Blog

Advocacy has been an enduring theme throughout The Mountaineers history. In the face of intensifying impacts of climate change and increasing recreational use of public lands, it’s as important as ever that the outdoor community advocate to protect public lands and the outdoor experiences they provide. Read more…

Widely regarded as one of the world’s most legendary alpinists, National Geographic Adventurer of the Year Jeremy Jones is an award-winning snowboarder, environmentalist, and entrepreneur. The founder of climate nonprofit Protect Our Winters (POW) and owner of Jones Snowboards, Jones has starred in dozens of snowboard films, including his highly acclaimed trilogy Deeper, Further, and Higher, and received 11 “Big Mountain Rider of the Year” awards from Snowboarder Magazine. His first book The Art of Shralpinism: Lessons from the Mountains (Mountaineers Books, 2022) explores the life-changing power of time in the mountains, the value of stoke, and how beauty and openness underscore all outdoor adventure. Please enjoy the following excerpt. Read more…

Mountain photography has been a passion of mine for over forty years, but I had little noticed (or perhaps intentionally ignored) mosses. After rejoining The Mountaineers in early 2015 to take the Introduction to the Natural World (INW) Course, I signed up for a few Naturalist activities that were oriented around mosses and lichens on wintertime hikes. I don’t recall wanting to learn about mosses and lichens - I barely knew what the latter were. I just wanted to expand my hiking repertoire. So I joined “moss hikes” on Cougar and Tiger Mountain. Read more…

My hometown of Bozeman, Montana, has four seasons: summer, fall, snow, and mud. Snow season is the longest. While the climate crisis has changed things, as a child I remember planning Halloween costumes based on what would pair well with my snowsuit, and I often celebrated my mid-May birthday in a snowstorm. I spent many a weekend at the local sledding hill sweating my way up (often quitting halfway) and squealing my way down. As such, I consider myself a connoisseur of fun in freezing season. 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…

Over the past 18 months, Mountaineers volunteers have been working to create an Equity and Inclusion (E&I) Leader Toolkit for our community. The E&I Leader Toolkit is designed to help you (our volunteer leaders) foster a culture of belonging in your courses and activities. As part of our organizational commitment to equity and inclusion, we are working to create a Mountaineers where everyone can feel belonging. We hope this toolkit is a helpful resource for the many volunteers requesting more E&I support. Read more…

December's Top Trip Reports catalogs the closing chapter of a truly wonderful and joyous year, despite an end-of-month ice storm that had everyone wondering if they would "make it home for the holidays"!

Read on for some of our favorite trip reports from last month, including a tumultuous sea kayaking trip, arduous scrambles, numerous snowed-in parking lots, a spicy bikepacking trip, and endless smiles!  Read more…

We are just about done tallying our year-end donations and pleased to announce that you have helped raise more than $184,000. This includes a total of $11,000 in matched funds from two different matching challenges, made possible when members like you rose to the occasion. Thank you! Read more…

Meet John Murphy, a Foothills scramble, snowshoe, hiking, and trail running leader, as well as a 2022 Super Volunteer, Key Leader, and Key Instructor. Read more…

Since the inception of our day camps, we’ve had the pleasure of seeing our programs and community grow in breadth and depth. Every season is full of camp magic, laughter, bracelet-making, and outdoor adventure. Historically, camp has had an inevitably stressful registration day as well. In response to feedback provided by camp families, and in an attempt to make the registration process smooth for campers and staff alike, we’ve made the decision to reconfigure registration for our Seattle Day Camp offerings.  Read more…

Although snow-capped mountains and freshly-groomed trails dominate the public imagination this time of year, not all winter activities are snow-centered. This is especially true in the Pacific Northwest, where we have an abundance of activities to enjoy year-round with just a few modifications. In celebration of The Mountaineers diverse offerings throughout all four seasons, we connected with a few of our volunteers to learn how they continue to stay active throughout the chilliest months. Read more…

The Mountaineers is an incredible community of outdoor enthusiasts, students, instructors, advocates, and leaders. We are inspired by our community’s dedication to fostering connections to the outdoors. As we close the door on 2022 and look ahead to 2023, we reflect on our core values and how they’ve guided us through this past fiscal year. Read more…

