The end of an era

World War II (1939-1945) virtually stopped climbing around the world, apart from specialised mountaineering training given to troops in Europe and the United States. Bert Salmon had dropped out of the climbing scene just before the war with his stubborn rejection of roped climbing, placing limits on what was possible. As he approached 40, Salmon described ‘mountain climbing’—as he called it—as safer than dodging motor cars, crossing the street. Ironically, 40 years later, he was struck by a motor car near his retirement home at The Grange in Brisbane and suffered an injury preventing him from visiting his beloved mountains. He had introduced hundreds of young men and women to climbing in Queensland and was active until the 1960s—the ‘spiritual father’ of Queensland climbing made his last trip up Mt Lindesay on 2 May 1964, his 27th ascent of the mountain! Described by some as arrogant and stubborn, even obnoxious, he was nevertheless a significant figure in the development of the first mass climbing movement in Australia. In 1980, Bert Salmon, aged 80, was still enthusiastic about climbing and the mountains of southeast Queensland, and explained that although he had never used a rope, his teams often carried one to help ‘inadequate’ climbers past difficult points. In his twilight years, he had a change of heart about the use of rope in climbing. ‘I’m older and I see the error of my ways,’ he confessed. ‘Not everyone has the ego that carried me through.’ He died on the 5 May 1982, aged 82.

Picture: Bert Salmon below Crookneck's east face. A. A. Salmon collection.