Outdoor Leadership

The North Sound Leadership Conference is just one month away! Read more…

At The Mountaineers, we believe a diverse and inclusive outdoors inspires unity, respect, and passion for the places we love. This belief is reflected in our core values and is the driving vision to foster outdoor experiences where all people feel belonging. One way we strive to do that is through affinity group activities.  Read more…

Excerpted and adapted from The Outdoor Leader: Resilience, Integrity, and Adventure by Jeannette Stawski (February 2024). Published by Mountaineers Books. Reprinted with permission. Read more…

As a child, I had a lot of adverse experiences exploring the outdoors. I was taught that outdoor spaces were not for people with my skin-tone, religious beliefs, and dietary traditions. It wasn’t until I found an informal BIPOC (Black, Indigenous, People of Color) group of hikers and climbers in my early 20s that I felt finally able to grow my love for getting out into nature. Since moving to Seattle, I’ve fostered my outdoor pursuits through The Mountaineers – first through backpacking, then climbing and cross-country skiing, before finally finding my true passion: canyoning. Read more…

Are you currently an outdoor leader, or interested in outdoor leadership but aren’t sure where to start? If so, the Leadership Development Series is for you! We curate the Leadership Development Series to help you expand and hone your outdoor leadership skills. Whether you are new to leadership in outdoor spaces, or have been leading and guiding in the wilderness for a lifetime, there are seminars for you. Read more…

Over the past few months, an increase in Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) visits and raids on places where people work and gather has been reported across the U.S. and here in Washington State. Having a plan that defines how to respond to an ICE visit is an important way to protect the rights of The Mountaineers and our community.  Read more…

At The Mountaineers, the learning never stops. Every time we go out together, we sharpen our skills and learn more about the natural world. Any volunteer will tell you that every trip and every student provides an opportunity to become a better leader. And each of the 6,000 volunteer-led trips in the last year created space for leaders and students alike to learn with and from one another, and build genuine connections that flourish. Read more…

Want to be more involved with The Mountaineers and support programs at a foundational level? Consider becoming the new Chair-Elect for the Foothills Branch. Read more…

That’s a wrap on another successful and engaging year of Mountaineers Leadership Conferences! The Mountaineers Leadership Conferences are day-long, in-person events dedicated to thanking, inspiring, and empowering The Mountaineers current and aspiring volunteer leaders. This fiscal year we held our newly renamed North Sound Leadership Conference on December 7, 2024 at the Seattle Program Center, and our South Sound Leadership Conference on March 22, 2025 at the Tacoma Program Center. Both events were filled with inspiring learning opportunities and fun moments that we want to share with you.  Read more…

Women have been summiting mountains and taking the lead at The Mountaineers since the beginning. Of the 151 charter members of The Mountaineers in 1906, 77 were women. With such a strong legacy of women in leadership, we want to celebrate the stories of resilience and honor the challenges that some of our current Mountaineers leaders experience. Read more…

Investing in mental health is foundational to successful risk management and fostering resilience. For this year’s Leadership Development Series, we’re pleased to offer our first ever Mental Health Symposium, in partnership with The Wilderness Chaplains, in honor of Mental Health Awareness Month.  Read more…

In July 2005, six Mountaineers from several different branches set out to climb Sharkfin Tower in the North Cascades National Park. In what was the national park’s worst multi-fatality incident, the group experienced a series of events that resulted in three fatalities and one serious injury, plus trauma for the survivors. Read more…

The Mountaineers South Sound Leadership Conference is a day-long conference held on Saturday, March 22, 2025, at the Tacoma Program Center. We hope you’re able to join us for this engaging and exciting day of leadership development. All are welcome to attend! Read more…

As a climb and course leader, one experience etched in my memory is working with students who are learning to rappel for the first time.  Read more…

I can introduce myself in many ways: a member and volunteer of The Mountaineers, a guide, a rescue specialist, and a Doctor of Education. Beyond these roles, and more importantly, I am a Native American who is a proud member of the Cherokee Nation. As my grandfather would say, “I find myself caught between two fires,” advocating for the rights of Native Americans and the rights of outdoor enthusiasts. Sometimes, these two do not align. There is a lack of representation of Native Americans and other peoples of color in the outdoors. However, one area in which they do align – and can have the most significant impact – is outdoor leadership and education. Read more…

 The Mountaineers is driven by our core value of community. This means that we continually strive to ensure that all feel welcomed and supported as members of The Mountaineers. Did you know that over half the global population menstruates, and 1.1 million people worldwide will be in menopause by 2025? Read more…

