Ernest Feuz Material

"He is a most enjoyable companion, and to one whose climbing experience is limited, it is a real pleasure to have begun on the other end of Ernest's rope."

Famous mountaineer and author J. Monroe Thorington wrote these words in the fuhrer-buch (guide book) of Ernest Feuz, Swiss guide on his first trip to the Canadian Rockies in 1916. Like thousands of others, Thorington was introduced to climbing in the Rockies under the competent care of a Swiss guide, brought from Switzerland by the CPR to ensure the safety of their guests.

1999 marked the centennial of the arrival of the first Swiss guides to Canada. A six month festival of special events and exhibits concluded in November with the Mountain Guides' Ball at the Chateau Lake Louise. On that same day the Whyte Museum received a treasure trove of artifacts and archival material relating to Ernest Feuz. Through the generosity of Ernest's son Fred A. Feuz and daughter Alice Pallard, the Museum now holds the above mentioned fuhrer-buch, along with photo albums, Swiss guides' pins, climbing ropes, ice axe, crampons, vest and trousers, Alpine hat, binoculars, rucksack and other objects which tell the story of Ernest's life as a mountain guide.

Ernest was the son of Edouard Feuz Sr., one of two original Swiss guides brought to Glacier House, B.C. in 1899. In 1912, a second generation of guides settled in Canada near Golden, B.C. at the Swiss village Edelweiss, built by the CPR. Ernest, along with his brothers Walter and Edward Jr., Rudolf Aemmer and Christian Hasler Jr. settled with their families and guided mainly out of Lake Louise.

Ernest's fuhrer-buch, photographs and artifacts bring to life his activities in the Rockies and aspects of his personality. Entries in the fuhrer-buch point to a humble, reliable guide who became a treasured friend to many of his clients. He is alternately described as "cheerful," "patient," "capable," "skilled," "exceedingly good natured," and "strong as a bull moose." In 1927, Dyson Duncan of New York wrote "Living in camp with Ernest for three weeks gave me innumerable opportunities for seeing that he is unselfish and helpful by nature. He always did more than his share of camp chores . . . As a companion on a climb he is cheerful and amusing. He has a keen sense of humor."

he photo albums, containing many photos taken by climbing companions J. Monroe Thorington and famous American climber Georgia Engelhard illustrate Ernest's many activities, including working on the film She Climbs to Conquer in 1931. And if one looks closely, there are images of the very artifacts of the collection in use on mountainsides.

The artifacts themselves need no words to tell stories of their adventures. The carefully coiled and knotted ropes, the small tears, stains and repairs on the canvas rucksack, the soldered joints of the crampons, the polished black leather figure skates brought from home in Switzerland, the dented metal frames of the sun goggles, and the broken feather of the green felt hat all speak volumes.

The handknit Swiss style stockings are a real treasure and tell a seldom told story of the family life of the guides. Elise Feuz, who lived to be 100 years old, was often separated from Ernest while he was away guiding. As well as looking after their home and children, Elise handknit beautiful Swiss style stockings for her husband. The knicker stockings have a colourful decorative band at the top and a plain foot. The examples in the collection are darned at the heel and some even have the whole foot section re-knit in a different colour of yarn. Two pair of decorative bands remain on their own awaiting the picking up of stitches and knitting down to the toe.

Whole dramas unfold when the fuhrer-buch entries combine with artifacts. During the A.C.C. Camp at Palliser Pass in August 1922, Thos. B. Moffat, an enthusiastic and active member of the Alpine Club wrote of Ernest "assisting us from a most dangerous position" on Mount King Albert: "We had attempted to climb the peak but unfortunately rain made the rocks so dangerous that we could not make the peak and darkness overtook us before we could reach the snow again. Word was sent to camp and Ernest hastened to our relief. How he ever ascended in the darkness to our position with only the assistance of a small lantern, bringing us food & clothing and then assisted us to safety will always be a mystery to me. I wish here to express my sincere thanks and praise for his splendid piece of work." Surviving to this day and now in our collection are Ernest's small folding candle lantern and a prized gold pocket watch engraved inside: "Presented to Ernest Feuz as a token of appreciation of the good work done on King Albert, Aug. 5, 1922. T.B. Moffat."

This donation to the Whyte Museum Heritage Collection is a wonderful way to mark and celebrate the Swiss Guides' Centennial, and to preserve the memory of and contributions made to mountaineering by Ernest Feuz. Visitors may view the artifacts in the Whyte Museum's Heritage Gallery.

— Carol Black, Coordinator of Heritage Collections

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