R.I.P. Bradford Washburn

Photographer Ansel Adams called the mountaineer, mapmaker and photographer Bradford Washburn “a roving genius of mind and mountains.”

From his obituary in the Washington Post:

“Mr. Washburn’s explorations took him all over the globe, flying in rattletrap planes above the mountains to the depths of the Grand Canyon, which he mapped from the backs of donkeys. His maps filled in some of the last blank spaces on the map of the world, helping botanists, geologists, archaeologists and nature lovers understand the environment.”

He also helped revise the official elevation of Mount Everest in 1999, and “tried to persuade aviator Amelia Earhart to take better radios on her final, fatal flight.” He was 96.

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