Mountaineers from all branches, their guests, and community members are invited to join the Olympia Mountaineers on the first Wednesday of each month from November 2022 through March  2023 for our much-loved Adventure Speaker Series! Olympia Mountaineers have hosted this amazing free event for many years, and are pleased to be able to return this year with a line up of new and familiar speakers. Read more…

Like all Mountaineers, our Super Volunteers delight in small moments of frivolity. A cold beverage shared between a paddler and a powerboat. Playing lighthearted pranks during an Urban Walk. Watching the magnificent, performative hunt of a short-eared owl. Community-based fun is the heartbeat of The Mountaineers. Read more…

One of the first impulses we have while recreating outdoors is to take a photo. We want to share the exhilaration of our alpine scrambles, the warmth of alpenglow on an early morning snowshoe, or the unexpected wildlife dotting our hiking trails. We photograph because we have a deep connection to these natural places and we want others to experience that connection, too. Read more…

On Monday, January 9, The Mountaineers will be hosting a Pop-Up Donor Center with Bloodworks Northwest at the Seattle Program Center from 9am-3pm. Read more…

There is just one day left to make your 2022 donation to The Mountaineers. The funds raised this season will help youth find their inner confidence, equip advocates to speak up for wilderness and public lands, and ensure that outdoor education is available to all.  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…

I know it's a busy season, so I will get straight to the point: we need your help to raise $200,000 by the end of this month so that The Mountaineers community can go farther in 2023. If you have found value in programs or books at The Mountaineers, will you consider making a donation this holiday season? Read more…

Are you dreaming of outdoor adventures or trying to enhance your skills?  Members and non-members are invited to spend an evening learning about upcoming Olympia Mountaineer programs and activities.  This is a great opportunity to meet with activity leaders and ask any questions you have about course offerings.  They will have information about what it takes to get started, the gear you will need, course schedules, and more.  Read more…

Many years ago, I spent my first snow camping trip on the Skyline Lake Trail opposite Stevens Pass Ski Resort. As we settled in for the night, I could see the slopes across the valley light up for night skiing and hear alpine music playing. Our side of the mountains was quiet and dark. I was a downhill skier at the time, and was charmed by the difference. Read more…

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

After three years, The Mountaineers annual Volunteer Appreciation Night is back in-person. Last year, we pivoted to a virtual event and had a wonderful time recognizing our 2021 Volunteer Award Recipients. Read more…

We’ve heard from many members expressing concern about this winter’s weekday closure of the Longmire to Paradise Road in Mount Rainier National Park. We share those concerns for the loss of winter recreation access, and we are sympathetic to the staffing challenges the Park is currently facing. Read more…

I adore this time of year. The comforting contrast of dark green cedars against bright snow. Breathing in the crisp air. Feeling the grounding weight of an extra full pack while I let my mind float to a cold winter sky. Coming home with rosy cheeks, kicking snow off my boots at the door, and feeling the warmth of a fire embrace me like a bear hug. I experience so much joy in the winter when I am able to get outside and then return home. This joy heals and sustains me. Read more…

I grew up in New Hampshire, a state not known for agreeable weather. An old local saying boasts that in New Hampshire we have 11 months of winter and one month of damn poor sledding. While the climate has changed and winters have become milder (the winters of my youth were truly much colder, snowier, and longer), an abundance of snowy and cold days continue to make New Hampshire and other northern states tough places to live. Read more…

Last year we announced that The Mountaineers is leading Outdoor Alliance Washington (OA Washington), a network of organizations representing the human-powered outdoor recreation community in Washington State. The goal of OA Washington is to forge strong relationships with lawmakers and land managers so that we can effectively advocate for shared conservation, recreation, and climate priorities. By amplifying the voices of more than 75,000 hikers,  paddlers, climbers, backcountry skiers, and mountain bikers across the state, we can achieve a more sustainable future for Washington’s outdoors. Read more…

As I sit down to write a year-end letter to the readers of Mountaineers Books, I’m trying to envision who exactly I am writing to, who is reading this? Are you a climber, a sea kayaker, a mountain biker? Are you a lover of mountaineering literature or do you collect books of nature photography? 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…

For many of us who live in the PNW, outdoor experiences on public lands have provided us with opportunities to connect to nature, experience joy and belonging in the outdoors, and adventure with purpose. As a kid in Seattle, accessible parks and trails shaped some of my best memories. Hiking under old growth cedars at Discovery Park and along the coastal dunes of Grayland Beach State Park ignited my joy and connection to nature. Read more…