The Mountaineers North Sound Leadership Conference is a day-long conference held on Saturday, December 7, 2024, at the Seattle Program Center in Magnuson Park. We hope you’re able to join us for this engaging and exciting day of leadership development. All are welcome to attend! Read more…

Looking for an opportunity to provide leadership for your branch’s vision and goals? Interested in offering key support for the Seattle Branch’s most dedicated volunteers? Ready to assume a Board of Directors position and serve as a liaison for The Mountaineers largest branch? Consider serving as Chair-Elect or as Branch Board of Directors Representative. Read more…

For over 100 years, The Mountaineers has enriched the outdoor community by helping thousands of people explore, conserve, learn about, and enjoy the lands and waters of the Pacific Northwest and beyond. We take pride in that legacy and want to honor our volunteer leaders who make it all possible. Read more…

The Mountaineers is committed to leading innovation in outdoor education. A key component of this commitment is investing in our volunteer leaders, the heart and soul of our vibrant organization. We’re excited to announce new Leadership Development Series seminars that provide high-quality, continuing education opportunities for our current and aspiring volunteers. Read more…

Represent The Mountaineers at this year's Wilderness Risk Management Conference (WRMC). Join us to foster an environment of open dialogue and enhance our organization’s understanding of risk management practices. As a WRMC attendee, you'll acquire valuable skills in risk management, connect with fellow industry experts, share field and administrative techniques, and contribute to the establishment of standards for risk management in outdoor adventure and education. Read more…

Mountaineers staff and volunteers have been aware of gaps in our member and leadership training related to emotional safety for a number of years. Between 2020 and 2024, staff-sponsored Leadership Development Series hosted a number of evening seminars that touched on this topic. In 2023, staff in partnership with the Equity & Inclusion Committee introduced the Emotional Safety in the Outdoors eLearning course that connects the core values of The Mountaineers to these five themes:  Read more…

With the recent release of our annual impact report, we're celebrating all that donors and volunteers made possible through The Mountaineers in 2023.  Read more…

At The Mountaineers, we believe all people should feel belonging in the outdoors and everyone should have opportunities, knowledge, resources, and access to connect with nature. This work stems from our core belief that a diverse and inclusive outdoors inspires unity, respect, and passion for the places we love. Since our last Equity & Inclusion (E&I) Committee update, we’ve been focusing efforts and resources on continuing to lower barriers to get outdoors, providing ongoing training to our leaders, investing in the emotional safety of our participants and community, and more.  Read more…

The Mentored Backpack Leaders course is an exciting, new offering for the Foothills community. The main objective of the course is to provide an additional pathway for branch members pursuing the Backpack Leader badge. Read more…

With the western sun shining brightly on the Seattle Program Center, 122 volunteers, donors, and staff gathered for a Block Party to kick off summer and celebrate their contributions to our outdoor community, celebrate our mission impact, and have a bit of fun, too!  Read more…

As part of The Mountaineers leadership development team, I have the privilege of supporting our impressive collective of 3000+ volunteers. The dedication of our volunteers is incredible, to say the least. The list of their contributions to our community and the greater outdoors has grown significantly over our 117-year history. From planning and guiding activities, to mentoring new Mountaineers, to managing our lodges, it’s clear that our volunteers are generous with their time. While they share a common passion for the outdoors, our volunteers are driven by a range of motivations, such as paying it forward or expanding their adventure partner network. Our leadership development programs enhance these intrinsic rewards and invest back into our volunteers. Read more…

Nearly 200 current and aspiring volunteers turned out at our Seattle Leadership Conference on December 2 for a dynamic day of learning and networking. Outdoor professionals from diverse backgrounds led our community through a series of interactive sessions exploring leadership from multiple angles. Read more…

Note: The Park's timed entry FAQ webpage is the best resource with the most up to date information on how to visit Mount Rainier National Park  during summer 2024.

Last week, Mount Rainier National Park announced that many visitors will need reservations to access the park through popular entrances during peak hours this summer. From May 24 through Labor Day, most visitors entering through the Nisqually and Stevens entrances between 7am and 3pm will need to make an online or phone reservation ahead of time. Reservations will also be required at the White River entrance beginning July 3 and lasting through Labor Day.  Read more…

At The Mountaineers, we strive to create policies and learning environments that foster experiences where all participants feel belonging. To support this goal, we have a Code of Ethics to define expectations for members and leaders for a welcoming, inclusive, and respectful community. We developed these comprehensive policies so that everyone understands our expectations for how we should treat one another and for how we handle complaints of inappropriate behavior.  Read more…