Stone Monkeys - Visions of the modern-age Stonemasters

Many sojourn to Yosemite with starry-eyed dreams of El Capitan or Half Dome. For some — myself included — the draw is so strong we return every year. And if you’ve ever scrounged in the Valley dirt, you’ve likely met the eclectic clan of regulars who’ve traded normal life for the dirtbag dream — the “Stone Monkeys” (aka “Rock Monkeys”).

The Stone Monkeys are a slightly more inclusive, modern-day equivalent of the “Stonemasters,” the amorphous band of Valley hardmen who pushed the limits of climbing in the 1970s and ‘80s. However, to be a Stone Monkey, you don’t have to climb hard or be famous (though quite a few Monkeys fit this bill). In fact, it’s not so much that you choose to be a Monkey as that you become one, by paying your dues.

I met Dean Fidelman (aka Bullwinkle) early in my dirtbagging career. He has the rare distinction of being both a Stonemaster and a Stone Monkey, and his Stonemasters photos from the 1970s, of heavy-hitters like John Bachar, Lynn Hill, John Long, and John Yablonski, are iconic. You might also know his “Stone Nudes” project (stonenudes.com), compiled into a calendar for the last five years. But my favorite Bullwinkle photos include his portraits and lifestyle photography. In a world gone digital, Bullwinkle sticks to his roots, shooting in black and white with a medium-format camera and sometimes a Holga. This gives continuity to his work, and the Stone Monkeys shots could easily be mistaken for his Stonemasters project.

One of the problems with writing about the Monkeys is that there are too many of us — and great Bullwinkle photos — to fit here. Still, crucial Monkey characters include the ones shown here on this page: Heidi Wirtz, Leo Houlding, Nick Martino, Micah Dash, the late, great Jose Pereyra, “Chongo” Chuck, Renan Ozturk, and Timmy O’Neill, with many others not pictured. Today, the Monkeys are going strong and undoubtedly will continue to make Yosemite climbing history.