pioneering climbs in the Purcell Mountains
Purcell Mountains
The Purcell Mountains are a mountain range in southeastern British Columbia, Canada. They are a subrange of the Columbia Mountains, which includes the Selkirk, Monashee, and Cariboo Mountains. They are located on the west side of the Rocky Mountain Trench in the area of the Columbia Valley, and on...
and the first ascents of Mount Robson
Mount Robson
Mount Robson is the most prominent mountain in North America's Rocky Mountain range; it is also the highest point in the Canadian Rockies. The mountain is located entirely within Mount Robson Provincial Park of British Columbia, and is part of the Rainbow Range. It is commonly thought to be the...
(1913), Mount Louis
Mount Louis
Mount Louis is a mountain located in southeast Banff National Park in Alberta, Canada. It is part of the Sawback Range.The mountain was named in 1886 after Louis B. Stewart....
(1916) and Bugaboo Spire
Bugaboo Spire
Perhaps the most impressive peak in the Bugaboos, Bugaboo Spire sits between the Vowell and Crescent glaciers, just under 2 km West of the ACC's Conrad Kain hut...
(1916).
Kain was born in Nasswald, Austria
Austria
Austria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the...
. After a difficult start to his life, he moved to Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
in 1909 to lead climbs at the Alpine Club of Canada
Alpine Club of Canada
The Alpine Club of Canada is a mountain club with a National Office in Canmore, Alberta that has been a focal point for Canadian mountaineering since its founding in 1906. The club was co-founded by Arthur Oliver Wheeler, who served as its first president, and Elizabeth Parker, a journalist for...
's Lake O'Hara camp. Conrad Kain is credited with over 60 first ascent
First ascent
In climbing, a first ascent is the first successful, documented attainment of the top of a mountain, or the first to follow a particular climbing route...
s but his most notable first ascent was Mount Robson
Mount Robson
Mount Robson is the most prominent mountain in North America's Rocky Mountain range; it is also the highest point in the Canadian Rockies. The mountain is located entirely within Mount Robson Provincial Park of British Columbia, and is part of the Rainbow Range. It is commonly thought to be the...
in 1913 with Albert MacCarthy and William Foster. There is evidence to suggest, however, that Kain openly acknowledged that his ascent of Mount Robson
Mount Robson
Mount Robson is the most prominent mountain in North America's Rocky Mountain range; it is also the highest point in the Canadian Rockies. The mountain is located entirely within Mount Robson Provincial Park of British Columbia, and is part of the Rainbow Range. It is commonly thought to be the...
in 1913 was not the first ascent, but the second. The pre-Kain ascent remains a matter of debate between Kain/Mt. Robson scholars.
Conrad wrote an autobiography
Autobiography
An autobiography is a book about the life of a person, written by that person.-Origin of the term:...
titled Where the Clouds Can Go where he describes his tough years while growing up in Austria as well as his 25 years working variously as a guide for The Alpine Club of Canada, a hunter outfitter, and an assistant to W.O Wheeler for the Geographic Survey of Canada.
Conrad Kain climbed Mount Louis
Mount Louis
Mount Louis is a mountain located in southeast Banff National Park in Alberta, Canada. It is part of the Sawback Range.The mountain was named in 1886 after Louis B. Stewart....
for the last time on his 50th birthday, and died six months later. The marker on his grave reads "A guide of great spirit." He died in Cranbrook BC of encephalitis.
In 1934, J. Monroe Thorington named Mount Kain
Mount Kain
Mount Kain is a mountain located in the Fraser River Valley of Mount Robson Provincial Park, Canada. Mt. Kain was named by J. Monroe Thorington in 1934 after mountain guide Conrad Kain....
in Conrad's honor. The Alpine Club of Canada
Alpine Club of Canada
The Alpine Club of Canada is a mountain club with a National Office in Canmore, Alberta that has been a focal point for Canadian mountaineering since its founding in 1906. The club was co-founded by Arthur Oliver Wheeler, who served as its first president, and Elizabeth Parker, a journalist for...
maintains an alpine hut (the Conrad Kain hut
Conrad Kain hut
The Conrad Kain hut is an alpine hut located in Bugaboo Provincial Park in British Columbia. The hut is maintained by the Alpine Club of Canada. Coordinates: NAD27 11U 516700 5620754...
) in the Bugaboos
The Bugaboos
The Bugaboos are a mountain range in the Purcell Mountains of eastern British Columbia, Canada. The granite spires of the group are a popular mountaineering destination. The Bugaboos are protected within Bugaboo Provincial Park.-Geography:...
where Kain also made a number of first ascents, including Bugaboo Spire, the most difficult alpine climb in Canada until the 1940s.
To commemorate the 100th anniversary of Kain's arrival in Canada, the Conrad Kain Centennial Society was formed in the upper Columbia Valley in 2007 to celebrate his achievements and to develop legacy projects in his memory.