a The first official guidebook to desert climbing, Desert Rock ushered in a new era of first ascents and greatly popularized climbing in the region. AAC Library

a Eric Bjornstad on the summit of Jacob’s Ladder. Eric Bjornstad collection/AAC Library

a Michael Dudley’s route description from Cottontail Tower, sent to Eric Bjornstad for the creation of his Desert Rock guidebook. Bjornstad collected thousands of similar descriptions, photographs, topos, and maps from climbers to create his guidebook—many years in the making. These thousand-plus items comprise the Bjornstad’s collection, housed in the AAC Library. Eric Bjornstad collection/AAC Library

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Bjornstad Guidebook

In the spring of 1988, the book Desert Rock was unleashed by Eric Bjornstad. This guidebook to the Colorado Plateau, years in the making, was simultaneously a climbing guidebook and a concise yet detailed summary of the history, to date, of climbing in the desert. Its shortcoming as far as accuracy of ratings and directions are infamous. Yet the history, including original photos, essays, and poems, is priceless. A significant slice of North American climbing history that had long been neglected was suddenly brought to life.

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