The Lotus Flower Tower is a peak in the

Cirque of the Unclimbables Cirque of the Unclimbables, located inside the Nahanni National Park Reserve, in the Northwest Territories, Canada, approximately west of Yellowknife, is a cluster of peaks and walls in the Mackenzie Mountains Natural Region. Description Accord ...

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...

. It is located on the ridge one km southwest of Mount Sir James MacBrien, and though it is not prominent in relation to surrounding peaks, it is noted for its sheer rock walls which are home to classic alpine rock climbs. The first ascent was made by William J. Buckingham and party on July 16, 1960, via a traverse from "Tathagata Tower" along the ridge which connects Lotus Flower Tower to Mount Sir James MacBrien. The peak's second ascent and first ascent of the sheer 2200 foot southeast face was made in 1968 by Harthon "Sandy" Bill,

Tom Frost Thomas "Tom" M. Frost (June 30, 1936 – August 24, 2018) was an American rock climber known for big wall climbing first ascents in Yosemite Valley. He was also a photographer and climbing equipment manufacturer. Frost was born in Hollywood, Cal ...

, and James McCarthy. The first free ascent of the McCarthy-Frost-Bill route was completed by Steve Levin, Mark Robinson and Sandy Stewart in 1977. The striking route was recognized as one of the ''

Fifty Classic Climbs of North America ''Fifty Classic Climbs of North America'' is a climbing guidebook and history written by Steve Roper and Allen Steck. It is considered a classic piece of climbing literature, known to many climbers as simply "The Book", and has served as an inspi ...

'' and has been called "one of the most aesthetically beautiful rock faces in the world".

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External links

* * {{cite video , url=http://en.petzl.com/petzl/frontoffice/Sport/static/Video/alpinisme/video/lotus.htm , title=Lotus Flower tower - Big wall climbing video , people=Arnaud Petit, Stephanie Bodet, Beth Rodden,

Tommy Caldwell Tommy Caldwell (born August 11, 1978) is an American rock climber who has set records in sport climbing, traditional climbing, and in big-wall climbing. Caldwell made the first free ascents of several major routes on El Capitan in Yosemite Natio ...

(Climbers), Benoit Robert (Photography) , access-date=2008-12-25 , archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081013152838/http://en.petzl.com/petzl/frontoffice/Sport/static/Video/alpinisme/video/lotus.htm , archive-date=2008-10-13 , url-status=dead Two-thousanders of the Northwest Territories Nahanni National Park Reserve Climbing routes