A photo of Alpha and Serratus from Zenith Ridge, in the Tantalus Range. The photo is part of a photo album of the Garibaldi area that was made by Neal Carter.

A photo of Mount Pelion from Zenith Ridge in the Tantalus Range. The photo is part of a photo album of the Garibaldi area that was made by Neal Carter.

Neal Carter and some of his fellow BC Mountaineering Club climbers had a goal to reach the summit of Mount Tantalus. Their “assault” on the mountain was not successful. They got close but not close enough to reach the top. The photos in this album show their multi-day journey camping in the snow, crossing crevices, and traversing near-vertical snow slopes, only to have the mountain — twice — foil their goal.

A century ago, mountaineers saw mountains as a place to “conquer.” The use of the term “assault” here reflected the physical challenges that mountaineering presented and the need to overcome them. Today, with a more holistic view of relationships with the land and a reflection on colonial attitudes, “conquering” mountains is a concept being relegated to the history books.