He brought glamour and imagination into the sport of mountaineering as few guides have done before him. Recalling his personality and amusing stories one should not forget that his approach to mountains was first and foremost an aesthetic one; he saw a peak first as something beautiful—the technical problem was always secondary — and nothing counted beside that vision.

Of all the mountain guides who came to Canada in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, Conrad Kain is probably the most respected and well known. In this internationally anticipated reissue of Where the Clouds Can Go—first published in 1935, with subsequent editions in 1954 and 1979-Rocky Mountain Books has accentuated the original text with an expanded selection of over 50 archival images that celebrate the accomplishments of Conrad Kain in the diverse mountain landscapes of North America, Europe and New Zealand. The new foreword by acclaimed mountaineer and filmmaker Pat Morrow puts Kain's mountaineering adventures, numerous explorations and devout appreciation of nature into a contemporary context, ensuring that the exploits of this remarkable individual will remain part of international mountain culture for years to come.

To commemorate the 100th anniversary of Kain's arrival in Canada, the Conrad Kain Centennial Society was formed in 2008 to celebrate his many achievements and to develop legacy projects in his memory. This expanded edition of Kain's book will help carry his passion for mountaineering to a new generation of readers and adventurers.

Conrad Kain (1883–1934) was born in Nasswald, Austria, and moved to Canada in 1909, where he remained until his death in 1934. Although credited with more than 60 first ascents and numerous pioneering routes in the Canadian Rockies and the Purcell Range of British Columbia, Kain is primarily known for three first ascents in western Canada: Mount Robson (1913), Mount Louis (1916) and Bugaboo Spire (1916). During his 30-year mountaineering career, he journeyed to New Zealand between 1913 and 1916, successfully guiding more than 25 first ascents and climbing Mount Cook, the country’s highest peak, on two occasions.

To commemorate the 100th anniversary of Kain’s arrival in Canada, the Conrad Kain Centennial Society was formed in 2008 to celebrate his many achievements and to develop legacy projects in his memory. This expanded edition of Kain’s book will help carry his passion for mountaineering to a new generation of readers and adventurers.

Conrad Kain's profile page

Pat Morrow is an adventure photographer based in Invermere, B.C. and has worked on magazine, book and corporate assignments, as well as shooting video documentaries worldwide for the past 35 years. He began a collaboration with Jeremy Schmidt that ranged from coverage of canyoneering, back country skiing and mountain culture stories, to launching out with their wives on a seven-month overland journey around the Himalaya, resulting in the book Himalayan Passage. Pat was the first to climb the highest peak on all seven continents (as documented in his book Beyond Everest), and received the Order of Canada for his photographic and exploratory work. He and his wife, Baiba, have won nine national magazine awards, and they now concentrate on volunteer efforts for a local environmental organization called Wildsight.

Pat Morrow's profile page

J. Monroe Thorington (1895-1989) was an American ophthalmologist who first came to the Canadian Rockies in 1914. He became a prominent mountaineer, climbing extensively in the Rockies and completing 52 first ascents in the Rockies and Selkirks. Following explorations and numerous first ascents by J. Norman Collie in the first decade of the 20th century, the area around the Columbia Icefield had been ignored for some time until Thorington's visits. In 1923, together with W.S. Ladd and famed guide Conrad Kain, Thorington completed the second ascent of Mount Columbia, the third ascent of Mount Athabasca and first ascents of Mount Saskatchewan and North Twin Peak.

J. Monroe Thorington's profile page