Eric Jones (climber): Difference between revisions

Eric Jones
Eric Jones
Born	1936 (age 88–89)
Nationality	Welsh
Known for	solo climbing, skydiving, BASE jumping.

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Eric Jones (born 1936) is a Welsh solo climber, skydiver and BASE jumper.

He is best known for the first British solo ascent of the north face of the Eiger in 1981, and for his climbs on the Matterhorn and South Col on Mount Everest.^[2] In 1986, he became the first person to BASE jump from the Eiger.

Early life

Raised on a farm near Ruthin in north Wales, he attended Ysgol Brynhyfryd and as a boy was interested in parachuting and skydiving, and later wanted to sign up with the Parachute Regiment. However, an earlier injury - a result of a motorbike accident - led to his joining the Military Police whilst on his two-year National Service.^[3]

Jones took up skydiving in 1961 and a year later, at the age of 26, began climbing.^[4] He climbed extensively in Snowdonia and the Lake District, followed by climbs in Italy. He took up solo climbing when his climbing partner became less available, and found that it gave him the freedom to move quicker, though also brought greater risks.^[5]

Exploits

In 1969, Jones ascended the Bonatti Pillar on the Dru solo,^[6] and in 1971, he was the first person to climb the Central Pillar of Brouillard on the south ridge of Mont Blanc.^[7]

Many of his exploits, such as the Eiger ascent^[8] and the Matterhorn ascent,^[8] have been filmed by award-winning cameraman Leo Dickinson. Jones and Dickinson, with two other climbers, made the first complete film of the Eiger climb in 1970, with Jones' first British solo ascent following in 1981, resulting in the acclaimed film Eiger Solo.

Dickinson who wrote a book called Filming the Impossible also worked with Jones when he filmed Ice Climbing with Eric Jones in Switzerland.^[9]

Jones was filming Reinhold Messner and Peter Habeler when they made the first ascent of Everest without oxygen in 1978. He reached the South Col at 7,900m but did not continue to the summit because of concerns about frostbite. ^[10]^[11]

Jones worked side by side with Sean Connery on the film Five Days One Summer,^[12] where fellow climber Paul Nunn worked as a stunt double for Connery.^[3]

He has been involved in a number of other film productions, from both sides of the camera. ^[13]

Skydiving and basejumping

As a skydiver, Jones jumped onto the North Pole and down the east face of Cerro Torre in Patagonia. In 1991, as a member of a four-man team, he flew two hot air balloons over Mount Everest, an exploit which gained three entries in the Guinness Book of Records.^[6]

Having jumped from balloons as a skydiver, Jones started BASE jumping (jumping from a fixed object - natural or man-made) at the age of 50, having met renowned jumper Moe Villetto.^[5] Combining jumping with his other interests, his first BASE jump was off the Eiger, the first person to do this.^[6] He made a number of spectacular jumps from buildings and bridges in the United States, but is renowned for his jump off the Angel Falls in Venezuela, shown in the documentary film The Man Who Jumped To Earth (UK, 1998) directed by Steve Robinson. At the age of 61, he is the oldest person to have done this.^[14] His jump into the Cave of Swallows in Mexico, directed by Llion Iwan, was shown in the documentary The Man Who Jumped Beneath The Earth (2003).

His self-proclaimed motto is "Life is adventure or nothing at all".^[15]

Personal life

He is married to Ann, and has two children. Featured in the Lifestyle section of The Independent in January 2008,^[5] he said :

After we had kids, people would ask if I wasn't being irresponsible for doing all these things but my take is that everything in life involves risk and it's about weighing up those risks. When people go into climbing, they can start out with a macho attitude but you learn to be humble and realise you're there on nature's sufferance. You don't conquer a mountain and if you go out there with that attitude, it will bite you back.

For three decades he has owned and run a small cafe (Eric Jones' Cafe) and campsite at Tremadog, near Porthmadog, which is popular with climbers and bikers alike. Some of his exploits can be seen in photos on the walls.^[2] In 2016 he put these properties up for sale.^[16]^[17]

Later life

Jones is regarded by many of his peers as Britain's most successful solo climber.^[18] An unassuming man, he still walks, climbs, skis and jumps,^[19] and a recent documentary by S4C screened in 2007/8 called Alpau Eric Jones saw him revisiting the Alps.^[20] He also still gives occasional lectures on his experiences, and has in the past co-presented with Dickinson.

