People

“Friluftsliv” is the Scandinavian word for the joys of open-air living, and few capture the heart of this spirit better than longtime Mountaineer and local alpine ski historian Lowell Skoog.  Read more…

For our Leader Spotlight this month we talked to Alina Badus, a volunteer leader with the Seattle Branch who loves seeing trips come together from start to finish, and whose bucket list includes climbing Mount Rainier! Read more…

Reflecting back on the last year, it’s fair to say that it’s been one of the most challenging years in Mountaineers history. In March 2020, COVID-19 related shutdowns caused nearly every aspect of Mountaineers operations to grind to a halt. Our program centers and lodges had to close their doors, we were unable to ship books to retailers and parks, volunteers had to postpone or cancel courses, trips, and events, and youth programs were put on pause. In addition to severely impacting our mission delivery, these program closures created a financial crisis that threatened our very existence. Without taking immediate and aggressive actions, we ran the risk of running out of operational cash reserves by the end of May.  Read more…

A decade ago, The Mountaineers undertook a radical endeavor: to become a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization. This year, we’re celebrating the 10-year anniversary of this important accomplishment and giving thanks to the thousands of donors from all over the world who demonstrate to us every day how small gifts can add up to big change.   Read more…

For our Leader Spotlight this month we talked to Danny Casady, a volunteer leader with the Tacoma Branch who believes leadership is all about building: building character; building up others to their full potential; and building memories one peak, one switchback, and one sunset at a time. Read more…

The Mountaineers is an incredible community of adventurers, students, instructors, advocates, and leaders. As we close the door on 2020 and look ahead to 2021, we reflect on our core values and how they’ve guided us through the past nine months of this pandemic.  Read more…

As we begin 2021, I am humbled by the continued generosity of our Mountaineers community. So many of you choose to donate your time, talents, and treasure in honor of our shared outdoor experience. It’s because of you that we’re ringing in the new year with so much to celebrate! Read more…

As we look back at January 2020, The Mountaineers and Mountaineers Books teams were celebrating the new calendar year, a successful first quarter, and building momentum to deliver on the $9.28M approved operating budget for fiscal year 2020. A year ago today, we celebrated our most successful year-end appeal campaign and were getting ready to  open ticket sales for our 6th annual Gala, where we planned to welcome Sir Chris Bonington and 500 Mountaineers guests to Fremont Studios. The Mountaineers fundraising team was excited to see how the organization’s culture of philanthropy would continue to grow. Little did we know, a storm was blowing in. Read more…

For our Leader Spotlight this month we talked to Steve Payne, a longtime volunteer with the Seattle Branch who recently moved to Olympia and has jumped right in! Read more…

As the year comes to a close, we’ve been reflecting on how grateful we are for the support we receive through The Mountaineers, and as volunteer leaders, we’re committed to the health, safety, and strength of the organization. Though both of us discovered The Mountaineers in different ways, it is a place where we found each other and a community to share our lives with. Here’s a glimpse into the paths that led us to The Mountaineers: Read more…

As the foremost outdoor recreation organization of the Pacific Northwest, The Mountaineers is dedicated to educating and inspiring people of all ages to explore the outdoors and conserve and steward our public lands and waters. When you take advantage of your employer’s Workplace Giving Program, you maximize the impact of your volunteer hours, membership dues and charitable donations, and can double, sometimes triple your impact! Read more…

This year, something incredible happened. Amidst the immense challenges facing our country, a polarized Congress came together to pass a bill called the Great American Outdoors Act. Some called this once-in-a-generation conservation funding bill a “unicorn” - a rare moment of bipartisan cooperation.  Read more…

Taking on the responsibility of Publisher at the start of a global pandemic has been unlike anything I’ve ever experienced. But if our readers have taught me one thing this year, it’s that our independence and our nonprofit mission truly matters.  Read more…

Even though the days are shorter, I hope you are still finding ways to spend time outside and connect with nature. My kids and I have been spending time together on family adventures and enjoying the season's change. I also hope that you and your loved ones are staying healthy and doing as well as possible as we prepare for a long winter ahead. Read more…

