SEATTLE — Jim Whittaker, the pioneering mountaineer who became the first American to reach the summit of Mount Everest, has died at 97. He died Tuesday at his home in Port Townsend, Washington, his family said.
Whittaker was also the first full-time employee of outdoor cooperative REI and later served as its president and CEO. In a statement shared by his son Leif Whittaker, the family said Whittaker “sought to share adventure, joy, and optimism with those around him,” and that his warmth, humility and faith in nature’s power to bring people together left a lasting legacy of care for the planet and for others.
In 1963 Whittaker reached the summit of Everest with Nawang Gombu. Their ascent, a decade after Sir Edmund Hillary and Tenzing Norgay’s landmark climb, made Whittaker a national figure, bringing increased interest in mountaineering in the United States and frequent media and public appearances.
Hired by REI co-founder Lloyd Anderson in 1955, Whittaker rose to lead the co-op from 1971 to 1979. REI said its popularity grew after his Everest climb; under his leadership membership climbed from nearly 250,000 to more than 900,000.
The co-op and his family credited Whittaker’s advocacy and congressional testimony with helping establish North Cascades National Park and the Pasayten Wilderness in Washington, as well as Redwood National Park in California. “Long before outdoor advocacy was commonplace, Jim gave his voice — and his leadership — to protecting the places we love,” the family said.
Whittaker formed a close friendship with Robert F. Kennedy and climbed a 14,000-foot Canadian peak with him; that summit was later named Mount Kennedy after RFK’s assassination in 1968. Whittaker was at Kennedy’s bedside when he died and was deeply affected by the loss.
Born and raised in Seattle, Whittaker began climbing with his twin brother Lou in the 1940s through the Boy Scouts. He and Lou summited the 7,965-foot Mount Olympus at 16, an episode he recounted in his memoir A Life on the Edge. Whittaker often said climbing’s beauty and danger sharpened his senses: “When you live on the edge, you can see a little farther,” he wrote.
Beyond Everest he climbed major peaks including K2 and led numerous expeditions. In 1990 he organized an International Peace Climb on Everest that included climbers from the United States, the Soviet Union and China, aimed at showing what cooperation and goodwill could achieve. He described himself as a lifelong advocate for peace and believed shared challenges in nature could unite people across borders and ideologies.
One of Whittaker’s proudest achievements was leading 10 climbers with disabilities up 14,410-foot Mount Rainier in 1981 — an ascent he called, for them, “that was Mount Everest.” He climbed Rainier more than 100 times and often warned that mountain weather “can turn a good climber into a beginner” in a matter of hours.
Former Washington Gov. Jay Inslee praised Whittaker’s legacy as “just as impressive, and just as lasting, as Mount Rainier itself,” saying he had lifted many climbers and spirits. In a 1980 interview Whittaker quipped that he hoped to “die in my sleep with the television on.”
He is survived by his wife of 52 years, Dianne Roberts; sons Bob, Joss and Leif Whittaker; three grandchildren; and one great-grandchild. His twin brother, Lou Whittaker, a noted mountaineer in his own right, died in 2024 at age 95.