In 2015 he published his autobiography, entitled A Life on the Edge.^[21]

In August 2019 a BBC2 documentary entitled The Last Climb: Eric Jones, recounted much of his life, and featured his dreams, aged 82, of one final solo climb, namely the Delago Tower, part of the Italian Dolomites, which he had first climbed in the 1960s.^[22]

References

^ Jones, p.14
^ ^a ^b "The Man who jumped beneath the Earth".
^ ^a ^b "Nothing found for Xlid 2". Archived from the original on 16 May 2008.
^ "Adrenalin Fix; ALPAU ERIC JONES, S4C, Wednesday, 9pm. English and Welsh Subtitles" - Daily Post (Liverpool, England), January 5, 2008". Archived from the original on 18 August 2019.
^ ^a ^b ^c "The man who went up a mountain... and jumped". Independent.ie.
^ ^a ^b ^c "Heason page - biography". Archived from the original on 13 December 2010.
^ Griffin, Lindsay (1990). Mont Blanc Massif: Selected Climbs - Volume 1 : Col De Berangere - Col Du Geant. Alpine Club. p. 78. ISBN 9780900523571.
^ ^a ^b Adventure Eye website Archived 2008-10-06 at the Wayback Machine
^ "AdventureArchive.com". Archived from the original on 20 November 2008.
^ Jones, pp.148-153
^ Messner, Reinhold (1979). Everest: Expedition to the Ultimate. Kaye & Ward. p. 166-171. ISBN 9780718212186.
^ "The AFI CATALOG OF FEATURE FILMS: Five Days One Summer". The American Film Institute. Retrieved 2 February 2024.
^ "Filmography: Eric Jones". mntnfilm.com. Retrieved 15 February 2024.
^ "Aerialfocus website". Archived from the original on 23 February 2009.
^ "BBC website transcript".
^ Hughes, Owen (26 July 2016). "Legendary climber Eric Jones puts Tremadog cafe and campsite up for sale". dailypost. Retrieved 22 September 2019.
^ Jones, Elfyn (4 August 2016). "For sale: iconic Tremadog climbing cafe". www.thebmc.co.uk. British Mountaineering Council. Retrieved 24 September 2019.
^ "PosingProductions Eiger Solo". Archived from the original on 20 February 2011.
^ S4C website^{[permanent dead link‍]}
^ "Ffeithiol | S4C". www.s4c.cymru. Archived from the original on 27 May 2008.
^ Jones, Eric (2015). A Life on the Edge. Gwasg Carreg Gwalch. ISBN 9781845275495.
^ [1] www.aberystwyth-today

External links

[1] Jones, p.14

[The_man_who_jumped-2] "The Man who jumped beneath the Earth".

[Extreme-3] "Nothing found for Xlid 2". Archived from the original on 16 May 2008.

[4] "Adrenalin Fix; ALPAU ERIC JONES, S4C, Wednesday, 9pm. English and Welsh Subtitles" - Daily Post (Liverpool, England), January 5, 2008". Archived from the original on 18 August 2019.

[Independent-5] "The man who went up a mountain... and jumped". Independent.ie.

[Heason-6] "Heason page - biography". Archived from the original on 13 December 2010.

[7] Griffin, Lindsay (1990). Mont Blanc Massif: Selected Climbs - Volume 1 : Col De Berangere - Col Du Geant. Alpine Club. p. 78. ISBN 9780900523571.

[Adventure-8] Adventure Eye website Archived 2008-10-06 at the Wayback Machine

[9] "AdventureArchive.com". Archived from the original on 20 November 2008.

[10] Jones, pp.148-153

[11] Messner, Reinhold (1979). Everest: Expedition to the Ultimate. Kaye & Ward. p. 166-171. ISBN 9780718212186.

[12] "The AFI CATALOG OF FEATURE FILMS: Five Days One Summer". The American Film Institute. Retrieved 2 February 2024.

