The Colorado Mountain Club (CMC), formed in 1912, is a nonprofit, 501 (c)(3)

outdoor education Outdoor education is organized learning that takes place in the outdoors. Outdoor education programs sometimes involve residential or journey wilderness-based experiences in which students participate in a variety of adventurous challenges and ou ...

organization based in

Golden, Colorado Golden is a home rule city that is the county seat of Jefferson County, Colorado, United States. The city population was 20,399 at the 2020 United States Census. Golden lies along Clear Creek at the base of the Front Range of the Rocky Mountai ...

that gathers and disseminates information regarding

Colorado Colorado (, other variants) is a state in the Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It encompasses most of the Southern Rocky Mountains, as well as the northeastern portion of the Colorado Plateau and the western edge of the ...

mountains A mountain is an elevated portion of the Earth's crust, generally with steep sides that show significant exposed bedrock. Although definitions vary, a mountain may differ from a plateau in having a limited summit area, and is usually higher th ...

in the areas of

art Art is a diverse range of human activity, and resulting product, that involves creative or imaginative talent expressive of technical proficiency, beauty, emotional power, or conceptual ideas. There is no generally agreed definition of wha ...

science Science is a systematic endeavor that builds and organizes knowledge in the form of testable explanations and predictions about the universe. Science may be as old as the human species, and some of the earliest archeological evidence for ...

literature Literature is any collection of written work, but it is also used more narrowly for writings specifically considered to be an art form, especially prose fiction, drama, and poetry. In recent centuries, the definition has expanded to include ...

and

recreation Recreation is an activity of leisure, leisure being discretionary time. The "need to do something for recreation" is an essential element of human biology and psychology. Recreational activities are often done for enjoyment, amusement, or pleasur ...

. The club advocates for the preservation of the alpine regions, and was instrumental in the creation of

Rocky Mountain National Park Rocky Mountain National Park is an American national park located approximately northwest of Denver in north-central Colorado, within the Front Range of the Rocky Mountains. The park is situated between the towns of Estes Park to the east and ...

. The CMC has its own press with over 30 published titles, and has continuously published ''Trail & Timberline'' magazine since 1918.

History

From 25 charter members in 1912, the club rapidly grew to 200 members barely a year later, when the CMC became a

nonprofit A nonprofit organization (NPO) or non-profit organisation, also known as a non-business entity, not-for-profit organization, or nonprofit institution, is a legal entity organized and operated for a collective, public or social benefit, in co ...

corporation. Charter members included such notable historic figures as Enos Mills, Roger Toll, and Carl Blaurock.Hugh E. Kingery, ''The Colorado Mountain Club: The First Seventy-Five Years of a Highly Individual Corporation, 1912 - 1987'',(Cordillera Press, 1988) ] In 1974, the club purchased its first permanent home in

Denver, Colorado Denver () is a consolidated city and county, the capital, and most populous city of the U.S. state of Colorado. Its population was 715,522 at the 2020 census, a 19.22% increase since 2010. It is the 19th-most populous city in the United ...

. In 1993, the CMC partnered with the

American Alpine Club The American Alpine Club (AAC) is a non-profit member organization with more than 24,000 members. Its vision is to create "a united community of competent climbers and healthy climbing landscapes." The Club is housed in the American Mountaineerin ...

to found the American Mountaineering Center in

. The building houses the largest mountaineering library in the world, as well as a state-of-the-art museum, which opened in February, 2008, and is named for famed mountaineer Henry

Bradford Washburn Henry Bradford Washburn Jr. (June 7, 1910 – January 10, 2007) was an American explorer, mountaineer, photographer, and cartographer. He established the Boston Museum of Science, served as its director from 1939–1980, and from 1985 until his d ...

Jr.

Groups

The CMC has a state-level organization along with 14 local groups, serving communities such as Denver, Boulder, Colorado Springs, Pueblo, and Aspen.

