Kitsap Branch Blog Posts

Have you ever walked into a space, say a meeting room or a new bar, and known immediately that you were out of place? Read more…

As a 501(c)(3) volunteer-led organization, The Mountaineers depend on the generosity, initiative, and leadership of our volunteers to steward the future of our organization. We are humbled by the service provided by board and branch directors whose positions are confirmed by members each year. Thank you for all you do as members to elevate our mission, and for your participation in the forthcoming election process for these organization-wide leaders. Read more…

We are proud to share our fiscal year 2021 Impact Report, an annual publication highlighting the ways that programs, publishing, and people combine forces to impact our outdoor community and the future of outdoor recreation. Read more…

Together with our End of Summer Bash sponsored by REI Co-op, we’ve raised just shy of $40,000 to support The Mountaineers Conservation and Advocacy program.  Our community has a long and rich history as a regional leader advocating on behalf of the natural world, and our successes would not be possible without your dedication and commitment to protect the places we love. Read more…

The Olympic National Forest draws Mountaineers from all over the region year-round to hike, camp, and experience the natural beauty of the Olympic Peninsula. Whether you’re drawn to peaks like Mount Ellinor or love to hike lush river valleys like the Skokomish, the forest’s five wilderness and twenty developed campgrounds offer something for everyone hoping to experience these iconic old growth forests. Read more…

From craggy summits to windswept beaches, Washington’s lands and waters provide inspiration, connection, and transformative experiences. For more than 115 years, The Mountaineers community has been connected through a passion for these places and a commitment to leave outdoor spaces better than we found them. However, it is important to recognize that the places where we gather, learn, and recreate are the lands of Native peoples who have lived here since time immemorial. Read more…

Each year, we host an annual meeting for our members to share a retroactive tour of our last fiscal year. Members are invited to join virtually to hear about how The Mountaineers is doing, learn more about our strategic planning process and upcoming focus sessions, have the opportunity to ask questions of our leaders. Per our bylaws, the Annual Meeting also allows Mountaineers members to make At-Large Director nominations from the floor for the 2022 election season. Here's the recording from September 13, 2022. Read more…

Recently, my partner and I helped teach the Kitsap Alpine Scrambling Course. We began class with an icebreaker question: “When did you fall in love with the outdoors? And if you’re not sure you’re in love yet, when did the outdoors start to call to you?” The responses varied, and even though we came from vastly different backgrounds, we found we had as much common ground as we had differences. This icebreaker served as an introduction to our 20-minute module on Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI). We continued our conversation by asking a question, in some cases considered the question, then talked about other ways we, as leaders and students, can help foster a culture of belonging for ourselves and each other. Read more…

As a Mountaineers member, you receive free access to our quarterly Mountaineer magazine, keeping you up-to-date with everything our organization and community have been up to. Hear from regular contributors on topics from training exercises to trail tips, and read features from our members sharing stories from the outdoors. We encourage you to access all of our updates, stories, tips, and more in the tree free online magazine today. Read more…

How fitting that this fall's magazine theme would be Trip Reports, because this month’s members absolutely rocked it with theirs! Stories, photos, and beta galore, these reports were a joy to read through, especially because our trip leaders were quite the comedians this time around. Read more…