A Fall That Should Have Killed Alex Honnold, Actually Kickstarted His Career in Rock Climbing

Alex Honnold rose to fame in the year 2017, when he scaled the formidable El Capitan situated in Yosemite National Park. This feat is often described as one of the greatest athletic achievements of all time. Honnold was a free solo rock climber before that as well. But, it is through this accomplishment that he really made his mark in the rock climbing world.

Before fully immersing himself into rock climbing, Alex Honnold was sort of drifting through life. When Honnold lost his father, he disconnected from the world and became a loner. However, a shocking event in his life brought him to his senses. On one fateful day in the year 2004, something changed Honnold’s life forever.

The event that jumpstarted Alex Honnold’s rock climbing career

In December 2004, after the passing of his father, Honnold donned his father’s snowshoes and went to conquer Mount Tallac all alone. While snowshoeing, Honnold lost his balance and fell face-first down the mountain, and fell unconscious. But Honnold was lucky enough to live.

Read more: “That Felt Insecure for Me”-Legendary Rock Climber Alex Honnold Opens Up About Dangerous Move During Famous Climb of El Sendero Luminoso

After he regained consciousness, Honnold himself contacted the authorities using a phone he had brought with him. He was rescued using a California Highway Patrol helicopter and suffered grave injuries, including broken ribs and a broken hand. This 400-foot fall made Alex Honnold the man he is today, a famed rock climber with an Oscar-winning documentary based on his life and his climb of El Capitan.

The Aftermath of the fall and Honnold’s uprising

Honnold’s recovery after the fall was nebulous and challenging, but his spirit was brighter than ever. Honnold wanted to get out there as soon as possible, so he drove to Joshua Tree and started practicing on rocks. This is where the legend was born.

In the course of his recovery, Honnold started taking bigger risks and started solo-climbing cracks and multi-pitches. What made him a great soloist was his ability to maintain his composure, even at great heights.

In September 2007, Honnold shocked everyone by completing the Astroman and Rostrum climb in one go. This was more than 3,000 feet of free-soloing, which Honnold did without a fuss. And according to Alex ‘No Big Deal’ Honnold, it wasn’t even an accomplishment!

What really shot him to fame was his Moonlight Buttress solo. He climbed a 12,000 feet tall vertical sandstone wall in 1.5 hours. After the Moonlight Buttress solo, Honnold attempted the Half Dome solo.

While this solo is usually considered being easier than Moonlight Buttress, for Honnold, it turned out to be more difficult. He attributed this to the length of the solo and the strenuous finish.

Alex Honnold has gone on to complete many solos that have made headlines, such as El Capitan, University Wall, and El Sendero Luminoso. No one knows what Honnold experienced when he almost fell to his death, but that fall ignited a passion in him that catapulted him to becoming one of the best solo rock climbers in the world.

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