[13] "Filmography: Eric Jones". mntnfilm.com. Retrieved 15 February 2024.

[14] "Aerialfocus website". Archived from the original on 23 February 2009.

[15] "BBC website transcript".

[DailyPost2016-16] Hughes, Owen (26 July 2016). "Legendary climber Eric Jones puts Tremadog cafe and campsite up for sale". dailypost. Retrieved 22 September 2019.

[17] Jones, Elfyn (4 August 2016). "For sale: iconic Tremadog climbing cafe". www.thebmc.co.uk. British Mountaineering Council. Retrieved 24 September 2019.

[18] "PosingProductions Eiger Solo". Archived from the original on 20 February 2011.

[19] S4C website^{[permanent dead link‍]}

[20] "Ffeithiol | S4C". www.s4c.cymru. Archived from the original on 27 May 2008.

[abio-21] Jones, Eric (2015). A Life on the Edge. Gwasg Carreg Gwalch. ISBN 9781845275495.

[22] [1] www.aberystwyth-today

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@@ Line 1: / Line 1: @@
+{{Short description|Welsh mountaineer}}
-[[image:Craig bwlch y moch.jpg|right|thumb|250px|Eric Jones' cafe at Tremadog (a former filling station), viewed from Craig Bwlch y moch.]]
+{{Use dmy dates|date=April 2022}}
-'''Eric Jones''' (born 1935) is a [[Welsh people|Welsh]] [[Free solo climbing|solo climber]], [[Parachuting|skydiver]] and [[BASE jumping|BASE jumper]].
+{{Infobox person
+| name          = <!-- use common name/article title -->
+| image         = Eric Jones (solo climber).jpg
+| alt           = <!-- descriptive text for use by speech synthesis (text-to-speech) software -->
+| caption       =
+| birth_name    = <!-- only use if different from name -->
+| birth_date    = {{Birth year and age|1936}}<ref>Jones, p.14</ref> <!-- {{Birth date and age|YYYY|MM|DD}} for living people supply only the year with {{Birth year and age|YYYY}} unless the exact date is already widely published, as per [[WP:DOB]]. For people who have died, use {{Birth date|YYYY|MM|DD}}. -->
+| birth_place   =
+| death_date    = <!-- {{Death date and age|YYYY|MM|DD|YYYY|MM|DD}} (DEATH date then BIRTH date) -->
+| death_place   =
+| nationality   = Welsh
+| other_names   =
+| occupation    =
+| years_active  =
+| known_for     = solo climbing, skydiving, BASE jumping.
+| notable_works =
+}}
+'''Eric Jones''' (born 1936) is a [[Welsh people|Welsh]] [[Free solo climbing|solo climber]], [[Parachuting|skydiver]] and [[BASE jumping|BASE jumper]].
-He is most well known for the first British solo ascent of the north face of the [[Eiger]] in 1981, and for his climbs on the [[Matterhorn]] and South Col on [[Everest]].<ref name = "The man who jumped">[http://www.bbc.co.uk/wales/talkwales/transcripts/eric_jones.shtml The Man who jumped beneath the Earth]</ref>  In 1969, Eric Jones ascended the Bonatti Pillar on the [[Aiguille du Dru|Dru]] solo,<ref name = "Heason">[http://www.heason.net/Speakers/Eric_Jones/ Heason page - biography]</ref> and in 1971, he was the first person to climb the [[Mont Brouillard|Central Pillar of Brouillard]] on the south ridge of [[Mont Blanc]].  In 1986, he became the first person to BASE jump from the Eiger.
+He is best known for the first British solo ascent of the north face of the [[Eiger]] in 1981, and for his climbs on the [[Matterhorn]] and South Col on [[Mount Everest]].<ref name = "The man who jumped">{{Cite web|url=http://www.bbc.co.uk/wales/talkwales/transcripts/eric_jones.shtml|title=The Man who jumped beneath the Earth}}</ref> In 1986, he became the first person to BASE jump from the Eiger.
-Raised on a farm near [[Ruthin]] in north Wales, he attended [[Ysgol Brynhyfryd]] and as a boy was interested in parachuting and skydiving, and later wanted to sign up with the Parachute Regiment. However, an earlier injury - a result of a motorbike accident - led to his joining the Military Police whilst on his two-year [[Conscription in the United Kingdom|National Service]].<ref name = "Extreme">[http://www.extremedreams.co.uk/index.php/xlid/2 Extreme Dreams biography]</ref>
