Conservation Blog

On Wednesday, the National Park Service (NPS) announced that it’s discontinuing development of its proposal to restrict the use of fixed anchors in Wilderness. This is a huge victory for the climbing community. If enacted, the policy would have prohibited the use of new and existing bolts, slings, and pitons in Wilderness areas, upending decades of precedent and compromising safe and reliable access to iconic Washington summits like Unicorn Peak and Mt. Shuksan.  Read more…

We’re excited to share that in the final days of the 118th Congress, lawmakers came together in bipartisan fashion to pass the EXPLORE Act and send it to the President’s desk to become law. The legislation is a first-of-its-kind package of bills to improve recreation and increase and enhance outdoor access on federal public lands.
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To continue growing a community of Mountaineers who adventure with purpose as outdoor advocates, our conservation team connected with Advocacy 101 course graduates and other conservation-minded Mountaineers virtually on Nov 20. As more Mountaineers seek new opportunities to flex their advocacy muscle, events like these prepare us for greater collective impact. Read more…

Growing up backpacking with my family in the Cascades and Olympics, I was introduced to our magnificent Northwest forests at a young age. Those summer trips where I collected pinecones and roasted s’mores over the campfire fostered my love for recreating in these iconic landscapes. These days, trail running and backcountry skiing through the same forests remind me why I was called to conservation work and the role the recreation community can play in protecting our lands and waters through outdoor advocacy. Read more…

One special evening earlier this year, I found myself in a moment of transcendent wonderment. I was at Bruni’s Snow Bowl Hut, surrounded by warm air, majestic views of Tahoma, and the soft hues of a setting sun. My three-year-old gleefully devoured his first s’more with sticky hands and my one-year-old watched the campfire’s sparks with wide-eyed wonder. My husband’s hand in mine, and the laughter of our friends and their children, rounded out a precious and poignant experience. Read more…

It’s safe to say that just about any recreationist can find their next adventure on Washington State Department of Natural Resources (DNR)-managed lands. Whether you’re tackling a strenuous ascent of Mailbox Peak, honing your sport climbing skills at Exit 38, or enjoying a trail run in the Issaquah Alps, you’re recreating in areas managed by the DNR.  Read more…

Over the last several months, we shared our opposition to Washington ballot initiative 2117 and engaged in advocacy to defeat it because we strongly believe that we must continue to fight the climate crisis here in Washington state and beyond. Read more…

“Don’t get distracted by the bells and buzzers you’ll hear going off in congressional offices,” warned Cheri Bustos on our first day of in-person training for Outdoor Alliance’s Grasstops Collective. Former Representative Bustos (IL-17) was referring to the sounds and lights used in Congress to summon members to votes and quorum calls; she was just the first of three speakers to prepare us for the potential disturbance to our planned meetings with members of Congress. Read more…

The Mountaineers is partnering with the Sacred Lands Conservancy, an Indigenous-led nonprofit with strong ties to the Lummi Nation, to produce a series of educational pieces on the importance of mindful recreation and how we can all develop deeper connections to the histories of our natural places. Tah-Mahs Ellie Kinley is a Lhaq’temish fisherwoman who has previously served as an elected member of Lummi Nation’s Fisheries and Natural Resource Commission. She is President of the Sacred Lands Conservancy. This final blog from her, written in collaboration with SLC’s Julie Trimingham, shares about the history and meaning of Indigenous place names with a focus on two of our region’s mountains. Read more…

The Pacific Northwest is defined by its U.S. Forest Service lands. The agency manages nearly 25 million acres of public lands in Washington, Oregon, and Northern California, from the dizzying heights of Mt. Baker to the awe-inspiring Multnomah Falls. Much of the important on-the-ground management work - maintaining trails, cleaning bathrooms, and fighting wildfires - falls on the shoulders of seasonal or temporary employees.  Read more…

The Mountaineers 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 the dedication and thoughtful actions of our whole community. On Wednesday October 9, we gathered for An Evening of Advocacy, the annual event that highlights and invites people to support the work of our Conservation & Advocacy programs.  Read more…

Each year, The Mountaineers joins our Outdoor Alliance (OA) partners in Washington, D.C., uniting with leaders in the human-powered outdoor community to advocate together with lawmakers and land managers for shared conservation and recreation priorities. While we engage in coordinated advocacy with OA throughout the year, meeting with decision-makers in person builds support for outdoor advocacy on a larger scale. Read more…

When I look back on my first three years working to grow a culture of conservation throughout The Mountaineers, one phrase remains top of mind: “conservation powered by outdoor recreation.” I can’t take credit for this catchy moniker; it’s a mantra of our partners at Outdoor Alliance (OA) – a national coalition of human-powered outdoor recreation organizations working to conserve America’s public lands and waters. As a member of OA, The Mountaineers harnesses our shared passion for the outdoors to help conserve the places we love, leading to a compelling and impactful flavor of advocacy. Read more…

Mountaineers have always been fierce advocates for the natural world. Thanks to early Mountaineers, we helped to protect and establish Olympic National Park, North Cascades National Park, and the Alpine Lakes Wilderness. Today, conservation advocacy remains central to our mission and is a key strategic priority. Read more…

As a recreationist adventuring in the Pacific Northwest, you know how the eastern slope forests, grasslands, and shrub steppe of central Washington offer special ways to experience the outdoors through recreation. Visitors and residents alike cherish the opportunity to paddle the Tieton and Yakima rivers, climb the Royal Columns near Tieton, and hike and mountain bike trails that crisscross a unique and diverse landscape.  Read more…

The Park's public comment period is now closed. The Mountaineers submitted comments sharing feedback we received from our leaders on timed entry. Stay tuned for more opportunities to shape visitor use management at Mount Rainier National Park.

