Alpine Scrambling Course

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This course is giving preference to Kitsap, Olympic Peninsula and Gig Harbor area people. If you live outside of the area please message the course leader to be added to the waitlist.

Alpine scrambling is non-technical climbing of ridges, peaks, and mountains. Although, for someone coming from traditional basic trail hiking, it may feel technical as we add a few new skills to your strengths. Ropes are not usually necessary but are brought along for those occasional situations that a level of protection is desired or required. Glacier travel is not part of alpine scrambling.

Trips with the Mountaineers are one to several days long. With the Kitsap Branch, many of our scrambles are to locations in the Olympic Mountains. As a Scramble Course graduate and a member of the Mountaineers you will have the ability to sign up for scrambles with any of the Mountaineer's branches.

No prior experience is required. Although, a background in hiking and backpacking will be greatly beneficial. Scrambling is the next level.

Generally speaking, good physical fitness is expected. This doesn't mean you need to be in peak physical condition, but you should be in good enough shape to carry a 25-pound pack up and down a trail similar to Mount Walker (2,000 ft and 4 miles RT) in less than 2.5 hours. If you're unsure about your fitness level, please contact us for further guidance before signing up for the course. Your conditioning is your responsibility outside of the course, and we want to ensure fairness to everyone who takes it. This course is not designed to bring you into condition, but there are many hikes offered through the Mountaineers that you can use for conditioning. The course will also cover how to match your fitness level with your climbing goals.

In this course, you'll learn about choosing the right equipment, preparing for a scramble, and developing rock and snow skills specific to the alpine scrambling environment. You'll also learn how to manage risk in the backcountry and basic navigation and route finding (since much of scrambling occurs off the trails). However, thorough navigation education will be covered in a separate navigation course (required for graduation). A separate Wilderness First Aid course is also required for graduation, but we will spend some time discussing basic mountain maladies and concerns. Additionally, a day-long stewardship activity through the Mountaineers or a recognized nonprofit is required to graduate. Finally, we'll teach you how to travel in the fragile alpine environment while minimizing damage to the area we all love. While not required for graduation, being able to overnight in the wilderness is an incredibly empowering skill set. We'll touch briefly on this subject during the course as well.

SCHEDULE

BEFORE THE CLASS BEGINS the leader will email students with required reading and information about the class. This is necessary to get everyone on the same page when we all enter the course at the first lecture. You will need to go over this information before coming to class.

The course schedule is as follows:

Class sessions are held at the Kitsap Branch Program Center in Bremerton from 630 pm to 9 pm.

GRADUATION REQUIREMENTS

1. Participate in and show competence at all class/"lectures" and field trips.
2. Navigation Course (offered separately)
3. Wilderness First Aid Course (offered separately)
4. Successful completion of three Mountaineers led scrambles (including at least one "rock" and one "snow" rated trip)
5. Stewardship Credit

NOTE: If you cannot achieve the required scrambles in one year, an extension may be granted if you are continuing to accumulate mountaineering experience