Why this book:  I’ve been involved with NOLS for 20 years and have heard much about Paul Petzold – the charismatic founder of NOLS.  I had just read and enjoyed his book Teton Tales, so wanted to know more of “the rest of the story.”

Summary in 3 Sentences: This is a sympathetic biography of Paul Petzold written by someone who was a clear admirer of him, and she got a lot of cooperation from him. It covers his childhood, and years as one of America’s premier mountain guides – and in middle age, his service during WW2 and later devoting himself to teaching young people how to survive in, and take care of the wilderness. It concludes with his rather tempestuous relationship with the organization he founded – his departure and ultimately his return to work for and serve NOLS – the National Outdoor Leadership School. 

My Impressions:  I enjoyed this book – it was clearly written as a sympathetic biography by a friend and admirer of Paul Petzold, while he was still alive.  Though I felt that there were times the author pulled her punches and didn’t comment with a critical eye on some of Paul’s decisions and behavior, just the stories of his life and the challenges he faced and how he always seemed to land on his feet were not only interesting, but also entertaining and inspiring

The story of Paul Petzold’s life fits into a series of books I’ve been reading about life in the West and Midwest in the early part of the 20th century – when life was VERY much different from what it is today. It is said that at no time in history has civilization and life in civilized nations changed so much as it has in the last 100 years. 

Paul Petzold was born in 1908, and the book begins with his childhood in a farming family in Iowa.  His father died when Paul was still a young child, leaving his mother and brothers and sisters with few resources on their own in a very difficult world with no social safety net.  As things looked bleak, the family chose to move from Iowa to Idaho where they bought a farm which also didn’t do well.  They struggled financially and Paul had to work to help support the family, while also going to school. But he found time to climb the cliffs and mountains, and explore the outdoors, and thus built the foundation that eventually made him one of America’s premier outdoorsmen.  The farm eventually failed and was repossessed and Pual’s mother was forced to move to the East Coast to work as a housekeeper and care giver, and Paul, her youngest in his mid-teens was left essentially on his own.  This is when he at age 16, and a friend headed for Jackson Hole, and on a bold dare, became the 4th team to summit the Grand Teton.

A number of the stories in On Belay are related in Paul’s own words in Teton Tales – stories about his early mountain climbing successes,  how he became the first certified guide in the Tetons and earned his reputation as a great mountain guide in Jackson Hole, Wyoming.  What On Belay covers that Teton Tales doesn’t, is more about his personal life and about his time in the Army as an enlisted  mountain trainer for the 10th Mountain Division, how he was eventually promoted to an officer position, and served in logistics in Europe and Asia, 

We also learn of his marriage to his first wife Bernice in 1945, their ill-fated travels to India, their many adventures together and eventually their  divorce.  Bernice (as Patricia) Petzold wrote her own book about her life with Paul entitled On Top of the World: My Adventures with My Mountain-Climbing Husband – published in 1953 while they were still married, but perhaps after they separated (they were separated for many years before being divorced, because of her Catholic aversion to divorce). Bernice was quite a hardy outdoor person herself and her book was a source for many of the quotes and perspectives on their activities and adventures together while they were married.  

It isn’t clear how long Paul and Bernice were married, but many years later in 1965 we learn of his marriage to Dorothy the same year he founded NOLS.  Dottie became a key player in the early years of NOLS, but eventually her involvement led to their  divorce, when she sided with the board in protesting Paul’s handling of money and his otherwise entrepreneurial ways.  Then a few years later he had another marriage, with Joan Broadbeck which led to divorce in in 1985.  The book indicates that Joan believed Paul had a lot more money than he did and she wasn’t happy with the lifestyle she  had with him.  Finally in 1987, when Paul was 79, he married a long term friend and outdoors woman Virginia and they travelled the world together and seemed happy.    Paul once said of himself that he was a lemon in the garden of love.  None of this is reflected in Teton Tales. 

The last part of the book is about his involvement with Outward Bound, and his decision to break with them.  He didn’t feel that Outward Bound at that time adequately trained their instructors to lead novices in the outdoors, and didn’t adequately emphasize an ethic of caring for the outdoors and environment, and he was unable to convince them that these were important.    To rectify these shortcomings, he and some colleagues founded what is now the National Outdoor Leadership School in 1965.

After the initial founding of NOLS, and as NOLS began to achieve success and a national reputation, Paul’s relationship with NOLS did not go smoothly.  This was largely because Paul had also founded an outdoor equipment company which provided equipment to NOLS and NOLS students, and apparently his co-mingling of these responsibilities, and probably finances and books,  was messy and perhaps illegal. This led to Paul being ousted from the organization he had founded.  This part of the gook is complicated and not always easy to follow (perhaps because of Paul’s involvement with writing the book!)   But it was clear that Paul was not very adept at finance, book keeping or managing money. However, in the midst of all this drama, in 1984 at the age of 76 Paul Petzold summited the Grand Teton on the 60th anniversary of his first time summiting

After the disappointment and disillusion of being forced to leave NOLS, Paul and some of his colleagues founded the Wilderness Education Association  which continues to this day to be a prominent force in Outdoor leadership and education. Eventually, due to his prominence as NOLS  founder and as an icon of outdoor leadership education, Paul was eventually invited back into the NOLS organization as President Emeritus, which is the position he held when On Belay  was published in 1997.   Petzold Petzold died in 1999 at age 91.

This is a very good book to read for those like me, who have been involved with NOLS over many years, who want to understand the background and vision of THE key person who made NOLS happen  Paul Petzold’s original vision is still today, a driving force in the National Outdoor Leadership School,  as it serves and inspires people of all ages around the world.  But in addition to being a story about an amazing life of a very charismatic and influential man, it is also an engaging perspective on the world of outdoor adventure and of adventurous  young men and women in the first half of the 20th century.