Alpine Ambassadors Gateway Trips

Alpine Ambassadors has both Water Ice and Rock Gateway Trips, which are the most common way to join. These week-long trips help new members quickly become a part of the community and build connections with a motivated group of future climbing partners.

Our Gateway Trips have an application which is reviewed by the Alpine Ambassadors Leadership Team. The review team uses the following criteria and objectives to evaluate applicants:

• Preferred leading ability of 5.8 rock or WI3 
• Strong recent history of volunteerism in The Mountaineers
• We strive to accept 50% returning Ambassadors, and 50% aspiring Ambassadors. This ratio is critical to building and growing a strong community
• We strive for diversity in branch representation
• We strongly encourage women climbers, climbers of color, and LGBTQ climbers to apply, and we strive to grow a diverse community of motivated climbers

Note: if you meet most but not all of these qualifications, we encourage you to apply! Our goal is to build a community of stoked climbers who want to push their grades together.

Interested in Alpine Ambassadors, but not ready to apply?

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Before Applying

We often get more qualified applicants than we have space for, so many applicants need to apply twice or three times before being accepted. Once you are a member of Alpine Ambassadors, you will continue to need to apply for trips, because they are partially funded by The Mountaineers. The following steps will set you up for easy future applications. Completing all of these steps before opening the online application will save you a lot of time in this application and in the future.

1. Applications will require a climbing resume and a Mountaineers volunteering resume. We recommend creating these as Google Docs (or other online word processing application) and keeping them updated on a regular basis. There will be a place in the application for you to hyperlink your resume(s). There will also be an option to upload them if you prefer.
   1. Climbing Resumes should be in reverse chronological order and focused on the most recent 3 years, but can include prior experience. Resumes should include climbs as well as courses taken. Resumes should include rock, ice and alpine, and should list grade and your role (leader, participant, etc). 
   2. Volunteer Resumes should be focused on the most recent 3 years, but can include prior experience. Resumes should focus on volunteering within The Mountaineers, but can also include other volunteer work in the outdoor community. 
2. Be sure to read the Membership details before applying. Applications will ask for a short narrative response to the following questions about your commitment to Alpine Ambassadors. We recommend you writing these questions and answers in a Google Doc (or other online word processing application), which you can hyperlink in your application and update as needed. There will also be an option to write in the answers in the application if you prefer.

   1. What inspires you to be a part of alpine ambassadors?

   2. Please describe your plans for using the skills you gain through Alpine Ambassadors to benefit your branch's climbing program

   3. Please describe how you hope to contribute to the Alpine Ambassadors community

Rock Gateway trip - squamish

Our Rock Gateway trip to Squamish typically happens in July. See below for exact dates. On this trip, participants stay at a campground (typically the municipal campground adjacent to Brennan Park Rec Center). The program is 7 days long, with the middle day as a rest day. The rest day may move to accommodate optimal weather, so participants should plan to be busy for the full 7 days, with a travel day on either side. It's important that the entire group arrives the night before the first day, and plans to stay until the final debrief at the end of the last day. Participants on this trip climb with local experts and professional guides, who provide mentorship in climbing technique and efficiency. The trip typically has a mix of cragging and multipitch, and participants will climb in different groups each day. Guide fees and camping are provided by The Mountaineers. Participants are responsible for their own food and transportation, and for any tips they choose to give the guides.

Application deadline is April 4, 2025.

Notification of acceptance is April 30, 2025.

2025 DATES: July 12-19

APPLY FOR THE SQUAMISH TRIP

Ice Gateway Trip - canmore

Our Ice Gateway trip to Canmore typically happens in February. See below for exact dates. On this trip, participants stay at the Alpine Club of Canada Lodge in Canmore. The program is 7 days long, with the middle day as a rest day. The rest day may move to accommodate optimal weather, so participants should plan to be busy for the full 7 days, with a travel day on either side. It's important that the entire group arrives the night before the first day, and plans to stay until the final debrief at the end of the last day. Participants on this trip climb with local experts and professional guides, who provide mentorship in climbing technique and efficiency. The trip typically has a mix of cragging and multipitch, and participants will climb in different groups each day. Guide fees and lodging are provided by The Mountaineers. Participants are responsible for their own food and transportation, and for any tips they choose to give the guides.

Application Deadline: November 1, 2025

Notification of acceptance by: November 15, 2025

2026 Dates: January 31-February 7

Apply for the Ice Trip