Secularism and mountaineering

Were the 19thc and early 20thc English mountaineers often programmatic humanists, climbing for secular spiritual reasons? I am thinking of Leslie Stephen and I.A. Richards. If so, do traces of this link linger? Petrarch, the great Renaissance humanist, is often thought of as the first modern (i.e. aesthetic) alpinist. Shelley's Mont Blanc is clearly another important moment in the connection between anti-religion and climbing. There are probably secondary sources on this which I'd be interested in knowing (googling doesn't reveal anything): if not there's an excellent article for someone.