Mountaineer Magazine

It’s a climber’s nightmare. Last February both members of a 2-party climbing team fell and slid 800’ descending Mt. Stuart, sustaining serious injuries, including head and neck injuries and a broken leg. Yet, within less than four hours they are rescued by helicopter. How did they notify the rescue agency? A satellite notification device.  Read more…

When I joined the Mountaineers, my daughter was two. Since she was born, I’ve been tailoring my adventures to accommodate a baby carrier.  Read more…

Imagine that you’ve just hiked all day over steep and challenging terrain to a beautiful little alpine lake far from the weekend crowds. It’s hot. You’re alone. Off come the clothes. You make a splash and then you hear the whining buzz of an unmanned aircraft — a drone. Read more…

We all know about the therapeutic value of spending time in nature - but nobody practices it better than Mountaineers. Read more…

As he stood at the mouth of Pure Imagination, a newly discovered ice cave on Mt. Hood’s Sandy Glacier, Tyler Jursain felt apprehension. “I don’t even know if we’re welcome here,” he thought, glancing to his partners Dave Perez and Erik Chelstad. They had been planning this trip for months, and now he stood feet from the final destination. Read more…

Of all the Wilderness areas in Washington State, Mount Rainier is by far the most iconic. It was the fifth national park established in the United States — back in 1899. Millions flock there every year to hike, ski, snowshoe, climb or simply take photos. Those who love the outdoors love any excuse to spend more time in this beautiful park.  Read more…

Winter is "in-season" for snow enthusiasts, but "off-season" for everyone else. It's the perfect time to self-assess where you are with your training, set priorities for the next six months, schedule adjustments in your current program, and strengthen your perceived weaknesses — what you can remember as the "Four S's": self-assess, set priorities, schedule, and strengthen.  Read more…

The Mountaineers is deeply saddened by the loss of one our longest standing and most distinguished members: Wolf Bauer - pioneer, first-ascensionist, champion skier, sea kayak course and boat innovator, founder of Seattle Mountain Rescue Council, and esteemed conservationist. Wolf passed away on January 23rd, nearly one month shy of his 104^th birthday. Read more…

We’ve all read stories in the news or Accidents in North American Mountaineering or our annual safety reports of bad things happening to good, smart people, often with years of experience. Read more…

During the past two years, we've worked to connect our community to more digital tools, allowing volunteers to easily manage activity and course information online and enabling members to quickly locate and sign up for activities and courses. Traffic to our website has doubled and we've seen a 115% increase in our members' use of social media. Read more…

Last April, I took Earth Day off to spend the day outdoors with my family. We huffed it up Mt. Si, my longest hike since the birth of our son three months prior. We started hiking when he was about two weeks old, but it was on this hike that he started to really look around and take things in. Mt. Si is such a resource for so many of us in the greater Seattle area: a resource that I appreciated previously as an escape from city living, and appreciate even more as we raise a kid in the city. Access to nature is so critical to all of us. The Land and Water Conservation Fund protected Mt. Si for our use — setting the area aside for conservation and recreation. Read more…

When I turned 6, my parents gave me my first pair of cross country skis. Read more…

Once, a long time ago, when I was just an 18-year-old boy, I ran down the side of a mountain — into the universe. Read more…

Nuts, trail mix, energy bars? They do the trick. But it doesn’t take long for regular snacks like those to become boring and bland. So I went on the search for something full of flavor, but healthy and compact. And something that would sustain me too.  Read more…

On behalf of The Mountaineers, I’d like to wish a very Happy Birthday to our longest standing member: Mary Anderson – a Washington State native, co-founder of REI with her husband Lloyd, one of a handful of Mountaineers instrumental in setting up the climbing course in 1936, and a longtime teacher in the Seattle Public School District. Read more…

I remember the first mountain I climbed. Well, climbed is an overstatement — trudged is better. Dragged myself up is even more accurate. Read more…

My parents met in Steamboat, CO, where my dad was a ski instructor. They moved to Whitefish, MT, where I was born. A Montanan with a ski-instructor father, I like to joke I basically came out of the womb with ski boots on my feet. Read more…

It’s pushing 95 degrees in Portland, and I’m biking home in the uncharacteristic and unforgiving sunshine, squinting even behind my sunglasses. It’s been over 90 all week. Read more…

“I want your job!” 

