John Clarke

John Clarke, CM (February 25, 1945 – January 23, 2003) was a Canadian explorer, mountaineer, conservationist, and wilderness educator. He was born in Ireland to Brigit Ann Clarke (née Conway) and Thomas Kevin Clarke, and died in Vancouver, British Columbia of a brain tumor. From 1964 until his death in 2003 Clarke spent at least six months of each year on extended backcountry trips, usually into the Coast Mountains of British Columbia using the technique of dropping food caches from small planes along an intended route, then traveling that route for weeks at a time. His routes regularly led him along the high ridges and glaciated icefields of the west coast, and allowed him to make hundreds of first ascents of the many mountains along the way. Many of these trips exceeded 30 days in length, and were often done solo, simply because nobody could afford the time to accompany him.