"The Palatinate. The Book" | A journey through time in climbing in the Palatinate

With "The Palatinate. The Book," Alex Wenner has published a vibrant piece of climbing history – including personal contributions, intimate photographs, and fascinating interviews with eyewitnesses. An entertaining chronicle of more than 150 years of climbing in a unique region.

Alex Wenner, a climber from the Palatinate region, had to admit this to himself when he sat in 2013 in front of a collection of photographs, excerpts from climbing magazines, and his own handwritten notes. He would spend ten years collecting and sorting all these scraps of material and supplementing them with his own texts and photos. All on his own and only as a side project. "My passion project," he says.

In 2023, the culmination of this decade was finally published with "The Palatinate. The Book"—a love letter to climbing on the Palatinate's red sandstone. Its 263 pages contain not only excerpts from Summit books,Images and interviews with eyewitnesses, but also Recent Photos and Interviews Featuring contemporary personalities. Among those who speak are Reinhard Karl and Eva Altmeier, Andreas Kubin, Tilmann Hepp, Heinz Illner and Julius Westphal.

A chronicle as vibrant as climbing itself

Anyone expecting dry historical treatises from this more than 260-page book will be mistaken. Wenner manages to describe even the historical beginnings of climbing in the Palatinate in great detail without ever becoming tedious. This is ensured by a varied mix of personal texts and hundreds of high-quality photographs, which bring the region's more than 150 years of climbing history as vividly as the scene there still is.

The structure of "The Palatinate. The Book" follows a pattern. eight chapters along the region's iconic rock formations. Alex Wenner's narrative serves as a guiding thread for the journey through time: from the visionary beginnings of the 19th century, through the turbulent (and not uncontroversial) history of the climbing style in the 20th century, and up to the most important ascents – a documentary that extends well into the 21st century.

^{Hundreds of photographs are part of »The Palatinate. The Book« (Images: Alex Wenner Archive/Panico Alpinverlag)}

The main narrative is complemented by guest contributions, interviews, and quotes from contemporary witnesses – including influential figures such as Hans Laub (†), who made the first ascent of the famous "Jubilee Crack" in 1960, and Fritz Güllich (†), who introduced his sons Wolfgang and Fritz to climbing in the Palatinate region. The book also includes voices from the younger generation, such as climbers like Julius Westphal.

Climbing in the Palatinate – authentically told

"The Palatinate. The Book" is a journey through time that unfolds linearly, yet without a fixed path. This allows the author to address a wide range of topics that have accompanied climbing in the Palatinate region, some of which still do today. These include, for example, the "Palatinate Piton Dispute" of the 1970s, or the controversy surrounding the "lying powder" chalk, which caused (sometimes even legal) disputes locally well into the 1980s. Or there's the topic of nature conservation in the Palatinate, the beginnings of which Heinz Illner can recount.

^{(Images: Alex Wenner Archive/Panico Alpinverlag)}

At a glance

Anyone looking for a detailed and multifaceted, yet entertaining, exploration of the history of climbing in the Palatinate region will find "The Palatinate. The Book" highly recommended. Not only does the book offer a concise overview of the most important milestones of over 150 years of climbing history, but it also allows for a personal retrospective from the people who were there at the time.

Alex Wenner's book also features a climber who came to the sport in the Palatinate region and later achieved fame far beyond its borders: Wolfgang Güllich. Even back in 1975, he knew that this place was something very special for climbers. "The seclusion of the Palatinate fosters a unique, introverted outlook on life," Güllich observed at the time. "Climbing becomes an expression of great joy in life."

• Title: »The Palatinate. The Book. Palatinum« (2023), 263 pages
• Author: Alex Wenner
• Publisher: Panico Alpinverlag GmbH
• ISBN: 978-3-95611-181-5
• Retail price: €44,80

^{"The Palatinate. The Book. Palatinum" (2023) is available in bookstores (Images: Panico Alpinverlag)}

About the author: Alex Wenner

Alex Wenner first came into contact with climbing as a child in the Palatinate region in 1978. He covered his first (to date, thousands of) meters of climbing in his father's homemade harness. In the following years, Wenner experienced significant changes in the sport: While redpoint climbing was emerging in the Franconian Jura, the Palatinate region simultaneously rediscovered the roots of free climbing, which extend much further back than many realize.

Since then, Alex Wenner has followed the development of climbing in the Palatinate – sometimes as a climber himself, sometimes as an observer. He has already contributed his expertise on the region to two bouldering guidebooks. "The Palatinate. The Book" is Wenner's documentary life's work and the result of ten years of research. Today, the trained chemist lives in the Kurpfalz region and can still be found climbing on his local crag after work.

^{Author Alex Wenner then and now (Images: Alex Wenner Archive)}

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Cover image credits: Alex Wenner/Panico Alpinverlag