This photo was taken by the great American photographer Ansel Adams, on September 3, 1947. On that day John Salathe and Anton (Ax) Nelson completed the first true ground up ascent of the Lost Arrow Chimney and Spire in Yosemite Valley California, one of the most iconic features in all of rock climbing.
Here is how Steve Roper describes this climb in his definitive history of Yosemite climbing, Camp 4, '...the five day Arrow Chimney adventure of September 1947 by Ax Nelson and John Salathe was a true Valley milestone; the first big wall climb ever done in the United States -- and without a doubt the beginning of the Golden Age of Yosemite Climbing. By an order of magnitude, the Arrow Chimney route was America's most difficult climb. Was it the world's hardest pure rock climb? Only the big routes in the Dolomites were in the same league.'
