That’s one heck of a resume.
Seattle’s own Dick McGowan was (among other things – see above) the first employee of REI, the first American to set foot on Mt. Everest, led the first guided climb of Denali, and obviously an accomplished backpack model.
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Gotta love those old Mazama annuals. Full of great content, including some fun ads in the back for different companies, some of which are still around in one form or another…
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I didn’t really participate much, (I’m sure I would have if we’d stayed in the area), but the biggest reason I joined up with to be able to get access to their library. The headquarters of the group is located in the historic Mt. Hood Masonic Lodge out on 43rd and Stark. It’s a pretty cool old building, very much worth just dropping by and checking out. The building has a handful of offices and a large meeting room, and lots of other little rooms tucked around here and there. The library and archives are downstairs, which is where I’d head during my lunch hour just to browse the collection and see what kind of treasures I could find.
Guide books, biographies, historic narratives, trip reports, magazines, movies, maps – it’s all downstairs. Summit registers are archived downstairs as well, with records going back to the first ascents of northwest peaks in the 1800′s. The cool part is that they still have so much stuff that isn’t even shown, but stashed away because there’s just no room. They also archive and display gear of historic or other interest, which is displayed upstairs in a rotating exhibit. There’s still a bit of sadness when I think of all the good stuff in there, and me down here. I did manage to find a lot of bits and pieces that will appear in future posts here though, so I am grateful for the short time I did have to root around downstairs. I also introduced myself to one of the Library Committee archivists, Jeff Thomas, and had offered my help in preserving some of the older format videos and films. I didn’t get a chance to really jump into things with the whole Wyoming move happening, but I did manage to digitize some of their old VHS tapes. I also have a few of the Spring brothers films they didn’t yet have in the collection, so there’s still some communication that will have to happen.
In the meantime, I’ll share some cool maps scanned from a small book that was not in super-good shape, but worth hanging on to, for both its content and visual interest. 
The Olympic peninsula is a pretty unique place, and one that I wish I’d been able to spend more time in. Living on the east side of the Sound for so many years and seeing the summits of Mt. Constance and The Brothers made them a permanent part of my mountain memory. Spending actual time up there has only happened in the form of a Mt. Olympus trip last year, a Boy Scout 50-miler up the north fork of the Quinault River and out the Elwha, and a handful of trips out to the Ozette area up on the western-most tip of the peninsula, but I hope to get back up there from time to time and kick around some more. These maps are not super detailed, but I really liked the minimalist approach and the colors, as well as just being able to connect the maps with locations and photos and memories from past trips. Enjoy.
As an unapologetic Patagonia fan, I was pleasantly surprised to see their newest web project pop up in my newsreader yesterday. The Tin Shed is a collection of stories, videos, photos, and whatever else they can fit in there from their friends and ambassadors out and about in the wide wild world. As far as armchair mountaineering goes, it’s a perfect fit for a Friday morning websurf session. Make sure to read Kelly Cordes’ treatise on high-altitude spooning, and get a peek into Steve House’s garage and gear stash.
]]>I picked up a couple of these old Mazamas Annuals at Powells a few months ago to stash in the bathroom, but only recently have been able to go through them and scan some of the ads in the back. After doing a little searching on some of the companies featured in the ads, I came across a few links worth passing along as background info.
Enjoy.
In 1911, C.A. Lund of St. Paul, Minnesota founded a ski factory, later called the Northland Ski Company. Its hickory skis dominated the market for another 30 years.
The Beebe Company apparently was originally a marine and contractors hardware retailer, but apparently they got into the sporting goods business at some point. Not a lot of info out there.
Hirsch-Weis (White Stag)was a Portland-based outfit that was one of the first companies in the United States to manufacture and mass-produce clothing specifically designed for recreational skiing.
The Mountain Shop is still around and doing the same thing it has for years. They’ve fixed up a pair of boots for me that I’m really happy with and have a lot of regular sales. Knowledgeable staff, too.
Now known as Honeyman Hardware Lofts in the Pearl District.
J.K. Gill was a prominent Portland businessman, who owned a very successful stationary/bookstore and publishing house. In digging around on Google I also came by this treasure of a link which will warrant its own post at some time in the near future…
A few real gems inside this issue from the mid-seventies… The hot pink cover is a real keeper.
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Looks like fun. I totally love Geoff McFetridge’s work, and would love to go to this… but it’s a bit far to drive. There’s a handful of these shirts in my closet, and they are very easily the best looking things in there. Doesn’t say a lot for my closet, but hey, there you go.
Some more Geoff McFetridge links worth checking out: Western State 3: Geoff McFetridge video profile, High Snobiety Interview, and Pottok review at Kitsune Noir.
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