Edward Feuz jr.

(1884-1981) Edward Feuz jr. was the son of Edward Feuz sr. Together with Christian Hasler sr, Edward sr. was the first of the Swiss Guides to be brought to Canada by the Canadian Pacific Railway. William Van Horne, the president of the railway, was attempting to promote a program of attracting tourists to the Rockies and the CPR's hotels. One of his ideas was to supply guides for the mountaineering parties. Edward Jr. arrived in Canada in 1903 to work for the Canadian Pacific Railway. His father, Edward sr., had done the same thing in 1899 and Edward jr. was to apprentice under his father. Edward jr. began work at Glacier House near Roger's Pass and continued to be employed by the railway until his retirement in 1949. He guided privately until 1953, completing a fifty year career as a mountain guide. Credited with being the first person to stand upon the summit of 78 peaks and with leading 102 new climbing routes, he was never involved with a fatal accident. In 1922, while based at Lake Louise, he was instrumental in the building of the "Swiss style" alpine hut on Abbot Pass (between Mount Lefroy and Mount Victoria) at an elevation approaching 3000 metres. Edward Feuz jr. climbed Mount Temple in 1965 at the age of 81. [Gest] The "Climber's Guide to the Rocky Mountains of Canada" is a listing of the first ascents of all the mountains and important routes in the Rockies. The name of Edward Feuz Jr. seems to be on every page. He climbed virtually all of the significant peaks in the Rockies and many in the Selkirks as well. Edward Feuz climbed Mount Victoria on numerous occasions, the last time being when he was eighty-five years old, eleven years before his death in 1981. [Additional Information: Kauffman, Andrew J., William L. Putnam. "The Guiding Spirit". Revelstoke: Footprint, 1986] [Additional information: Edward Feuz Jr. A Story of Enchantment. By (author): D. L. Stephen]