Doug Robinson (b. 1945) is an American rock climber. He has been called the father of clean climbing in Yosemite. Clean climbing is about replacing pitons and other bash-in gear with chocks and hexes so they are easier to remove and cause less damage to rocks.

In 1972 he was featured in a National Geographic article about his climb of Half Dome without using pitons, which brought great awareness to the success of clean climbing and catalyzed a rapid change of attitude in the climbing community against pitons. The philosophy was shared in the 1972 Chouinard Equipment catalog. It was also advocated in the catalog from company owners Yvon Chouinard and Tom Frost. Notable because at the time pitons were their best selling product.

Robinson grew up in Los Altos Hills, California. After high school he lived with John Fischer in tents on ranch land and attended Foothill College where he obtained an English degree. He later taught there with courses in guiding, climbing, and mountaineering.

Robinson was elected the first President of the American Mountain Guides Association.

Further reading

  • Robinson, Doug (January 1, 2013). The Alchemy of Action. Moving over stone. ISBN 0989855104.
  • Robinson, Doug (1996). A Night on the Ground, a Day in the Open. La Crescenta, California: Mountain N' Air Books. ISBN 9781879415157.
  • 1969 article by Robinson

External links

  • Hour long interview with Robinson about his life and the development of climbing technology.