The Mountaineers
This is our second year hosting Our Parks | Your Adventure - a “choose your challenge” adventure fundraiser benefiting Mountaineers youth programs. It was designed to inspire our community to get outside and celebrate our wild places while doing good for the next generation of Mountaineers. We're halfway through the challenge and are pleased to bring you these stories from four of our adventurers who have completed their challenge (and nearly met their fundraising goals)!
The Vogl Boys
The Vogl boys are James (20), Thomas (19), and Joe (17), all budding Mountaineers on their way to being strong, competent climbers. They love the outdoors almost as much as their dad, Tom Vogl (undisclosed) who just so happens to be the CEO of The Mountaineers.
For their challenge, the Vogl boys set out to climb the Emmons Route on Mount Rainier to raise $1,000 for Mountaineers youth programs. AND THEY DID IT! Not only did they reach the summit, but they exceeded their fundraising goal. Way to go Vogl Boys!
gAVIN & rICHARD
Gavin and Richard are both ultrarunners who have done incredible feats. Last year, Gavin completed the first ever Rainier Infinity Loop for OPYA, and Richard completed his own volcano circumnavigation-summit project he called Dick's RASH. They met through the running community and are both passionate Mountaineers, and they decided to team up for this year's OPYA challenge.
For their challenge, they sought to complete the Tatoosh Traverse: 12-peaks in a single day, often done as a 2-day trip to collectively raise $5,000 for youth programs. They just completed a scouting trip at the end of June, visiting 6 of the 12 peaks, as preparation for their final outing. Below are some incredible pictures from their adventure in which they ticket off Stevens, Boundary, Unicorn, Foss, Castle, and Pinnacle in the Tatoosh. They still have some ground to cover with their fundraising goal, and are working their way to the "summit" as always.
Miles & Imran
Miles and Imran met in our Intermediate Climbing course in 2010, and quickly became fast friends. In the last 7+ years, they've had many adventures together. For Imran's bachelor party, they ran 76 miles from Stevens Pass to Snoqualmie on the PCT... in under 27 hours. It's safe to say they're no strangers to suffering, or as they call it, "Adventure!".
For their challenge, they attempted the Ptarmigan Ski Traverse (with an ascent of Formidable along the way) in a 2-days to raise $500 for Mountaineers youth programs. This weekend, they completed the traverse! Imran called it "some of the most remote, beautiful country I've ever seen." And they're 40% to their goal of $500.
Kristina & Theresa
Kristina is a self-proclaimed tutu enthusiast who has skied the last 68-consecutive months, mostly while wearing a pink tutu. She claims she would never climb mountains if she weren't able to ski down them, and she's done all of the Pacific Northwest's major volcanoes...save for one.
For her challenge, Kristina convinced her friend Theresa to attempt a third try for the summit of the Glacier Peak. At 17 miles one-way, the approach is long and Kristina has been skunked by navigational issues and a stubborn lenticular in the past, but this time they made it! After 19 hours and too many miles, she and Theresa skied off the summit of Glacier Peak, and she's 51% of the way to her $1000 fundraising goal.
Elliott, Lucia, and Everyone Else
Many of our adventurers have months-long goals and are continuing to make progress toward mileage and elevation goals throughout the challenge, and some have their challenge dates looming ahead. We're so inspired by the stories of all of our adventurers, and we hope you take a few minutes to meet them and support their challenges:
- Anita, hiking 7-miles on brand new knees to raise $750
- Becca, citizen-sciencing to raise $2,500
- Ben, riding a solo, self-supported, 350 mile trek around the Olympic Peninsula to raise $500
- Carrie & Hannah, paddling across Ross Lake to Desolation Peak to celebrate Hannah's 5-year cancer-free anniversary and raise $1,000 to help other kids have a fun life
- Elliott, walking every trip listed in the book Seattle Walks and reviewing each walk to raise $1,000
- Emily, thru-hiking the South Sierra High Route to raise $1,000
- Kathy, doing the Double Traverse of the Whatcom Pass Expedition in the North Cascade Mountain Range to raise $500
- Leone, Jen, Sara, Katie, & Ada, biking to raise $1,000
- Lucia, hiking in Alaska, Southern California, and Germany to raise $500
- Michael, climbing Mt. Shasta to raise $500
- Ras, completing a project he calls the RAS Traverse, where he'll traverse the summit of Rainier and Adams and end on the summit of St. Helens to raise $5,000.
- Sean, climbing Prusik Peak in a day to raise $500
- Shaun & Elaine, exploring the Picket Range to climb West McMillan Spire to raise $1,000
- Steve, climbing the highest peak in Iceland to raise $750
- Tess, Michael, Mark, & Hadi, exploring the remote Ha-Iltzuk Ice Field in Canada to raise $1,500
