SPRING, Ira L. 1918-2003

OBITUARY NOTICE—See index for CA sketch: Born December 24, 1918, in Jamestown, NY; died of prostate cancer June 5, 2003, in Edmonds, WA. Photographer and author. Spring was noted for his nature photography and for writing hiking guides about the American Northwest. He first became interested in photography when he and his twin brother, Bob, won Kodak Brownie cameras through a promotional campaign, and the two began hiking and taking pictures with their Boy Scout troop. During World War II he used his photography skills to record reconnaissance missions for the U.S. Army Air Forces; after the war he attended the School of Modern Photography and became a professional photographer. Spring hiked just about every trail in the wilds of the Cascade and Olympic mountains, documenting his travels in these and other regions in numerous guides which he compiled with his brother and other collaborators. Some of these include Mt. Rainier (1955), One Hundred Hikes of Western Washington (1966), Alaska: The Complete Travel Book (1970), Wildlife in Washington (1976), Oregon Coast Hikes (1985), and One Hundred Hikes in the Glacier Peak Region: Darrington-Monte Cristo-Glacier Peak Wilderness (1996). He also completed an autobiography, An Ice Axe, a Camera, and a Jar of Peanut Butter: A Photographer's Autobiography (1998). Spring's photographs appeared in many national magazines, including National Geographic, Saturday Evening Post, Time, Life, and Sports Illustrated. As logging began to destroy many pristine areas in the northwest, Spring became increasingly concerned about environmental conservation; he served on the board of the Washington Trails Association and campaigned for the passage of the 1984 Washington Wilderness Act. In 2000 he also founded the Spring Family Trust for Trails, which works to preserve nature trails.

OBITUARIES AND OTHER SOURCES:

PERIODICALS

Los Angeles Times, June 11, 2003, p. B11.

Seattle Times, June 7, 2003, p. B1.