2006 Philadelphia Annual Meeting (22–25 October 2006)

Paper No. 1
Presentation Time: 8:05 AM

BRADFORD WASHBURN: A LIFE OF EXPLORATION


SFRAGA, Mike, Director, University of Alaska Geography Program, University of Alaska Fairbanks, P.O. Box 757140, University of Alaska, Fairbanks, AK 99775, mike.sfraga@alaska.edu

Bradford Washburn's career evolved from a lifetime of dedicated work, detailed preparation, and an encylclopedic, uncanny knowledge of his subjects. He has conducted mountaineers and scientists high atop the mountains of Alaska, Canada, Nepal, and the continental United States. His life's accomplishments include a vast library of stunning aerial photographs, detailed and strikingly-accurate maps, and many first ascents throughout North America. At the very core of Washburn's expeditions can be found a few primary motifs: a fundemental love for high and distant places, a yearning to discover the unknown, and the desire to share with others the world's natural beauty and scientific wonders.

For nearly eight decades, Bradford Washburn focused his life's work on the interdisciplinary study of our natural world. This presentation will discuss Washburn's accomplishments as photographer, explorer, cartographer, mountaineer, field scientist, and educator and provide context for this celebratory keynote symposium in his honor.