BANFF – In his book Switchbacks, Sid Marty called him "The Twice as Much Kid" for his exuberant work ethic.
Passing his exam in 1967, he was among the earliest members of the Association of Canadian Mountain Guides.
Earlier this year, he was inducted in the Bow Valley Sports Hall of Fame in the builder category for his accomplishments as a ground-breaking mountaineer in the 1960s, and as a ski resort developer in the 1980s and ’90s in the Canadian Rockies and Quebec.
On Tuesday (Nov. 26), Charlie Locke will be featured at the Whyte Museum’s Fireside Chat hosted by mountain author and historian Chic Scott.
A longtime friend and fellow mountain adventurer, Scott figures he first met Locke at a meeting of the fabled Calgary Mountain Club.
“I have known Charlie since 1962, so over 50 years,” Scott said. “Our first climb together was the North Buttress of Mount Stephen in the summer of 1966 with Gerry Walsh. And the biggest trip we did together was the Great Divide Ski Traverse in 1967.”
The latter has become a legend in Canadian mountain history. To celebrate Canada’s centennial in their own unique way, Scott, Locke, Neil Liske and Don Gardner, all young men in their 20s, decided to ski 300 kilometres from Jasper to Lake Louise by linking glaciers and icefields along the spine of the range.
While some of North America’s most accomplished ski mountaineers had previously attempted, but not succeeded on that route, the young team completed THE adventure in 21 days with no mishaps and with friendships intact.
Locke’s other impressive mountain accomplishments include more than 40 first ascents and new routes, most notable among them being the first – and still unrepeated – traverse of the Ten Peaks in 1964, when at only 18 he and Gardner climbed and traversed 23 peaks above Moraine Lake and Lake Louise over six-and-a-half days. He followed that up with the first ascent of the now classic Greenwood Locke route on the north face of Mount Temple in 1966.
Since then, Locke is more often associated as the owner of Lake Louise ski resort and other ski hills.
“Charlie has been a central figure in the mountain community here in the Bow Valley for over 50 years,” Scott said. “He has been an outstanding climber, ski mountaineer, mountain guide and businessman. I think a lot of people would like to hear Charlie's stories.”
As a person who keeps a pretty low profile, Scott added some of Locke’s stories are likely to surprise the audience.
“I think people would be surprised to know that Charlie is a cowboy and runs a thousand head of cattle on his ranch west of Calgary,” Scott said. “Charlie gets out there for calving, branding and round up. He is a real Alberta boy.
“But Charlie keeps a low profile and is elusive. Many people know of Charlie Locke, but would not recognize him in a crowd. This is a chance for them to meet the real Charlie Locke.”
Locke’s turn at the Fireside Chat series takes place at the Whyte Museum in Banff on Nov. 26 at 7 p.m. For tickets visit www.whyte.org/events.
