John Fischer

John Fischer (September 13, 1946 – June 5, 2010) was an American mountaineer, climbing guide and route pioneer, and was one of the 11 founding members of the American Mountain Guides Association in 1979. He was the owner of the Palisade School of Mountaineering in Bishop, California.

By 1960 the Fischers had moved to California's Santa Clara Valley. He graduated from Pacific High School in the Santa Cruz Mountains. In the summer of 1964, at the age of 17, he hitchhiked to Alaska, where he and three other teens made the first ascent of Mount Carpathian in the Chugach Mountains. He guided nearly 125 international trips, 47 of those to the mountains of Mexico. He made thousands of ascents with clients in the Sierra, including at least 150 ascents of Mount Sill (90 up the Swiss Aréte); and 50 ascents of Mount Whitney via its technical routes.

In his later years, Fischer was active with the Sierra Club, guiding many of the members of its Sierra Peaks Section up technical routes.

His sister, Kate Farrell, continues to remember John as a storyteller in her published works as an author and online.

In 2011, the John Fischer Memorial Route in Pine Creek was established and climbed by Bishop residents Tai and Mary Devore.