News & Events

Brendan Leonard bought the url semi-rad.com for $29 in 2011, intending to write a weekly post about adventure for a year and see what happened. Almost nine years later, his writings on Semi-Rad.com are read by half a million people each year, and even more in his Semi-Rad column for Outside magazine. Read more…

Did you know that The Mountaineers have been leading international adventure activities since the 1960s? Since our beginnings we've taken members on 220 different adventures, trekking, hiking, backpacking, climbing, scrambling, and skiing to over 25 different countries and on nearly every continent. Read more…

The Mountaineers would like to welcome you to our first annual Adventure Wellness Weekend! Sponsored by the Foothills Branch Trail Running Committee and located at Meany Lodge, the weekend hosts a multitude of activities designed to allow participants to experience nature in a new way. You can forage for wild plants to eat or grow at home, hike at night, try yoga in natural settings, and more! Read more…

Join us Friday, February 28 for a celebration of and behind-the-scenes look at the upcoming episodes of The Wild with Chris Morgan. This podcast explores how nature survives and thrives alongside (and often despite) humans.  Read more…

In partnership with SheJumps, The Mountaineers is excited to present Pretty Strong, a film following eight of the world’s strongest female climbers as they explore new climbing areas, send hard projects, and push the boundaries of the sport and themselves. Read more…

Celebrate winter with us at the annual Backcountry Film Festival! Held by the Winter Wildlands Alliance and hosted by our Foothills Branch, this exciting annual film fest is sure to get your stoke high and have you itching to get outside.  Read more…

Do you want to learn more about travel photography before your big trip, or just enjoy the gorgeous photos your fellow Mountaineers took on their adventures? Join us for our Behind the Shot series! Created by the Seattle Photography Committee, this series is designed to inspire and educate our fellow photographers.  Read more…

For more than six years, Katherine Hollis has been leading our conservation and advocacy efforts. She's transformed the way we engage in national policy issues, served as an influential and highly-respected voice on important regional work, and has engaged our Mountaineers community in many critical conservation efforts. In January, she'll be leaving The Mountaineers, and we're so grateful for the incredible impact Katherine has made while she was here.  Read more…

"Planned very well, with nicely groomed trails, and clear direction of what to expect," remarked one participant of last year's Methow Winter Trails weekend, when asked about her favorite part of the Mazama trails ski trip. A Sun Mountain trip skier the next day responded, "The weather, the company, and that the leader selected the trails that most fit the group's abilities." Join us this year to explore the Methow and to find your own favorite part! Read more…

For six years, we've hosted the BeWild Speaker Series to bring you stories of passion and adventure. We're excited to announce this year's lineup, which includes the first north american woman to summit Everest, a world-class mountain guide, the creative mastermind and author behind Semi-Rad.com, and the first Indian-American to complete the Seven Summits.  Read more…

Are you dreaming of outdoor adventures or looking to improve your skills? The Olympia Mountaineers can help get you on your way. Join us on January 2, 2020 for our annual Winter Open House. You can meet representatives from our courses and activities who will answer your questions about what it takes to get started, the gear you will need, course schedules, expectations, benefits, and more! Read more…

Charlotte Austin is an award-winning adventure writer and international mountain guide. In her decade of guiding, she's led climbing and mountaineering expeditions in the Himalayas, Alaska, South America, and more. Join us in Olympia November 12, 2019, to hear from Charlotte about how she's turned lessons learned into actionable hands-on tools for safe and successful trips. Read more…

The world-renowned Banff Centre's Banff Mountain Film Festival celebrates its 43rd year, continuing to bring the best action, environment, and adventure films to audiences in Banff and no less than 40 countries across the globe. Join us this Nov & Dec to catch showings in Tacoma (Nov 25-26), Seattle (Dec 4-5), or Olympia (Dec 6-8).  Read more…

As we enter into the rainy season you may notice that there are fewer photography field trips, but that opens the door to more indoor activities and events. In the next few months, we have a photo presentation, two workshops, and  several indoor photography urban adventures to keep you busy. Read more…

Do you want to learn more about travel photography before your big trip, or just enjoy the gorgeous photos your fellow Mountaineers took on their adventures? Join us for our Behind the Shot series! Created by the Seattle Photography Committee, this series is designed to inspire and educate our fellow photographers. This October 23 we explore the incredible forests of western Panama with Thomas Bancroft. Be sure to save the date for our other upcoming presentations. Read more…

John Porter has been called a climber's climber. A member of "the generation that nearly climbed itself into extinction", John currently serves as president of The Alpine Club, the world's first mountaineering club founded in the UK in 1857. John has been a part of many notable first ascents and wrote the biography of famed British mountaineer Alex MacIntryre. Join us to hear John's incredible tales of mountaineering achievement and failures. Read more…