Education

The club first ventured into education by forming a mountaineering school in 1939. Today, the club offers classes in a variety of subjects, including wilderness trekking,

nature photography Nature photography is a wide range of photography taken outdoors and devoted to displaying natural elements such as landscapes, wildlife, plants, and close-ups of natural scenes and textures. Nature photography tends to put a stronger emphasis o ...

, mountaineering, climbing, wilderness first aid, fly fishing, and leadership. Classes are taught by volunteers and often involve lectures and field days.

Trips

Members of the club are able to sign up for trips, most of which take place within the state of Colorado. Trips are led by volunteer trip leaders who handle the planning and organization as well as the execution. Trips may include such activities as hiking, climbing, fishing, and photography and are offered at various levels of difficulty. The club's adventure travel program also provides international travel opportunities.

Stewardship

The CMC has a conservation committee that is active in representing hiker interests in the state of Colorado. It also conducts volunteer trail work throughout the state to help maintain and build hiking trails.

Fourteeners

The CMC is the official repository for summit registers on Colorado's popular

fourteeners In the mountaineering parlance of the Western United States, a fourteener is a mountain peak with an elevation of at least . The 96 fourteeners in the United States are all west of the Mississippi River. Colorado has the most (53) of any sing ...

. It also maintains the comprehensive list of each person who has climbed all 53 of these high peaks. It also provides a free online system called mySummits for hikers to report summits of Colorado's 100 highest peaks.

Notable club members throughout history

* Carl Blaurock, one of a pair to first climb all of Colorado's

*Mary Cronin, first woman to climb all of Colorado's

* Albert Russell Ellingwood, pioneering Colorado

mountaineer Mountaineering or alpinism, is a set of outdoor activities that involves ascending tall mountains. Mountaineering-related activities include traditional outdoor climbing, skiing, and traversing via ferratas. Indoor climbing, sport climbing, an ...

Jeff Achey, Dudley Chelton, Bob Godfrey, ''Climb!: The History of Rock Climbing in Colorado'', (The Mountaineers Books, 2002) ] *

Dick Lamm Richard Douglas Lamm (August 3, 1935 – July 29, 2021) was an American politician, writer, and attorney. He served three terms as 38th Governor of Colorado as a Democrat (1975–1987) and ran for the Reform Party's nomination for Preside ...

, former

Governor of Colorado The governor of Colorado is the head of government of the U.S. state of Colorado. The governor is the head of the executive branch of Colorado's state government and is charged with enforcing state laws. The governor has the power to either app ...

* Enos Mills, whose efforts were influential in establishing

* James Grafton Rogers, Denver lawyer and outdoorsman who drafted legislation to create

* Roger Toll, who held the positions of superintendent at

Yellowstone Yellowstone National Park is an American national park located in the western United States, largely in the northwest corner of Wyoming and extending into Montana and Idaho. It was established by the 42nd U.S. Congress with the Yellowstone ...

Rocky Mountain The Rocky Mountains, also known as the Rockies, are a major mountain range and the largest mountain system in North America. The Rocky Mountains stretch in straight-line distance from the northernmost part of western Canada, to New Mexico in ...

, and

Mount Rainier National Park Mount Rainier National Park is an American national park located in southeast Pierce County and northeast Lewis County in Washington state. The park was established on March 2, 1899, as the fourth national park in the United States, preservi ...

s *

William Henry Jackson William Henry Jackson (April 4, 1843 – June 30, 1942) was an American photographer, Civil War veteran, painter, and an explorer famous for his images of the American West. He was a great-great nephew of Samuel Wilson, the progenitor of Am ...

, famous photographer for the Detroit Photographic Company * Gerry Roach, Colorado-based climber who published numerous hiking guides and was second to climb the seven summits

References

External links

Colorado Mountain ClubBradford Washburn American Mountaineering MuseumHenry S. Hall, Jr. American Alpine Club Library and Colorado Mountain Club Collection
{{Authority control Climbing organizations Hiking organizations in the United States Sports organizations established in 1912 Outdoor education organizations Educational organizations based in the United States Environmental organizations based in Colorado 1912 establishments in Colorado