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

This #GivingTuesday has blown us away. We’re incredibly grateful for the kindness, support, and generosity of our Mountaineers community. We set our goal for $15,000 and you helped us fly past it, reaching $22,000 by the end of last night. You not only helped us raise over twice as much as we did last year, you added 35 scholarships to the 75 we were hoping  to offer. We set our sights high, and you have once again outdone yourselves. Thank you.  Read more…

For our Leader Spotlight this month we talked to Barbara Folmer, a volunteer leader with the Foothills Branch who first got involved with The Mountaineers to go snowshoeing, and who stayed involved because of the community! Read more…

Scholarships do so much more than offer someone a single course. These outdoor experiences foster community, create future volunteers, and serve as an important bridge between recreation and conservation. Inspiring new conservationists to become advocates - especially those who may not have built those connections otherwise - is immeasurably valuable for our public lands. Read more…

Now more than ever, our small businesses need your support. They’re the ones who help keep your bag dry on rainy nights, your spork full, and your puffies stuffed. If you’re doing any shopping, please consider going local and supporting one of our partners: Read more…

As Mountaineers, we’re intimately connected with wild places. Some of us were introduced to the outdoors through The Mountaineers: a scrambling trip sparked a lifelong love for the North Cascades or a guidebook from Mountaineers Books introduced us to our first hike. Some of us join to deepen our love for the outdoors through new friendships and adventures. Regardless of what brought us here, we're united by our fierce love for the places we explore and our strong desire to protect them. Read more…

We're excited to be partnering with Climbers of Color in support of their mission to create more leaders of color in mountaineering. Established in 2017, Climbers of Color is a Washington State nonprofit that aims to promote diversity, equity, and inclusion in the climbing and mountaineering community by developing leaders of color. To accomplish its mission, Climbers of Color provides supportive mentorship, technical training from BIPOC professional guides, and access to key resources including gear and scholarships. Read more…

For our Leader Spotlight this month we talked to Chase Gruszewski, a volunteer leader with the Kitsap Branch who chairs the Kitsap Climbing Committee and once did a 25 hour epic of Shield Wall on Mt. Washington. Read more…

For nearly 20 years, our conservation imprint Braided River has published stunning multimedia books about the wildest places in North America. In particular, the western Arctic and the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge have been a special focus. Award-winning books like We Are the Arctic and Arctic National Wildlife Refuge: Seasons of Life and Land have been used by senators, grassroots groups, and Indigenous tribes to help people experience this remote corner of the world through images and stories, and be inspired to protect it. Read more…

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

It’s always a joy to visit with someone who speaks passionately about the things they love. For Helen Cherullo, her passion is books. Helen’s love is about more than a simple bound text; it’s about imagery and place-based storytelling, and how their subsequent ripple effects move communities to act. Read more…

For our Leader Spotlight this month we talked to Bruce Durham, a volunteer leader with the Tacoma Branch who has ramped-up his paddling during the pandemic. He eventually hopes to lead a series of day trips - 22 of them! - originating at Budd Inlet near Olympia, paddling north through Puget Sound to the Straight of Juan de Fuca, then going west out to Cape Flattery and around to Hobuck Beach. It  will be a 229nm adventure. Read more…

At The Mountaineers, we believe a diverse and inclusive outdoors inspires unity, respect, and passion for the places we love. We also believe that the outdoors is for everyone. As part of our recurring Impact Giving blog series, this month we’re talking about one of our favorite donor-funded outreach efforts: Mountain Workshops. This program increases outdoor access for youth who may not easily have opportunities to enjoy positive experiences in our wild places.  Read more…

For this month's Leader Spotlight, we're changing things up and running a group feature. As a part of this special edition, we talked with Shuko Hashimoto and Christina Buckman, both leaders with the Backpacking Building Blocks (B3) course offered by the Foothills Branch. Read more…

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

In previous years, it has been our tradition to gather our community each spring to celebrate our achievements and support future efforts to transform lives and protect wild places at our annual fundraising gala. This year, however, was a little different.  Read more…