September 22, 2005 Alex Lowe spent a lifetime inscribing his legacy on mountains all over the world; now one of them will bear the late climber’s name. The U.S. Board on Geographic Names has approved Alex Lowe Peak as the new name of a Montana mountain, in honor of the climber considered one of the finest of his generation.
“I am pleased and proud that this incredible honor has been given to Alex for his accomplishments as a mountaineer and for the positive, humble spirit that he shared with so many,” said Jennifer Lowe, his widow, in a prepared statement.
Lowe was a legend in climbing and mountaineering circles, having notched first ascents on some of the world’s most formidable peaks and highly technical routes on ice and rock. But he was killed October 5, 1999, at the age of 40, along with climber David Bridges, 29, in a massive avalanche while climbing 26,289-foot Shishapangma, in Nepal.
Alex Lowe Peak, formerly known only as Unnamed Peak 10,031—a number corresponding to its elevation—is southwest of Mount Blackmore in Gallatin National Forest, near Lowe’s hometown of Bozeman.
“If the mountains of Bozeman are a playground, no one swung on the monkey bars and swings with as much enthusiasm and vigor as Alex Lowe,” said Terry Cunningham, 45, a Bozeman local who nominated Lowe after researching how mountains get their names. “If anyone should have a mountain named after him—given all the ice climbs, given all the mountaineering and rock climbing—then it should be him.”
To be eligible for the honor, a person must be deceased at least five years, have some relationship to the mountain, and usually have national or international recognition.
According to Cunningham, Lowe and a friend climbed it in the spring of 1997 and skied down a treacherous chute they called Hellmouth Couloir.
Bob Dennee, spokesman for the Gallatin National Forest, said the proposal had “broad-based community and public support.”
According to Dennee the name should begin appearing on Forest Service maps starting within “a couple years.”
