Austin Howell

Austin Howell was an American climber and noted free soloist, born on 14 September 1987. Free soloing means climbing rock without a rope or protection, and it was the style by which he made his name. Beyond his many climbing achievements he was known for a large social media following and for speaking publicly about his struggles with mental health problems. He died on 30 June 2019 in a fall from Shortoff Mountain in Burke County, North Carolina, at the age of thirty one. His life is recorded in the climbing community as an example of both the reach that a modern free soloist can have through online media and of the personal cost that such pressures and difficulties can carry.