Visiting Mt. Rainier National Park has felt a little different this summer. For the first time in the park’s history, many visitors are required to purchase a timed entry reservation to enter during peak visitation hours. While the pilot reservation system ends Labor Day 2024, the long-term use of timed entry in the park hangs in the balance. Read more…

The growing impact of wildfire and smoke on Washington's lands, waters, and communities increasingly affects our outdoor experiences. With the wildfire season in full force this summer, fires continue to burn and affect communities across Washington, including in the North Cascades and in the Yakima Valley.  Read more…

Have you visited the new Denny Creek - Franklin Falls trailhead yet this summer? This popular, family-friendly destination near Snoqualmie Pass has long been overcrowded with unsafe parking behavior. Thanks to investments from the Great American Outdoors Act (GAOA), this parking lot got a major upgrade. GAOA was passed in 2020, thanks in large part to the outdoor recreation community. The passage and implementation of the GAOA in Washington continues to be a shining example of what we can achieve when we advocate together on behalf of more than 75,000 human-powered recreationists across the state.
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The Enchantments - a treasured landscape for our community - is home to some of the most breathtaking backcountry recreation opportunities in Washington state. In the midst of all this natural beauty, though, you might stumble upon an unexpected feature: human-made dams.  Read more…

Each October, the Olympia Mountaineers gather to celebrate the work we have done, the fun we had, and the friendships we made during the program year. Read more…

Our shared lands and waters - the places where Mountaineers gather, learn, and recreate - are the traditional lands of the Pacific Northwest Indian Tribes. These peoples have been here since time immemorial, are still here, and continue to steward and maintain cultural and legally-protected connections to their ancestral lands. Read more…

At Mt. St. Helens National Volcanic Monument, Scotch broom is considered a noxious weed, displacing native species and altering natural habitats from open, light-filled systems to dense shrub land where nothing else will grow. The Olympia Mountaineers are actively organizing work parties to eradicate Scotch broom, maintaining the monument’s biodiversity and habitat health. Read more…

When it comes to building support for our advocacy priorities, there’s no substitute for recreating together with lawmakers and land managers out on public lands. Washington state’s congressional delegation is filled with champions of conservation and recreation, and Senator Patty Murray tops that list. Earlier this week, I joined partners from the Forest Service and the Wild Olympics Campaign to hike the Gray Wolf Trail on Olympic National Forest with Senator Murray, where we discussed her Wild Olympics Bill. Read more…

In June, Braided River launched Big River: Resilience and Renewal in the Columbia Basin - a stunning photography book and engagement campaign spotlighting the Columbia River watershed. The Pacific Northwest’s largest river system - called the Big River by many Indigenous nations of the West - covers a landscape the size of France, beginning in the Canadian Rocky Mountains and ending at the ocean mouth, near Astoria, Oregon.  Read more…

As an organization that cares deeply about a healthy future for our lands, waters, and communities, we have an obligation to respond to the climate crisis by aggressively reducing our impact on the environment. The Mountaineers is committed to reducing our organizational carbon footprint, toward the ambitious goal of achieving net zero carbon emissions for our facilities and operations. Read more…

As we experience worsening impacts of the climate crisis on our lands, waters, and communities, we must do more to respond to this urgent threat. The future of our organization and the planet depend on bold climate action and climate-resilient public lands and waters. Climate action and the reduction of The Mountaineers carbon footprint are prioritized in our current strategic plan and our organizational net zero vision. Read more…

Each week we bring you a personal story from one of our members. For our member profile this week we talked to three retiring members of the Olympia Branch Stewardship and Conservation Advisory Team (SCAT). These dedicated individuals have been instrumental in guiding The Mountaineers stewardship efforts over the past 25 years. As they step into retirement, we recognize their remarkable contributions to conservation and stewardship. Read more…

With the recent release of our annual impact report, we're celebrating all that donors and volunteers made possible through The Mountaineers in 2023.  Read more…

Growing up in Seattle, I wasn't fully aware of the human-caused impacts on our environment, nor did I understand our responsibility to give back to our shared home until an elementary school field trip taught me about the impact our stormwater systems have on local salmon populations. Picking up trash with my classmates and spray-painting stencils of salmon near storm drains around our local watershed remains imprinted in my mind, reminding me of the interconnectedness of nature and our charge to steward it. Read more…

To continue to grow a community of Mountaineers who adventure with purpose as conservation advocates, we came together virtually on June 4 to share the latest policy updates from our conservation team. As we discussed progress on our federal conservation priorities and how our members can best advocate for the outdoors, we heard your passion for protecting the Northwest’s special outdoor places and creating a better climate future for all. Our members’ dedication to and engagement in conservation drives our staff-led advocacy and encourages us to create more opportunities for our community to learn and advocate together. Read more…