The Mountain Club of South Africa (MCSA) is the largest and oldest mountaineering club in

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring countri ...

. It facilitates and engages in mountaineering,

climbing Climbing is the activity of using one's hands, feet, or any other part of the body to ascend a steep topographical object that can range from the world's tallest mountains (e.g. the eight thousanders), to small boulders. Climbing is done fo ...

of all types, bouldering,

hiking Hiking is a long, vigorous walk, usually on trails or footpaths in the countryside. Walking for pleasure developed in Europe during the eighteenth century.AMATO, JOSEPH A. "Mind over Foot: Romantic Walking and Rambling." In ''On Foot: A Histor ...

, international expeditions, mountain

search and rescue Search and rescue (SAR) is the search for and provision of aid to people who are in distress or imminent danger. The general field of search and rescue includes many specialty sub-fields, typically determined by the type of terrain the search ...

training Training is teaching, or developing in oneself or others, any skills and knowledge or fitness that relate to specific useful competencies. Training has specific goals of improving one's capability, capacity, productivity and performance. I ...

conservation Conservation is the preservation or efficient use of resources, or the conservation of various quantities under physical laws. Conservation may also refer to: Environment and natural resources * Nature conservation, the protection and managem ...

of mountain areas, and procurement of access for mountaineering.

History

The MCSA was founded in 1891 and hence is one of the oldest mountaineering clubs in the world. Since its establishment, the MCSA has been embedded with and reflected, the political ideology and interests of the social and governing class during the colonial and segregation eras. This situation prevailed for most of the apartheid era, when the club finally opened its membership to all, regardless of race and the first black member was admitted in 1986. The MCSA is the only mountain club in

Africa Africa is the world's second-largest and second-most populous continent, after Asia in both cases. At about 30.3 million km2 (11.7 million square miles) including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of Earth's total surface area ...

affiliated with the world mountaineering body, the

UIAA The International Climbing and Mountaineering Federation, commonly known by its French name Union Internationale des Associations d'Alpinisme (UIAA, lit. ''International Union of Alpine Clubs''), was founded in August 1932 in Chamonix, Franc ...

.UIAA website September 2016
/ref> Members of the MCSA have climbed and hiked on all the major

mountain range A mountain range or hill range is a series of mountains or hills arranged in a line and connected by high ground. A mountain system or mountain belt is a group of mountain ranges with similarity in form, structure, and alignment that have arise ...

s throughout the world. Since its inception, the MCSA has published an annual journal. The MCSA Journal is one of the oldest mountain club journals still being published on an annual basis. The club consists of 14 sections spread over

and

Namibia Namibia (, ), officially the Republic of Namibia, is a country in Southern Africa. Its western border is the Atlantic Ocean. It shares land borders with Zambia and Angola to the north, Botswana to the east and South Africa to the south and ea ...

and with more than 4000 members. *Amajuba *Cape Town *Eastern Province *Free State *Hottentots Holland *Johannesburg *KwaZulu-Natal *Magaliesberg (also known as the Pretoria section) *Namibia *Paarl/Wellington *South Cape *Stellenbosch *Tygerberg *Worcester The objectives of the Mountain Club of South Africa are to further the interests of mountaineering in South Africa and elsewhere, and in doing so inter alia to: * Organise and facilitate mountaineering * Procure and protect real rights in and access to mountains and mountain areas * Initiate and support actions towards protecting the natural beauty and wilderness character of mountains and to promote their effective conservation management * Promote the safety and training of mountaineers * Provide

resources * Promote the study of mountains and their environments, the preservation of historical and

archaeological Archaeology or archeology is the scientific study of human activity through the recovery and analysis of material culture. The archaeological record consists of artifacts, architecture, biofacts or ecofacts, sites, and cultural landscap ...

sites on them and the dissemination of information on mountains and mountaineering.

Notable members

Keppel Harcourt Barnard Keppel Harcourt Barnard (31 March 1887 – 22 September 1964) was a South African zoologist and museum director. He was the only son of Harcourt George Barnard M.A. ( Cantab.), a solicitor from Lambeth, and Anne Elizabeth Porter of Royston. Li ...

* Elsie Elizabeth Esterhuysen *

Johannes de Villiers Graaff Johannes de Villiers Graaff (also known as Jan de Van Graaff or Jannie Graaff) (19 February 1928 – 6 January 2015) was a neoclassical South African welfare economist. Graaff is noted for his work on optimal savings rates, contributions to t ...

Rudolf Marloth Hermann Wilhelm Rudolf Marloth (28 December 1855 Lübben, Germany – 15 May 1931 Caledon, Cape Province) was a German-born South African botanist, pharmacist and analytical chemist, best known for his ''Flora of South Africa'' which appeared i ...

Cathy O'Dowd Cathy O'Dowd (born 1968) is a South African rock climber, mountaineer, author and motivational speaker. She was the first woman to reach the summit of Mount Everest from both the south and the north sides on 25 May 1996 and 29 May 1999, respective ...

Edwin Percy Phillips Edwin Percy Phillips (18 February 1884 – 12 April 1967) was a South African botanist and taxonomist, noted for his monumental work ''The Genera of South African Flowering Plants'' first published in 1926. Phillips was born in Sea Point, Cap ...

Marianne Pretorius Marianne Schwankhart (born 2 September 1976) is a South African rock climber, specialising in big walls. In 2004 she became the first woman to scale the East face of the Central Torres del Paine in Chilean Patagonia. In February 2005 she climbe ...

Jan Smuts Field Marshal Jan Christian Smuts, (24 May 1870 11 September 1950) was a South African statesman, military leader and philosopher. In addition to holding various military and cabinet posts, he served as prime minister of the Union of South Af ...

References

External links

The Mountain Club of South AfricaThe MCSA - Cape Town SectionJohannesburg SectionMcsamagalies.co.zaMCSA Eastern Province SectionUIAA websiteKzn.mcsa.org.za
Sports governing bodies in South Africa Climbing organizations Hiking organizations Alpine clubs Sports organizations established in 1891 Sports clubs in South Africa {{climbing-stub

History

Notable members

See also

References

External links