+==Early life==
-Jones took up skydiving in 1961 and a year later, at the age of 26, began climbing.<ref>[http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1G1-173061917.html Highbeam.com site]</ref>  He climbed extensively in [[Snowdonia]] and the Lake District, followed by climbs in Italy.  He took up solo climbing when his climbing partner became less available, and found that it gave him the freedom to move quicker, though also brought greater risks.<ref name = "Independent" />
+Raised on a farm near [[Ruthin]] in north Wales, he attended [[Ysgol Brynhyfryd]] and as a boy was interested in parachuting and skydiving, and later wanted to sign up with the Parachute Regiment. However, an earlier injury - a result of a motorbike accident - led to his joining the Military Police whilst on his two-year [[Conscription in the United Kingdom|National Service]].<ref name="Extreme">{{Cite web|url=https://extremedreams.co.uk/xlid/2|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20080516175822/http://www.extremedreams.co.uk/index.php/xlid/2|url-status=dead|title=Nothing found for Xlid 2|archivedate=May 16, 2008}}</ref>
+Jones took up skydiving in 1961 and a year later, at the age of 26, began climbing.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.questia.com/read/1G1-173061917/adrenalin-fix-alpau-eric-jones-s4c-wednesday-9pm|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190818211447/https://www.questia.com/read/1G1-173061917/adrenalin-fix-alpau-eric-jones-s4c-wednesday-9pm|url-status=dead|archive-date=18 August 2019|title=Adrenalin Fix; ALPAU ERIC JONES, S4C, Wednesday, 9pm. English and Welsh Subtitles" - Daily Post (Liverpool, England), January 5, 2008 |website=}}</ref>  He climbed extensively in [[Snowdonia]] and the Lake District, followed by climbs in Italy.  He took up solo climbing when his climbing partner became less available, and found that it gave him the freedom to move quicker, though also brought greater risks.<ref name = "Independent" />
-Many of his exploits, such as the Eiger ascent <ref name ="Adventure">[http://adventure-eye.com/eiger.shtml Adventure Eye website]</ref> and the Matterhorn ascent,<ref name="Adventure" /> have been filmed by award winning cameraman [[Leo Dickinson]].  Jones and Dickinson, with 2 other climbers, made the first complete film of the Eiger climb in 1970, with Jones' first British solo ascent following in 1981, resulting in the acclaimed film ''"Eiger Solo"''.
+==Exploits==
-Dickinson (who in 1991 became the first to fly in a balloon over Everest, taking what has been described as "The best picture on Earth",<ref>[http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1201090/Everest-revealed-British-balloonists-breathtaking-panoramic-shot-worlds-highest-peaks.html Daily Mail article]</ref> and wrote a book called ''"Filming the Impossible"'') also worked with Jones when he filmed ''"Ice Climbing with Eric Jones in Switzerland"''.<ref>[http://www.adventurearchive.com/data/film_library_sports_rock_ice_climbing.htm AdventureArchive.com]</ref>
+[[File:Leo Dickinson and Eric Jones.jpg|thumb|[[Leo Dickinson]] (left) and Eric Jones (right), lecturing in 2019 on their shared adventures.]]
-As a skydiver Jones jumped onto the [[North Pole]] and down the east face of Cerro Torre in [[Patagonia]]. In 1991, as a member of a four-man team, he flew two hot air balloons over Mt Everest, an exploit which gained three entries in the [[Guinness Book of Records]].<ref name = "Heason" /> Jones had made an earlier (1978) attempt on Everest as part of a team that included [[Reinhold Messner]] and [[Peter Habeler]], but had to turn back because of frostbite.
