The magazine often focuses on "fast and light" ascents and advocates a rigorous clean-climbing style (not leaving gear behind).
Alpinist won the Maggie Award for Best Overall Design/Consumer Category from the Western Publication Association (WPA) for its Autumn issue (Issue 8) in 2005, and the Maggie Award for the Best Quarterly/Consumer Division in April 2004 for its Winter 2003–2004 issue (Issue 5).
On October 16, 2008 the magazine announced that it was closing operations due to financial problems.[1][2] The magazine was re-launched on April 15, 2009, with Michael Kennedy as the new Editor-in-Chief, by Height of Land Publications, home of Telemark Skier and Backcountry magazines.[3]
In May 2012, Kennedy was replaced as editor-in-chief by longtime contributing editor Katie Ives.[4]