It is a sign of the times, and a little ironic, that just as the Banff Mountain Literature Competition finalists were announced, the winner of the article competition these past five years has asked for your help.

I asked for help on their behalf too. On April 10, 2020, not even a month into pandemic misery, I urged you to buy or renew a subscription to Alpinist Magazine right away and buy something from their online shop. I followed my own advice. I ordered a new a subscription (I had intentionally let it lapse in February, intending to buy two issues from the newsstand and pick up in the summer.) I also bought one of those amazing route maps their team creates. I chose the most iconic the Eiger’s North Face.

Magazines, which are steadier contributors to our reading culture than books, can fail under poor economic conditions. Climbing magazines come and go. Remember Urban Climber? Do some of you even remember Mountain? Alpinist Magazine is a unique long-form quarterly featuring retrospectives, art, poetry, which is distinct from the other periodicals that cover skills, current events, and trends. And it nearly failed after a 2008 bankruptcy.

I read every issue of Alpinist cover to cover. It’s best enjoyed in an Adirondack chair on the patio, or in bed after the kids are asleep. The introspection and story telling is deeper than most things I read and often enlightens more than the climbing experience, but what I like about life in general. It’s because the editors work with the writers to pull out the best story-telling and prose of each contributor. They all make me feel like I am there with them, feeling what they feel, and closer to the mountains than I am from my station in this suburban outpost.

Sponsored content has not been their thing, in order to keep their content authentic and genuine. They’re trying to resist freezing budgets, reducing staff, and foregoing freelancers so the content we have enjoyed can remain at a consistently high level. But, in an attempt to keep going strong, Alpinist Magazine made their own plea for your help this month. If you feel that Alpinist enriches your life, or if climbing enriches your life, then there are a couple of things you should do today:

1. Subscribe to the magazine or extend your current subscription
2. Give a gift subscription
3. Make a purchase in our online store
4. Contribute to the Alpinist Podcast

Other quarterly, quality long-form publications of a similar caliber cost $75 annually. At $14.95 an issue, the newsstand is $59.80 for the whole year. But a year’s subscription with four issues of Alpinist is a bargain at just $49.95.

This is not a sponsored post. I am a humble subscriber, occasional contributor, and a fan of their whole operation. Please join me and give ’em a hand right now for you, me, and other climbers.

Well, I’ll post for you again in a couple of weeks. In the meantime, let’s stay in touch on Twitter and Facebook. Thanks for stopping by!