A sentiment I’ve heard more than the sound of mosquitoes buzzing in my ears in my decade of writing guidebooks. I usually chuckle upon hearing it. But in my mind I’m thinking, “Sure you want my job — and I’d like your six figure salary, plush retirement plan, and Cadillac healthcare plan!”  Read more…

Walking down the steep switchbacks to the creek, I was startled by the sound of a herd of third graders yelling, “I see them! There they are!” I was being particularly careful to focus on the trail and keep a hold not only of my footing but my camera as well. I thought to myself what everyone else was thinking, “Boy, I didn’t bring the right shoes for this trip.” The ground was wet and everyone was excited to keep moving, which made navigating the exposed roots difficult and our trip down to Wildcat Creek slow going. I could feel the anxiousness rising when one boy stopped to tie his shoe. The whole line stopped. I took a breath and looked around at the dewy forest canopy covered in rich green moss. I was on a Salmon Safari.  Read more…

As Mountaineers, we have accessed and experienced some of the most remote areas of this region. Close your eyes and think about where you were on you favorite or most recent trip outdoors. Chances are this trip brought you to some sort of protected land, quite possibly to a federally designated “Wilderness” area, such as the Olympic Wilderness, the San Juan Wilderness, Mount Rainier National Park, Glacier Peak Wilderness, Boulder River Wilderness and more.  Read more…

We have come a long way from the early 1900’s when The Mountaineers advised women to “carry heavy veils to shield their faces from sunburn when on snow” and men used greasepaint to protect their skin. Today, we all wear the same clothes and use the same gear, but you are still more likely to see a man climbing a mountain than a woman. However, the gender gap is decreasing, and the accomplishments of female climbers are now celebrated as proudly as those of their male counterparts. Read more…

Like my first love, I’ll never forget my first grizzly bear encounter. It was highly emotional and intense. Short-lived too, but forever etched into my mind. But unlike my first love, I wish to continue my relationship with grizzly bears into the future. Read more…

Alex Honnold was on an academic and expected track – at least for the type of lifestyle he grew up in. Before his international climbing career, he was at the top of his class in a prestigious high school in Sacramento, California. Berkeley was his next step, with engineering as his major. Read more…

I grew up blind to the American legacy of public lands — an inheritance for all people, regardless of background, language, or creed. I get shivers to think of what my life would be without the rush of climbing mountains in the North Cascades, diving into alpine lakes in the Grand Teton backcountry, or having Elysian Park as a family gathering place for our “Carne Asadas,” our version of a family BBQ. I found my soul in the wild and the heart of my passion within my family in the city of Los Angeles.  Read more…

One of the most important exercises in my own outdoor-conditioning strength program, and indeed in the program of many hundreds of mountaineers I've trained over the past fifteen years, is the one-legged deadlift. Whether you are 8 or 88, you need balance, coordination, and strength. To go faster uphill on foot, include the one-legged deadlift in your program. It will help your glutes, quadriceps, hamstrings, and balancing muscles around the feet, ankles, hips and knees. Read more…

We’re aware some people perceive us as an ‘old guy’s club’. And while that may have been the case 60 years ago when we were inventing methods of climbing the highest and most remote peaks, it just isn’t true anymore. Read more…

Autumn in the Pacific Northwest can be a circle of sun and ice. Mornings of frost-coated leaves melt into blazing sunny days. You may start the day piling on layers of fleece and down, only to find yourself in one short-sleeve shirt by mid-afternoon.  Read more…

Thursday, July 12, 2012. 

It could have been the last day of my life. In fact, I’m still a little surprised it wasn’t. There are certain events that occur in one’s life, to which it’s hard not to attribute supernatural meaning. It being the day before Friday the 13th, I’ve thought perhaps that Thursday was contaminated by the misfortune of its notorious neighbor. I’ve also caught myself half-believing in guardian angels, and, while contemplating other close calls, have wondered whether the Universe is out to kill me, and if so, why it hasn’t succeeded.  Read more…

For over a century, The Mountaineers has inspired conservation and stewardship of our public lands through our outdoor education programs and books. Today, we build on this tradition by taking responsibility for protecting the places that inspire, excite, and challenge us. The Mountaineers is uniquely positioned to define and grow the modern conservation movement by providing powerful outdoor experiences that enable people to gain special connections to these places and the desire to protect them. We instill stewardship and Leave-No-Trace wilderness ethics through the educational components of our courses and provide opportunities to learn and engage in conservation issues – practices that ignite passion and action in current and future generations of conservationists. Read more…