+In 1969, Jones ascended the Bonatti Pillar on the [[Aiguille du Dru|Dru]] solo,<ref name="Heason">{{Cite web| url=http://www.heason.net/Speakers/Eric_Jones/ |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20101213095303/http://www.heason.net/Speakers/Eric_Jones/|url-status=dead|title=Heason page - biography|archivedate=December 13, 2010}}</ref> and in 1971, he was the first person to climb the [[Mont Brouillard|Central Pillar of Brouillard]] on the south ridge of [[Mont Blanc]].<ref>{{cite book |page=78 |title=Mont Blanc Massif: Selected Climbs - Volume 1 : Col De Berangere - Col Du Geant   |isbn=9780900523571 |last1=Griffin |first1=Lindsay | url= |year=1990|publisher=Alpine Club }} </ref>
+Many of his exploits, such as the Eiger ascent<ref name="Adventure">[http://adventure-eye.com/eiger.shtml Adventure Eye website] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081006093510/http://adventure-eye.com/eiger.shtml |date=2008-10-06 }}</ref> and the Matterhorn ascent,<ref name="Adventure" /> have been filmed by award-winning cameraman [[Leo Dickinson]].  Jones and Dickinson, with two other climbers, made the first complete film of the Eiger climb in 1970, with Jones' first British solo ascent following in 1981, resulting in the acclaimed film ''Eiger Solo''.
-Having jumped from balloons as a skydiver, Jones started BASE jumping (jumping from a fixed object - natural or man-made) at the age of 50, having met renowned jumper [[Moe Villetto]].<ref name = "Independent">[http://www.independent.ie/lifestyle/the-man-who-went-up-a-mountain-and-jumped-1266301.html The Independent Lifestyle article]</ref> Combining jumping with his other interests, his first BASE jump was off the Eiger, the first person to do this.<ref name = "Heason" />  He made a number of spectacular jumps from buildings and bridges in the [[United States]], but is renowned for his jump off the [[Angel Falls]] in [[Venezuela]], shown in the documentary film ''"The Man Who Jumped To Earth"'' (UK, 1998) directed by Steve Robinson. At the age of 61, he is the oldest person to have done this.<ref>[http://www.aerialfocus.com/angelpics.html Aerialfocus website]</ref> His jump into the [[Cave of Swallows]] in [[Mexico]], directed by Llion Iwan, was shown in the documentary ''"The Man Who Jumped Beneath The Earth"'' (2003).
+Dickinson who wrote a book called ''Filming the Impossible'' also worked with Jones when he filmed ''Ice Climbing with Eric Jones in Switzerland''.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.adventurearchive.com/data/film_library_sports_rock_ice_climbing.htm|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20081120133956/http://www.adventurearchive.com/data/film_library_sports_rock_ice_climbing.htm|url-status=dead|title=AdventureArchive.com|archivedate=November 20, 2008}}</ref>
-Eric Jones worked side by side with Sean Connery on the film ''[[Five Days One Summer]]'', where fellow climber Paul Nunn worked as a stunt double for [[Connery]].<ref name = "Extreme" />
+Jones was filming [[Reinhold Messner]] and [[Peter Habeler]] when they made the first ascent of Everest without oxygen in 1978. He reached the South Col at 7,900m but did not continue to the summit because of concerns about frostbite. <ref>Jones, pp.148-153</ref><ref>{{cite book |page=166-171 |title=Everest: Expedition to the Ultimate  |isbn=9780718212186 |last1=Messner|first1=Reinhold | url= https://books.google.com/books?id=5IVrBgAAQBAJ&dq=welsh+cameraman+inauthor:messner&pg=PT167|year=1979|publisher=Kaye & Ward }} </ref>
-His self-proclaimed motto is "Life is adventure or nothing at all".<ref>[http://www.bbc.co.uk/wales/talkwales/transcripts/eric_jones.shtml BBC website transcript]</ref>
+Jones worked side by side with [[Sean Connery]] on the film ''[[Five Days One Summer]]'',<ref>{{cite web |url=https://catalog.afi.com/Catalog/moviedetails/56780 |title=The AFI CATALOG OF FEATURE FILMS: Five Days One Summer |publisher=The American Film Institute |accessdate=2 February 2024}}</ref> where fellow climber [[Paul Nunn]] worked as a stunt double for Connery.<ref name = "Extreme" />
