Uplifted: The Evolution of a Climbing Life

How is a person changed by commitment to their passion, and how does their commitment change over time? These are questions that esteemed climber Sonnie Trotter asks as he reflects on the most thrilling adventures of his sport and his life.

2025 is Sonnie Trotter’s 30th year climbing. He’s been at the forefront of the sport for most of that time, specializing in first ascents on rock faces most people cannot imagine scaling. In Uplifted, Sonnie recounts the most memorable moments of his career, also describing the rich relationships that are the spine of the sport. In addition, he investigates the psyche that draws one to and then evolves during years of engaging with this uniquely challenging endeavor.

From learning to climb in an ancient grain silo in southern Ontario, to mastering some of the hardest, tallest rock climbs on Earth, Sonnie shares entertaining but candid tales about life on the road, living in the dirt, overcoming obstacles, and changing within his sport. He writes as if he is sharing stories around the campfire at the end of a great day, evoking that feeling of being bone-tired but loving the camaraderie so much so that you don’t want to retire to your tent. He embodies a “humble masculinity” in what is perceived as a high-adrenaline, hard-charging sport, but reveals that climbing is very much about careful consideration, insightful reflection, and balancing challenge and risk. 

Sonnie speaks openly about how his attitude towards the risks climbing demands has shifted as he has aged and his life’s circumstances have altered. Now married with two young children, he describes how he has reconciled these parts of his life and his identity. This is a crossroads that many – whether from commitment to a sport or through other circumstances of life – have faced and will relate to.