Bio & Contact | Mountaineering

John Quillen-climber, public speaker, writer

Knoxville, TN

Raised in the hills of East Tennessee, John heeded the call of the mountains at an early age. Always tromping through the streams and hollers, it was a hiking trip to Mt. Leconte at age 9 that sealed the deal. From that point, little else seemed to matter. Everything involved nature's spires.

At age 51, Quillen summited Mt. Everest, but his journey was far from a one off. It was a dream that took him around the world, on four major Himalayan Expeditions and to the top of some of Earth's most coveted peaks. It also involved a great deal of danger, the tragic loss of climbing partners and the publication of two books.

John's resume in the hills include:

Everest, Nepal

Cho Oyu, Tibet

Broad Peak, Pakistan

Muztagh Ata, Chinese Pamirs

Aconcagua, Argentina

Cerro Bonetti, Argentina

Denali, Alaska

Cotopaxi, Ecuador

Huascaran, Peru

Pisco, Peru

Elbrus, Russia