Most Popular Blogs

Most Popular Blogs

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10 Essential Questions: Kirk Myers

Each week we bring you a personal story from one of our members. For our member profile this week we talked to... Read more…

What's Your Eleventh Essential? Celebrating the Ten Essentials

The last patch of shade disappears in a wavering blue line, distorted by the heat. I sit on the scorching sand in exasperation. We are still five miles from the car, and I feel like garbage. I’m dizzy, a bit nauseous, and have a headache. After a year of hiking in the Northwest, I’ve forgotten about the unrelenting desert sun and my 2.5 liters of water was not nearly enough... I am dehydrated, and badly. Read more…

10 Essential Questions: Juliet Liu

Each week we bring you a personal story from one of our members. For our member profile this week we talked to .... Read more…

10 Essential Questions: Sowmya Mahadevaiah

Each week we bring you a personal story from one of our members. For our member profile this week we talked to .... Read more…

Five Questions for PCT Hiker and Author Philip Kramer

We got in touch with author Philip Kramer to ask him a few questions about writing his recent book,  Hiking the Pacific Crest Trail: Northern California. Here's what he had to say. Read more…

Global Adventures Info Session - Nov 1

Have you ever wanted to explore the world with a group of active, capable outdoorspeople? Or are you a trip-planning master hoping to share your skills and knowledge with a group of excited participants? Join us for our upcoming Global Adventures Info Session on November 1 to learn all about our program!  Read more…

Backcountry Film Festival - Jan 7, 9, and Feb 4

Grab your outdoor bucket list and adventure buddies to tune into a night of human-powered winter celebration, with ten edge-of-your-seat films celebrating backcountry skiing and other adventures! Read more…

Creating Conservationists: Our Voice

To truly care about something, it has to have impacted you intimately. It’s that personal connection that gives us the impetus to act. Read more…

National Parks Through the Eyes of a Fourth-Grader

“Look Mom!” I cried. “Bison!”

We were heading to the geysers [in Yellowstone National Park], but when we rounded the corner we saw a field of bison.

We could see a calf fighting its sibling, each one tumbling into the dust. We could see the bulls wallowing in the mud pits. We could even see the cows looking after the calves. It was an amazing sight seeing the bison covering that field like ants covering honey.

That’s one of the many exciting memories Samuel Tinker shared with me. Read more…

The Arctic Refuge at 60: An Excerpt from “Arctic National Wildlife Refuge: Seasons of Life and Land”

This December marks the 60th anniversary of the establishment of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, and  for nearly 20 years, our conservation imprint Braided River has been publishing stunning books about this special place. These books serve as the visual foundation for advocacy campaigns to protect the Arctic from oil and gas development, climate change, and other threats. The Arctic National Wildlife Refuge is under imminent threat of oil and gas leasing as soon as January 2021 by the federal administration (learn more at Protect the Arctic and make your voice heard).  Read more…

Hunting for Watermelon Snow: A citizen science project to track snow algae and its environmental effects

The incongruous streaks of red and pink on the snowfield look like faint blood stains across the side of the mountain. I quicken my pace, excited to finally find my quarry after two days of hiking in the Goat Rocks Wilderness. I step gingerly onto the snow and head straight for the darkest patch of red as I pull a sample tube out of my pocket. I fill it with the vibrant, pink-tinted snow, screw on the cap tightly, and label it with my coordinates. This small vial, which at first glance looks like a prop in a bad horror movie, is filled with tiny bits of algae that live a fascinating life in the mountains – one that is tied to the larger stories of climate change in our home ranges. Read more…

To Everest and Beyond - Tom Hornbein Reflects on Life and Mountains

As Tom Hornbein stood in the shadow of Everest, he knew getting to the top wasn’t enough. He wanted more.

In 1963, Tom was a member of a sponsored expedition designed to send the first Americans to the summit of the highest peak in the world. The strategy was clear: climb the South Col route first established by Edmund Hillary and Tenzing Norgay in 1953. While summiting via the South Col was far from a guarantee, the proven route was their best chance.  Read more…

Empowering A Generation of Climbers - An Interview with Lynn Hill

I don’t watch much television these days, but I had a TV in my bedroom growing up. It was a 13” set with a built-in VHS tape player. Weighing in at a svelte 27lbs, it fit perfectly between the two front seats of our minivan, plugged into the to the cigarette lighter to provide entertainment for my sisters and me on road trips. When you live in Montana, everything is a long car ride away.  Read more…

Blake Herrington: Cascades Rock - March 22

We're excited to welcome local climber and author Blake Herrington to Washington's cadre of self-published guidebook authors! You've seen his work in AlpinistClimbing, and Rock & Ice magazines as well as numerous websites and newspapers. And he's just completed a new guidebook, Cascades Rock: The 160 Best Multipitch & Alpine Routes in Washington  and Southern BC. Join us on March 22 as he presents his new guidebook at the Seattle Program Center.  Read more…

Now Offering Wilderness First Responder Courses and Recerts

Starting in Spring 2016, The Mountaineers will be offering Wilderness First Responder and Wilderness First Responder Recertification courses!  Read more…

Crag climb next fall in Kalymnos, Greece with Loni Uchytil!

