R.S. ("Sam") Fink (d.
1998
FACE="Arial"> Active in Local Hikes
HPS
DPS The perennial "Grand Old Man of the Mountains" of the Hundred
Peaks Section
Sam Fink quietly led several generations of peak-baggers
in stalking "the list." Sam climbed extensively throughout the West
and
received the Sierra Club's prestigious Francis P. Farquhar Mountaineering Award
in 1983. He single-handedly constructed a trail along the crest of the Desert
Divide in the southern San Jacinto Mountains that became known as the 'Sam Fink
Trail.' Sam held the rank of Captain in the Orange County fire
department.
Right: Sam Fink on top
of Mt. Hawkins in the 1950s.
Left: Sam Fink heading for Mt.
Williamson (Sierra Nevada) in the 1930s.
Bob Cates and R.S.
Sam
Fink (right) on Heald Peak dedication climb
April 27
1974
November 1972
processing. Photo date/place undetermined. (subject to verification)
Two excellent images of Sam
taken in the spring of 1968.
Heald Peak Dedication Climb.
L to R: Phyllis Heald
R.S. "Sam" Fink
Maureen Cates
Dave Welborne. April
1974
R.S. "Sam" Fink and group
celebrating his birthday on a hike in 1973
Bascom and Fink meet after many
years. #2 & #3 on 100 Pks. August 1973." Jack Bascom (left
no 3 Hundred
Peaks Section emblem-holder)
R.S. "Sam" Fink (right
no. 2 HPS
emblem-holder).
The Hundred Peaks
Section's highest Service Award is named in Sam's honor. His given name was
Richard Fink but he preferred Sam.
S I E R R A C L U B C H R O N O L O G Y T H R U 2 0 0 6
1949
Joined the Desert Peaks Section
1950
HPS List Completion
1957
DPS Emblem
1957
SPS Emblem
1968
Hundred Peaks Section R. S. Fink Service Award
1973
HPS Second List Completion
1978
Angeles Chapter Chester Versteeg Outing Award
1981
National Francis Farquhar Mountaineering Award
1983
Hundred Peaks Section Special Award - Perseverance
Sam Fink quietly led several generations of peak-baggers
in stalking "the list." Sam climbed extensively throughout the West
and
received the Sierra Club's prestigious Francis P. Farquhar Mountaineering Award
in 1983. He single-handedly constructed a trail along the crest of the Desert
Divide in the southern San Jacinto Mountains that became known as the 'Sam Fink
Trail.' 
