Colin Haley facts for kids
Colin Haley self portrait during the first solo ascent of the Infinite Spur, Mount Foraker, Alaska.
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| Personal information | |
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| Born | 2 September 1984 Seattle, Washington, US |
| Education | BSc. Geology University of Washington |
| Website | "colinhaley.com" |
| Climbing career | |
| Type of climber | Alpinist |
| Known for | Fast ascents of technical, alpine routes. |
| First ascents |
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Colin Haley (born September 2, 1984) is an American alpinist. An alpinist is a special kind of climber who focuses on climbing big, difficult mountains, often in icy or snowy conditions. Colin is famous for climbing tough routes on mountains all over the world very quickly.
He is especially well-known for his amazing journey across The Torres. This involves climbing four peaks in a row: Cerro Torre, Torre Egger, Punta Herron, and Aguja Standhardt. He first did this with Rolando Garibotti in 2008. Later, he completed the same traverse with Alex Honnold in less than 24 hours!
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About Colin Haley
Colin Haley grew up in Seattle, Washington. He went to the University of Washington and earned a degree in Geology. He first started studying engineering, but he switched to geology. He said he wanted more free time in the future, and geology seemed like a good way to get it!
Amazing First Climbs
Colin Haley has been the first person to climb many new and challenging routes on mountains. These are called "first ascents." Here are some of his notable achievements:
Early Adventures
- In 2005, Colin and Dave Burdick created a new route on Chiwawa Mountain in Washington. They called it Intravenous.
- In 2006, Colin and Jed Brown were the first to climb the Entropy Wall on Mount Moffit. This was a very long and difficult climb.
- In 2007, Colin and Kelly Cordes made the first full climb of Tiempos Perdidos on the south face of Cerro Torre.
- Also in 2007, Colin and Steve House climbed a new route on Mount Robson. They named it Haley-House.
Famous Torre Traverse
- In January 2008, Colin made the first-ever Torre Traverse with Rolando Garibotti. They climbed across the tops of Aguja Standhardt, Punta Herron, Torre Egger, and Cerro Torre. This was a huge achievement in the climbing world.
- In 2015, Colin and Marc-Andre Leclerc did the Torre Traverse in reverse! They called this route La Traversia del Oso Buda.
Other Big Firsts
- In 2010, Colin and Bjørn-Eivind Årtun climbed a new route on Mount Foraker called Dracula.
- Also in 2010, Colin and Mikey Schaefer completed the Diablo Traverse. This involved climbing across five main peaks of Alaska’s Devil’s Thumb.
- In 2015, Colin and Marc-Andre Leclerc also found a new, more direct way up the north face of Cerro Torre. They named it Directa de la Mentira.
Solo Climbing Feats
Colin Haley is also known for climbing very difficult mountains all by himself. These are called "first solo ascents."
- He was the first to climb solo on Aguja Standhardt, Punta Herron, and Torre Egger in Patagonia.
- He also made the first solo climbs of Mount Waddington, Mount Combatant, and Mount Asperity in the British Columbia Coast Range.
- In the Central Alaska Range, Colin was the first to solo climb the Infinite Spur on Mount Foraker. He also made the first solo ascent of the North Buttress of Mount Hunter.
Record-Breaking Speed Climbs
Colin Haley has set amazing speed records on some of the world's toughest mountains.
- In 2016, Colin and Alex Honnold completed two big traverses in Patagonia very quickly. They did the Torre Traverse in just 20 hours and 40 minutes. A week later, they finished the "Wave Effect" traverse in 17 hours and 7 minutes.
- In 2016, Colin climbed the Infinite Spur on Mount Foraker solo in only 12 hours and 29 minutes. This was less than half the time it took the next fastest team!
- In 2017, Colin climbed and descended the North Buttress of Mount Hunter in just 7 hours and 47 minutes.
- In June 2018, Colin set a speed record for climbing the Cassin Ridge on Denali. He completed it in an incredible 8 hours and 7 minutes.