Ever dreamed of climbing a crag over the deep blue Mediterranean and dropping into the warm sun-speckled water? Riding a scooter every day to climb another fantastic 5.8-5.9 face? Check out next fall's Mountaineers rock climbing adventure to Kalymnos Greece led by long-time crag leader Loni Uchytil!  Read more…

A Look Inside "Adventure Ready" & Downloadable Trip-Planning Checklist

Adventure Ready: A Hiker's Guide to Planning, Training, and Resilience, by Katie Gerber and Heather Anderson, empowers future thru-hikers to create goals, face challenges, and be stronger and smarter on the trail. Read more…

2nd Annual Baker Lodge Summer Weekend - Aug 9-11

The photography and naturalists committees are teaming up again this year for our second annual at Baker Lodge. Last year was so much fun, in spite of the rainy weather, so we're doing it again! This is a great opportunity to share our love of the outdoors together and develop an enhanced sense of connection, and we hope you'll join us! Read more…

Progressive Climbing Education - A multi-year plan

In mid-2016, The Mountaineers Board of Directors voted to allocate funds to begin a project called Progressive Climbing Education. The goal was to dedicate resources to advance the goals and initiatives  of our passionate volunteers. Done well, these strategic investments will make our suite of volunteer-led Climbing Programs more fun for volunteers to run, easier to recruit volunteers for, more attractive to new climbers (especially those coming out of the gym), and more advanced for our highly-skilled volunteers and students.

On January 12, 2017, the Board of Directors ratified a multi-year Progressive Climbing Education Plan and approved $131k to fund the first phase of work in 2017.  Read more…

A Mountain for All Ages

As a group of 6-year-old Junior Mountaineers campers was walking toward the waterfront at Magnuson Park, the volunteer counselor pointed out, “Look! There’s Mount Rainier!” To which one camper replied, “Hey that’s like us! We’re the Junior MountRainiers!” It was a cute play on words and a great metaphor for the awe the mountain inspires and the way our volunteers can use it to encourage kids to dream of big goals. Read more…

Shorebird Identification Seminar & Trip Report - Sep 13

Become a beach-side naturalist in our upcoming seminar designed to help you develop your shorebird identification skills. Offered by the Seattle Naturalist Committee on Sep 13 at 7pm, Introduction to Shorebirds of the Pacific Northwest will open your eyes to the stunning beauty of our local shorebirds.  Read more…

Stevens Lodge Stewardship Weekend - June 24-26, 2022

Are you looking for a fun and rewarding stewardship experience? Join us for a weekend at Stevens Lodge to give back Friday, June 24 through Sunday, June 26. You can join for one or more days to help tear out an old bathroom and prepare it for a much-needed remodel. We will also clean out the lodge of 40+ year of accumulated junk.  Read more…

Seattle Mountaineers Youth Clubs 2020-21: New Member Meetings & Registration

As summer comes to an end, many of us are focused on how to enjoy the last of the sunshine while staying socially distant. At The Mountaineers, we're gearing up for a new season of youth programming to keep our young members outside and engaged! Registration opens this month. Don't miss your chance to sign your kids up for a year of learning and exploration.   Read more…

Mountaineer of the Week: Dave Foong

Each week we bring you a personal story from one of our members. For our member profile this week we talked to... Read more…

10 Essential Questions: Andy Tangsombatvisit

Each week we bring you a personal story from one of our members. For our member profile this week we talked to... Read more…

Did You Know? DIY Snowshoes

Getting new winter gear is usually great for the ego and painful for the bank account... but it doesn’t have to be. Did you know you can make your own snowshoes? And for quite cheap, too. Read more…

2022 Impact Report: Creating a Culture of Belonging

With the recent release of our annual impact report, we're celebrating all that donors and volunteers made possible through The Mountaineers in 2022. 

When I joined The Mountaineers, I didn’t expect to become so fully immersed — taking courses, instructing, leading trips, and
volunteering on committees. My climbing partners who shared adventures with me in the mountains became lasting friends off
the mountain. My outdoor community simply became my community. Read more…

2022 Impact Report: Strengthening Our Voice as Advocates

With the recent release of our annual impact report, we're celebrating all that donors and volunteers made possible through The Mountaineers in 2022. 

For more than 100 years, The Mountaineers has connected people in the outdoors. I’ve had the honor of building relationships with Mountaineers near and far, young and old, daring, mindful, good-humored, and passionate. I’ve been a student, colleague, mentor, and team member. And in each of these roles, I have deepened my relationship to the place that is my home. In fellowship and visitation, I have put down soggy Northwest roots and learned to love more corners of this wild and amazing planet than I ever knew existed. Read more…