Photo by Linda Bily
Photo by Jordan Manley
Photo by Adrienne Marie
Photo by Linda Bily
About
Growing up in Vancouver, John Baldwin became fascinated by the Coast Mountains that rise above the city and developed a lifelong passion to explore this incredible range of mountain wilderness.
Over the past 40 years he has completed numerous first ascents and pioneered many long ski traverses, often to remote areas that have rarely been seen or photographed. For John, the purpose of these explorations is to travel through the mountain wilderness, to climb high snowy peaks, to search for sheltered basins where the snow is deep and light, to look at patterns in the new fallen snow, stare at the chaos of a jumbled icefall or experience the stillness of a vast icefield.
The motivation for his writing and photography is to inspire others to discover and connect with the intense beauty of this mountain wilderness. It is a celebration of where we live and how wonderful it is.
Interviews
"Few explorers or guidebook authors have fired the collective imagination of West Coast backcountry skiers quite like John Baldwin." Steve Threndyle
Interview with Skintrack April 1, 2010
"Many people have big goals or great plans but somewhere along the way they get side-tracked and they steer away from their dreams, even though they were completely obsessed with them before. Then there are people that at first glance don't appear obsessed about their dreams and goals. And maybe they are not obsessed at all, yet they never forget what their heart beats for. Their whole life seems to be a product of some master plan. They are not aware of it, yet they dedicate themselves to fulfill it." More...
Interview with Jordan Manley September 2, 2016
"It was an honour to interview a humble superhuman, John Baldwin today. John literally wrote the book on ski touring BC's Coast Range, and has spent 4 decades bushwalking, climbing, traversing, and skiing across just about every conceivable piece of terrain along the 1500km spine from Vancouver to Alaska. Each trip into the mountains is somehow akin to spending a long time with a person. Slowly the many facets of their personality are revealed and slowly a deep friendship develops between the climber and the mountains."
The interview was featured in Jordan Manley's video Crossing Home:
Crossing Home: A Skier's Journey | Series Finale from Jordan Manley on Vimeo.
Interview with Skintrack March 12, 2020
"John Baldwin is arguably one of the greatest pure North American explorers. He has chosen to do most of his travels on skis and has authored several books and maps so others can experience the great Canadian wilderness with a bit of guidance...What is most important to have a remarkable mountain experience? There is a term called forest bathing that has become more popular recently. I think this is a big component of ski touring - you might call it mountain bathing or snow bathing." More...
Interview with 10Adventures Podcast April 5, 2021
"On this episode we talk about ski touring the Coast Mountains of British Columbia with John Baldwin. John narrates his life exploring the mountains and backcountry skiing. Join us as John and our hosts discuss the rewarding experience of adventuring the Coast Mountains and disclose the difficulties of skiing the high country. Learn more about mountaineering and backcountry skiing from a seasoned outdoor enthusiast and fellow adventure traveller. This episode will undoubtedly inspire you to get out into the wilderness and plan your next ski touring adventure into the backcountry. " More...
Awards
Sir Christopher Ondaatje Medal
The Royal Canadian Geographical Society has awarded the 2022 Sir Christopher Ondaatje Medal for Exploration to John Baldwin, a ski pioneer, who has explored and documented the landscape of the Coast Mountains of B.C., increasing international awareness of the area through his writing.
Alpine Club of Canada Honourary Membership
On October 27, 2020 John was awarded an honourary lifelong membership in the Alpine Club of Canada.
Patron of the 2019 Mountains Guides Ball
John was named Patron of the 2019 Mountains Guides Ball. The Mountain Guides Ball is an annual gala event of The Alpine Club of Canada (ACC) and the Association of Canadian Mountain Guides (ACMG) that brings together the mountain community to celebrate our mountain culture. Each year, a Patron is honoured for their contribution to our mountain community.
Summit Series
The Alpine Club of Canada published a biography of John in October 2019 as part of their summit series of mountaineering biographies on Guides Ball Patrons. This booklet is twenty-fifth in the Summit Series of "biographies of people who have made a difference in Canadian mountaineering".
BCMC Honourary Membership
On December 8, 2015 John was awarded an honourary lifelong membership in the BC Mountaineering Club.
For the Environment
All printing, shipping and travel is 100% Carbon Offset.
Exploring the Coast Mountains on Skis is printed on environmentally-friendly paper. Backcountry maps are printed by a carbon neutral printer on long lasting synthetic material that is recyclable.
A percentage of revenues is donated to the backcountry ski community and environmental organizations. Recent donations have been made to the Avalanche Canada, Spearhead Huts Project, Wendy Thompson Hut, Keiths Hut, Hankin-Evelyn Backountry Ski Area, and Friends of Shames as well as CPAWS, David Suzuki Foundation, Ecojustice, Nature Conservancy, Pacific Wild, Pembina Institute, Sierra Club, West Coast Environmental Law and the Wilderness Committee.
Check out ideas on what you can do to save our Melting Landscapes.