Early climbing hardware, some from the 1800's.

It is the goal of the Neptune Mountaineering and Ski Museum to collect, conserve, and exhibit elements from the broad spectrum of mountaineering and ski history, most specifically but not limited to all forms of ski touring, for the purposes of education, research, and entertainment.

The museum began to take shape in the late 1970’s and through the efforts of Gary and his friends has become the most extensive collection of its kind in the country.

The museum houses various climbing and skiing equipment, mainly from the most significant period of mountain and polar exploration – the mid 1800’s to the last half of the 20th century. There is also a large collection of photographs from this important period.

Groups, mainly students, often visit the museum and we have quizzes to hand out. All of the answers can be found in the museum.

Peter Habeler, Bibi Gottschall and Gary Neptune

LECTURES
In addition to the museum, Neptune Mountaineering offers lectures by world famous mountaineers, rock climbers and skiers at the least possible cost to the public. We hosted the first public lecture in the United States by Reinhold Messner. Other distinguished lecturers we have hosted include Peter Habeler, Sir Chris Bonington, Kurt Diemberger, Catherine Destivelle, Dick Durrance, Lynn Hill, Peter Croft, Mike Banks, Joe Simpson, George Band, Warren Harding and Royal Robbins – to name just a few! Many of our guest lecturers have also donated items to our museum. Just a few of the people and firms who have helped make the museum possible include:

Peter Aschenbrenner Paul Petzoldt Elizabeth Knowlton Jennifer Jordan Dave Morison Sir Edmund Hillary Sibylle Hechtel Anatoli Boukreev Jeff Rhoads Stubai Serge Rivory Vermont Tubbs

Peter Habeler Friedl Wallner Tom Hornbein Paul Petzl John Sherman Sir Chris Bonington Pat Ament Clyde Soles Gino Pisoni Jack Fralick Dick Bass Frank Wells

Kurt Diemberger Anderl Heckmair Jim Glendenning Mike O’Brian Conrad Anker Rolando Garibotti Yvon Chouinard Joe Simpson Robert Schauer Bob Ader Charlet-Moser Black Diamond

Jack Durrance Dick Durrance Rune Gjeldnes Dick Pownall Jeff Lowe Åsnes Ski Norway Simond Pete Schoening Gioachino Gobbi Bergans Norway/USA Tom Frost

Dudley Wolfe's mitten shell.

EVEREST & THE HIGH PEAKS
Our Everest collection includes original boots and crampons from the first ascent of Mount Everest – not Hillary’s but signed by Hillary. Also included is Peter Habeler’s down suit, worn on his historic ascent of Everest with Reinhold Messner in 1978 – the first without bottled oxygen.

Boots, crampons, an ice axe and clothing from Gary Neptune’s ascent of Everest in 1983 and his ascents of Makalu (1987), Ama Dablam (1981) and Gasherbrum II (1997) may also be seen.

Gary was fortunate to have known three members of the 1932 Nanga Parbat Expedition. After pioneering the route in 1932 “Himalaya Peter” Aschenbrenner very nearly climbed it in 1934 with Erwin Schneider. Not many years ago Peter signed one of his earliest ice axes for Gary. His design with small modifications was produced for over thirty years.

A recent addition to the museum are remnants of the high camp on K2 where Dudley Wolfe was last seen in 1939 including a mitten shell with his name on it.

Blue down suit worn by Peter Habeler on the first ascent of Everest without oxygen. Yellow down pants home-made by Gary the night before he left to climb Everest (he stuffed them with pillow feathers). Close up: boots from the first ascent of Everest in 1953, signed by Sir Edmund Hillary.


The collection includes over 200 alpenstocks, ice axes and crampons.

EARLY CLIMBING: THE ALPS
Over 200 different antique alpenstocks, ice axes and crampons are included in our Alps collection, some of which are over 100 years old. For over 40 years Gary has been travelling the world – climbing, skiing and collecting historic equipment.

Anderl Heckmair (who led most of the first ascent of the North Face of the Eiger in 1938) donated pitons and a carabiner from that famous climb.

Pitons and karabiner from the first ascent of the Eiger with a photograph of the Eiger and Anderl Heckmair.

SKIING
Our museum specializes in ski equipment primarily used for touring, both Alpine and Nordic. There is an array of “Alpine” touring bindings that spans over 100 years of history and a collection of Rottefella bindings from about 1930 with 6-pins to the present.

Vintage ski clothing, ski boots, poles, bindings, early adhesive (with wax) seal skins and a waxing torch. In 1907 Abel Rossignol brought back a pair of skis from Norway and subsequently began producing skis at his spindle factory in Voiron, France (Val d’Isère). The pair of skis in the right of this case were among the first produced.

Marie Byrd Land, Antarctica, New Year’s day, 1968.

POLAR EXPLORATION
Gary’s interest in the polar regions began with his trip as a geologist to Antarctica in 1967 – 1968. While there, he had the opportunity to do the first ascent of Mt. Andrus in the Executive Committe Range of Marie Byrd Land.

The collection includes memorabilia from his trip and Tubb’s skis and snowshoes from the early 1900’s, seal skins, a hakapik (for killing seals), and some Sami skis and reindeer ski boots.

Photo of Al Wade who was with Admiral Byrd in the early 1930’s. Gary worked for him from 1967 to 1968 in Marie Byrd land.