Earlier this summer we hosted a lively summer kick-off party at Mountaineering Club for 200 of our members and supporters. We’d now like to invite you back up to the rooftop for another party – this time in support of The Mountaineers critical conservation and advocacy work. Read more…

The Mountaineers is excited to partner with Tulalip Tribes for a one-day workshop to discuss recreation and treaty rights. This is a unique and special invitation for our community to meet with tribal leaders to learn about their culture and connection to the local landscape. Read more…

The annual banquet is a special yearly event where students, graduates, instructors, and leaders from our Olympia Branch courses and activities come together to celebrate another great year of adventuring in the great outdoors. Read more…

There are 10,000 voices in each of us. One of them is fear. "Voices of Fear" depicts Kristen Ulmer's relationship with fear during her ascendancy as, by all accounts, the first female big mountain extreme skier. Join us for the film and for a special pre-show Fear Management workshop for athletes hosted by Kristen Ulmer. Read more…

Established in 1979, Mountainfilm is dedicated to educating, inspiring, and motivating audiences about environments, cultures, issues, and adventures. We're excited to host these wonderful films again this year, and we hope you'll join us! Read more…

Refuge Outdoor Festival is a 3-day camping experience geared toward people of color. Introduced in 2018, Refuge is "centered on building community through outdoor recreation, conversations (community talks, workshops), music, and art that appeal to a diverse and inclusive audience." The Mountaineers signed on as a sponsor of Refuge because we know affinity spaces are important places to build connections with each other and the outdoors, and we'd like to invite you to participate in this year's festival on behalf of The Mountaineers. Read more…

Join The Mountaineers and Puget Sound Mycological Society at Meany Lodge for our annual Mushroom Weekend October 11-13! It's the perfect place to learn everything you ever wanted to know about mushrooms. Join us as we forage for local mushrooms, learn how to use fungi in and out of the kitchen, cook a variety of exciting mushroom meals, and meet others who love mushrooms just as much as you do!  Read more…

Steve Swenson, a Mountaineers Books Author and member of The Mountaineers Board of Directors, along with alpinists Chris Wright, Graham Zimmerman, and Mark Richey, completed the first ascent of Link Sar (7,041m) in the Central Pakistani Karakoram via its 3400-meter Southeast Face. The object of at least nine previous expeditions, the first ascent of this peak has been a highly sought-after achievement for the climbing community. The team is calling their route the Southeast Face (M6+ WI4 90°, 2,300m), but the grade poorly portrays the challenge of this route that Steve, a Karakoram veteran, calls “one of the most complex and difficult routes I have ever climbed.” Read more…

With great sadness we share the news of the passing of Ann Nelson, an active 25-year member of The Mountaineers community. Ann was with other Mountaineers members on a private trip, completing a backpacking traverse from the Necklace Valley to the West Foss River Valley in the Alpine Lakes Wilderness on Sunday, August 4, 2019, when she lost her footing on loose rock. She did not survive the injuries sustained in the fall. Read more…

The Seattle Photography Committee started the Behind the Shot series last fall with a goal of inspiring others to go on their own photo adventure. These presentations will not only show you gorgeous photos, but will give you information about camera equipment and planning trips. Join us September 24 to explore Costa Rica, and save the date for other upcoming presentations. Read more…

The Olympia Mountaineers invites you to a dedication gathering celebrating Paul Wiseman, the late founder of the Olympia Branch of The Mountaineers who established our branch in 1963 and leaves behind and indelible legacy.  Read more…

No Man's Land Film Festival (NMLFF) is the premier all-women adventure film festival based out of Carbondale, Colorado and on tour internationally. We're excited to host this for the first time in our outdoor theater on Friday, August 30, 2019 at our Seattle Program Center! Read more…

Picnics and Northwest summer evenings are made for each other. It gets even better when you add in active outdoor people, friends and families, a beautiful setting, and great food. Join us for our Summer Picnic to celebrate our community and enjoy the height of summer with your fellow Mountaineers. This is a great opportunity to connect with people you have been training and recreating with this year in a more casual setting. Find out what your friends have been doing, and plan those late summer/fall events!  Read more…

On June 12, 2019, we celebrated the beginning of summer with a kick-off party in partnership with Mountaineering Club. More than 200 Mountaineers made their way to the ‘summit’ of the Graduate Hotel - the stunning rooftop bar with panoramic PNW views - to celebrate another great season of our favorite warm-weather activities. Read more…