In the late 1960′s and early 1970′s a small group of young rock climbers pushed east from the costal cities of California and into the mountains and valleys. They were true dirtbags, as they didn’t mind to be called one bit. Living out of their cars, sleeping next to campfires, building their own equipment to climb with and to sell, just to get by. They were decked out in bandanas, long hair, shades, cutoffs and enough calluses to sand wood with. They were loud, proud, and fearless. With dope in their lungs, canned goods in their stomach they established the techniques that allowed for some of the sports most spectacular climbs to be done with minimal apparatus. They were the stonemasters.

Their skills were often self taught or handed down from a short generation of friends. Their gear was whatever they could get their hands on, surely not the high-tech gear of today’s outdoor world. This dirtbag lifestyle made a massive impact on 1970′s youth culture across the world.

Like skateboarding in California during the 70′s this renegade lifestyle found it’s hotspot in the Golden State, specifically in Yosemite National Park. This location just happened to be home to one of the gnarliest climbs in the world, Yosemite Valley’s El Capitan. Among these climbers were Rick Accomazzo, Richard Harrison, Mike Graham, Robs Muir, Gib Lewis, Yvon Chouinard (founder of Patagonia), Douglas Tompkins (co-founder of The North Face), Bill Antel, Jim Hoagland, Tobin Sorenson, John Bachar, John Long and more.

These climbers, their stories and their lifestyle quickly made them legend in the United States and  beyond. Their lives were full of camaraderie and nonconformity, they were the original days of adventure sports and from these photos looked like some damn good times.

Photos via Cliff Stone, Glen Denny, Dean Fidelman and the book Stone Masters: California Rock Climbing in the 1970s.