Courses & Activities

Courses & Activities

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Leader Spotlight: Gordie Swartzman

For our Leader Spotlight this month we talked to Gordie Swartzman, a naturalists leader with the Seattle Branch who encourages new leaders to lead out of their passion! Read more…

Language Matters: Let's Stop Using the Slang Word For Carabiner

Many people use an abbreviated slang word in climbing without consideration or afterthought. This word is frequently used alongside other words like rope, harness, and belay. If you search on the Internet for this word, the first 5-10 results would reference the term to describe a piece of standard climbing gear. Countless climbing websites recognize the slang word as a standard, and our basic climbing students are even indoctrinated with its common use. And all of us are wrong. Read more…

A Beautiful Partnership: Mountaineers Adventure Club & Seattle Climbing Team

One of the core elements of our mission at The Mountaineers is to engage future Mountaineers. Many of our members may not know about everything we do to foster youth involvement in the outdoors, and we hear that some people are surprised to learn about our robust youth program, which has three distinct parts: outreach programs (like Mountain Workshops and our Gear Library), school break camps, and year-round outdoor clubs. One of these year-round programs is The Mountaineers Adventure Club (MAC). Designed for teens aged 14-18, MAC includes a wide variety of outdoor activities and focuses on developing strong alpine climbing skills.  Read more…

Rock Climbing Anchors - Bolted Routes

The weather is warming and many climbers are moving from gyms to outdoor rock. Most will be working on sport climbs with bolted anchors. Here's a refresher on the correct way to clip into bolts excerpted from Chapter 6, "Sport Climbing and Bolted Anchors" in the new book,  Rock Climbing Anchors, 2nd Ed., by Topher Donahue and Craig Luebben. Read more…

Global Adventures | A Lucky Find in Italy

A few years ago, I took a group of Nordic skiers to the Dolomites in Italy. One couple in my group was looking forward to celebrating a significant anniversary in Florence and Rome following our ski adventures. We had been in the Dolomiti for about 10 days and, on this day, had enjoyed a rigorous mountain ski. After lunch and a ski back to a side valley where our path crossed a road, the anniversary couple decided to take the rest of the day off and bus back to the hotel. Read more…

Hangdog Days - A Ripple on the Pond

Jeff Smoot is the author of Hangdog Days: Conflict, Change, and the Race for 5.14, a fast-paced history-cum-memoir about rock climbing in the late '70s and early '80s—a pivotal and contentious time.  Read more…

DIY Organic Snacks To Bring On Your Next Hike

Enjoying the great outdoors can definitely work up an appetite. Packing the right amount of food and water on a hike is essential. Not only will you need energy, but it allows you to go further down the trail when it’s so easy to turn back. Seasoned hikers know the common snacks you can quickly throw in a bag, like beef jerky and nuts. But there are more options available. Consider these DIY organic snacks to bring on your next hike. Read more…

Canyoning in the Pacific Northwest

Lush green corridors. Colorful basalt. Smooth sculpted granite. Turquoise pools. Waterfall after waterfall. The world class canyons of the Pacific Northwest are one of our best kept secrets. And we're hosting a 2-weekend Canyoning Course in July to get you out in these magical places.  Read more…

Join The 2019 Olympia Photo Contest Committee

Olympia Mountaineers - join our 2019 Photo Contest Committee! Our branch photo contest not only gives recognition to our amazing photographers, but the entries are used throughout the year at our branch events (including our branch banquet). Our last photo contest was in 2017 - help us refresh our photo library and discover the hidden talents of our fellow Mountaineers!  Read more…

The Mountaineers Gear Library Orientation Signups

The Mountaineers’ Gear Library is deeply committed to helping everyone explore the outdoors. Since launching in August 2018, we have partnered with local youth-serving agencies in a joint effort to increase access and to promote diversity, equity, and inclusion in the outdoors. Read more…

Basic Hiking Skills Course - May 6 & 8

Are you an experienced hiker/backpacker? Or maybe a a new hiker/backpacker? Someone who has  hiked or backpacked in the past and wants to become active again? Regardless of where you're starting, this two-evening course has something for you. It's designed for both new hikers or for people who have hiked before but want to step up their game with an introduction to safe hiking in the Pacific Northwest. Read more…

Learn how to Trad Climb This Year

If you lead on bolts and are interested in learning more about trad climbing, the Seattle Climbing Committee sponsors two trad courses each year to introduce climbers like you to the fun world of leading on gear. Read more…

You Can Run On Snowshoes!

When most people think about snowshoeing, they picture hiking along in a winter wonderland. But did you know that there is a world of people running with snowshoes on, and even competing? The world of snowshoe running is growing on a global level, and with specialized running-oriented snowshoes you can jog or run or take part in a race right now! Read more…

Go Sailing With The Mountaineers - March 23

Join our Mountaineers skippers for a raft-up party potluck and sail out of Port Madison on March 23. Then, sign up for a sailing course to learn how to sail this spring and enjoy free sailing all summer long! Read more…

Thirst: 2600 Miles from Home

It takes a whole lot of gumption to take off on a journey by yourself, all the more for a woman on her own striding through the wild. When Heather "Anish" Anderson decided to set the self-supported Fastest Known Time for hiking the Pacific Crest Trail, she had the gumption but courage was something she had to work on. The following is an excerpt from her new memoir, Thirst: 2600 Miles from Home. Read more…

Winter's Beauty on the Old Sauk Trail

My knees sank into the snow. I had my face close to the quilt of white that covered the stair-step moss. In a few places, their feathery green leaves showed through. These are one of the biggest mosses in the Pacific Northwest. A new leaf grows each year from the stem of last year’s. An elegant bryophyte, with lacy foliage, it can form a matt a foot or more, thick. The combination of snow and moss made the forest floor look like a thick and fluffy winter comforter had been thrown across it. The leaf tissue looked frozen and shriveled, but it smelled alive; vibrant life was just waiting for a warm day. Read more…