-An unassuming man, he still walks, climbs, skis and jumps,<ref>[http://dysguars4c.co.uk/tudalen.php?aid=1116&i=cy S4C website]</ref> and a recent documentary by [[S4C]] screened in 2007/8 called "Alpau Eric Jones" saw him revisiting the Alps.<ref>[http://www.s4c.co.uk/ffeithiol/e_alpauericjones.shtml S4C Factual site]</ref>  He also still gives occasional lectures on his experiences, and has in the past co-presented with Dickinson.
+He has been involved in a number of other film productions, from both sides of the camera. <ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.mntnfilm.com/en/filmography/eric-jones |title=Filmography: Eric Jones |publisher=mntnfilm.com |access-date=2024-02-15}}</ref>
-He is married to Ann, and has two children.  Featured in the Lifestyle section of [[The Independent]] in January 2008,<ref name = "Independent" /> he said :
+==Skydiving and basejumping==
+As a skydiver, Jones jumped onto the [[North Pole]] and down the east face of [[Cerro Torre]] in [[Patagonia]]. In 1991, as a member of a four-man team, he flew two hot air balloons over Mount Everest, an exploit which gained three entries in the ''[[Guinness Book of Records]]''.<ref name = "Heason" />
+Having jumped from balloons as a skydiver, Jones started BASE jumping (jumping from a fixed object - natural or man-made) at the age of 50, having met renowned jumper [[Moe Villetto]].<ref name = "Independent">{{Cite web|url=https://www.independent.ie/lifestyle/the-man-who-went-up-a-mountain-and-jumped-26344772.html|title=The man who went up a mountain... and jumped|website=Independent.ie}}</ref> Combining jumping with his other interests, his first BASE jump was off the Eiger, the first person to do this.<ref name = "Heason" />  He made a number of spectacular jumps from buildings and bridges in the [[United States]], but is renowned for his jump off the [[Angel Falls]] in [[Venezuela]], shown in the documentary film ''The Man Who Jumped To Earth'' (UK, 1998) directed by Steve Robinson. At the age of 61, he is the oldest person to have done this.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.aerialfocus.com/angelpics.html|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20090223193925/http://aerialfocus.com/angelpics.html|url-status=dead|title=Aerialfocus website|archivedate=February 23, 2009}}</ref> His jump into the [[Cave of Swallows]] in [[Mexico]], directed by Llion Iwan, was shown in the documentary ''The Man Who Jumped Beneath The Earth'' (2003).
+His self-proclaimed motto is "Life is adventure or nothing at all".<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.bbc.co.uk/wales/talkwales/transcripts/eric_jones.shtml|title=BBC website transcript}}</ref>
+==Personal life==
+[[image:Craig bwlch y moch.jpg|right|thumb|250px|Eric Jones' cafe at Tremadog (a former filling station), viewed from Craig Bwlch y moch.]]
+He is married to Ann, and has two children.  Featured in the Lifestyle section of ''[[The Independent]]'' in January 2008,<ref name = "Independent" /> he said :
 :''After we had kids, people would ask if I wasn't being irresponsible for doing all these things but my take is that everything in life involves risk and it's about weighing up those risks. When people go into climbing, they can start out with a macho attitude but you learn to be humble and realise you're there on nature's sufferance. You don't conquer a mountain and if you go out there with that attitude, it will bite you back.''
-Today he also owns and runs a small cafe, "Eric Jones' Cafe" at [[Tremadog]], near [[Porthmadog]], which is popular with climbers and bikers alike. Some of his exploits can be seen in photos on the walls.<ref name = "The man who jumped" />
