Larry Russell reached a Le Conte milestone on April 27, when he logged his 500th hike up the mountain.
Larry's lifetime total wasn't the highest in the LeConte Lodge logbook on Saturday. Shortly after he arrived on the Alum Cave Bluff Trail, Dr. Ed Jones came up Trillium Gap for his 524th ascent.
They are in rare company, as fewer than 20 men and women have made 500 climbs.
Larry added two more climbs the next two days, giving him 31 in 2024 and 11 in April.
Among the hikers who have kept count, we've documented Ed Wright 1,310, Ron Valentine 1,250, Dave Scanlon 982, Paul Dinwiddie 750, Margaret Stevenson 718, Stan Wullschleger 570, Al Bedinger 552, Jones 524, and Paul Adams 523.
Valentine has made more than 3,000 hikes but lost decades of records in a fire. Others on the LeContest honor roll with estimates are Jack Huff 2,500, Tim Line 1,500, Allen Householder 1,250, Graham Cooper 1,000, David Dinwiddie 800, Henry Neel 550, Richard Kettle 500, Herrick Brown 500, and Wiley Oakley 500.