Sailing Around Blakely Rock: A Groundbreaking Adventure

The wind was unreliable and moody that day. It was a typical Pacific Northwest early April morning: overcast and chilly but with a crisp tinge of salt in the air. My wife, Michelle, and I were at Shilshole Marina, just west of Seattle’s Ballard neighborhood, to take part in the Blakely Rock Benefit Race (sponsored by Sloop Tavern Yacht Club). We had both just finished the Mountaineers sailing class, but, here we were, about to partake in a major sailing event. Read more…

Hiking and Navigating (or Trying To) in Northern Thailand

For three Novembers in a row my husband and I have traveled to Asia, hoping to avoid the worst of the Seattle weather and a certain amount of election news hysteria, always with the goal of exploring by hiking rather than just hitting the classic tourist spots. We travel on our own, no tour group, just three nights booked ahead in a hotel and figure it out from there. We spent four weeks in Taiwan in 2016; three weeks in Hong Kong (no, it’s not just skyscrapers) in 2017; and this year three weeks in northern Thailand, starting in Chiang Mai. Read more…

Introducing "We Are Puget Sound"

As Washingtonians, we know firsthand that Puget Sound is home to astonishing wildlife and beauty. This spectacular inland sea is a rich, life-sustaining home shared by two countries, a province, a state, and over 50 Native American Tribes and First Nations. But the vibrant blue waters can be deceiving - hiding stressed wildlife, pollution, and impacts from thoughtless development and climate change. We can change that, but we need your help. Read more…

Did You Know? Hole in the Ground & Crack in the Ground

Two geological wonders are hiding in Fort Rock State Park. Learn more about these hidden gems in our second installment of a blog series we're calling "Back-Road Adventures in Oregon". If you haven't, read the first blog about the history of Fort Rock State Park.  Read more…

The Search for Eldorado: An Adaptive Climber Finds Her Summit

Kimberly “Kimber” Cross has that windblown sense of adventure you’d find in old western movies: a protagonist with an indelible charm, big smile, hard-working grit that’s worn like loose chaps, and a can-do attitude as easy as the winds she roams with. Read more…

Trail Tails: Coulson

Trail Tails is a special feature showcasing the mutts of The Mountaineers! This month we recognize Coulson, owned by Mountaineer Darcy Jayne.  Read more…

Happy 90th Birthday, Jim & Lou Whittaker!

Jim Whittaker, a living legend among mountaineers worldwide, is a father, husband, environmentalist, and author. He is recognized as one the most influential climbers in American history, and is a visionary business and community leader in Seattle and the Pacific Northwest. We're proud to count 'Big Jim' as a Mountaineers member, and invite you to join us in wishing him, and his twin brother Lou, a very happy 90th birthday today!   Read more…

Spots to Stop in The Olympics and South Cascades

After a long day outside with new friends, sometimes a food stop is in order on the way home. Here are the stops I have enjoyed most in the Olympics and South Cascades.  Read more…

More "Staying Alive in Avalanche Terrain" with Bruce Tremper

On January 21, 2019, Mountaineers Books hosted a free web cast with avalanche expert Bruce Tremper, alongside our friends from Black Diamond and Colorado Mountain Club. Our audience members had a lot (a lot!) of questions for Bruce, and some of them were tough! Though we were not able to get to all the questions in the allocated hour, we forwarded them to Bruce to answer. Here are his responses (answers edited for clarity): Read more…

Hiking With Dogs - The Basics

There’s nothing like sharing the great outdoors with your best friend. However, it’s important to keep trail etiquette and safety in mind when you explore with a dog in tow. Below are excerpts from the Mountaineers Books title Best Hikes with Dogs: Western Washington by Dan A. Nelson. Learn what to do (and not to do!) when you and Fido hit the trail. Read more…

Return to Mount Kennedy Film - Feb 19

In 1965 Jim Whittaker led Senator Robert Kennedy to the first ascent of a remote mountain in the Yukon named after the late president, JFK. Fifty years later, the sons of the original climbing team - a raucous band manager, a candidate for governor, and a young mountaineer - embark on an expedition to the mountain to celebrate the special bond that connects them all. Featuring unreleased instrumentals by Eddie Vedder and never before seen footage and photos of Robert Kennedy, the feature-length documentary sits at the intersection of politics, human rights, environmentalism, and adventure. Read more…

Travel to the Austrian Alps with The Mountaineers

Discover Austria! Join us on a Global Adventure where we will be hiking in a little-known area of the Austrian Alps. Hike the European way: combine stunning scenery with uncrowded trails, comfortable lodging, tasty cuisine, and high mountain huts. We’ll wander through alpine meadows and across rock slopes, have lunch at scenic huts, reach high tarns and passes, and see breathtaking views. Learn how trek the mountains traveling hut-to-hut! Read more…

Take the 2019 Olympia Stewardship Challenge

As Mountaineers, we enjoy thousands of miles of trails and waterways throughout our public lands. We must set a compelling example as principled stewards who are willing to work hard to maintain the lands we enjoy. The Olympia Branch is challenging you to dedicate one day (or more!) this year to stewarding our public lands. This challenge is a great way to give back to our outdoor playgrounds and meet a vibrant community of volunteers. Read more…

Olympia Climbers, Scramblers, Hikers, and Sea Kayakers Pursue Badges & Pins

Mountaineers members can earn badges and peak pin awards for completing different objectives in Washington and beyond. If you're looking for new ideas, look no further than our list of Award Badges! And join us in congratulating the 2018 class on their collective achievements. Read more…