+For three decades he has owned and run a small cafe (Eric Jones' Cafe) and campsite at [[Tremadog]], near [[Porthmadog]], which is popular with climbers and bikers alike. Some of his exploits can be seen in photos on the walls.<ref name = "The man who jumped" /> In 2016 he put these properties up for sale.<ref name="DailyPost2016">{{cite news |last1=Hughes |first1=Owen |title=Legendary climber Eric Jones puts Tremadog cafe and campsite up for sale |url=https://www.dailypost.co.uk/business/business-news/legendary-climber-eric-jones-puts-11665230.amp |accessdate=22 September 2019 |work=dailypost |date=26 July 2016 |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |last1=Jones |first1=Elfyn |title=For sale: iconic Tremadog climbing cafe |url=https://www.thebmc.co.uk/for-sale-well-known-climbing-cafe |website=www.thebmc.co.uk |publisher=British Mountaineering Council |accessdate=24 September 2019 |date=4 August 2016}}</ref>
+==Later life==
-Jones is regarded by many of his peers as Britain's most successful solo climber.<ref>[http://www.posingproductions.com/product.php?form_action=detail&product_id=204 PosingProductions Eiger Solo]</ref>
+Jones is regarded by many of his peers as Britain's most successful solo climber.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.posingproductions.com/product.php?form_action=detail&product_id=204|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20110220111553/http://www.posingproductions.com/product.php?form_action=detail&product_id=204|url-status=dead|title=PosingProductions Eiger Solo|archivedate=February 20, 2011}}</ref>
+An unassuming man, he still walks, climbs, skis and jumps,<ref>[http://dysguars4c.co.uk/tudalen.php?aid=1116&i=cy S4C website]{{dead link|date=September 2017 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}</ref> and a recent documentary by [[S4C]] screened in 2007/8 called ''Alpau Eric Jones'' saw him revisiting the Alps.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.s4c.cymru/cy/ffeithiol/|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20080527232503/http://www.s4c.co.uk/ffeithiol/e_alpauericjones.shtml|url-status=dead|title=Ffeithiol &#124; S4C|archivedate=May 27, 2008|website=www.s4c.cymru}}</ref> He also still gives occasional lectures on his experiences, and has in the past co-presented with Dickinson.
+In 2015 he published his autobiography, entitled ''A Life on the Edge''.<ref name=abio> {{cite book |page= |title=A Life on the Edge  |isbn=9781845275495 |last1=Jones|first1=Eric | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=TUP9sgEACAAJ |year=2015|publisher=Gwasg Carreg Gwalch }}
+</ref>
+In August 2019 a BBC2 documentary entitled ''The Last Climb: Eric Jones'', recounted much of his life, and  featured his dreams, aged 82, of one final solo climb, namely the Delago Tower, part of the [[Italian Dolomites]], which he had first climbed in the 1960s.<ref>[http://www.aberystwyth-today.co.uk/article.cfm?id=129974&headline=Adventurer%20Eric%E2%80%99s%20final%20solo%20climb%20at%20the%20age%20of%2082&sectionIs=news&searchyear=2019] www.aberystwyth-today</ref>
 ==References==
-{{reflist}}
+{{Reflist}}
 ==External links==
+{{Commons category|Eric Jones (climber)}}
 * [http://www.ericjones-tremadog.co.uk/ Eric Jones' cafe]
 * [http://www.metacafe.com/watch/200592/eric_jones_base_jumping_off_angel_falls/ Video of Eric Jones' Angel Falls base jump]
+* [https://www.mntnfilm.com/en/filmography/eric-jones Filmography: Eric Jones]
+{{Authority control}}
-{{Persondata <!-- Metadata: see [[Wikipedia:Persondata]]. -->
-| NAME              = Jones, Eric
-| ALTERNATIVE NAMES =
-| SHORT DESCRIPTION = British mountain climber
-| DATE OF BIRTH     = 1935
-| PLACE OF BIRTH    =
-| DATE OF DEATH     =
-| PLACE OF DEATH    =
-}}
 {{DEFAULTSORT:Jones, Eric}}
-[[Category:1935 births]]
+[[Category:1930s births]]
 [[Category:Living people]]
 [[Category:People from Ruthin]]
-[[Category:Welsh-speaking people]]
+[[Category:Sportspeople from Denbighshire]]
 [[Category:Welsh mountain climbers]]
 [[Category:British rock climbers]]
 [[Category:Free soloists]]
+[[Category:People from Tremadog]]