One of the benefits of having lived in the Portland area was my brief association with the Mazamas. The Mazamas were founded in 1894 on the summit of Mount Hood as a mountaineering education organization. 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.

See the entire set @ flickr »

“Mountains,” said United States Supreme Court Justice William Douglas, “have a decent influence on men.”

I would have to agree. Mr. Justice Douglas spent more time on the US Supreme Court than any other Justice, and and in his autobiography “Of Men and Mountains”, he shares a lifetime of stories and anecdotes that probably put him in the lead for the Justice with the most amount of time outside as well. His ties to the Cascades are what initially piqued my interest, but he’s actually quite a character worth spending some time reading about. Consistently liberal, he became known on the court for his fervent support of civil rights and liberties, particularly the First Amendment guarantees of freedom of speech and press.

I am particularly impressed however, with his commitment to the environment and outdoor conservation, in an era when it wasn’t yet at the forefront of the public consciousness. His prescience in making the environment an important part of the issues of the day helped preserve access to wilderness areas that otherwise might have been lost. Regardless of his politics, his eloquence in writing about the relationship between men and mountains is enough for me to keep him on my bookshelf.

See also: Time Magazine’s 1950 review of the book…

Totally loving this mash-up of camping equipment and information design. This is from a book from National Geographic (Camping Adventure) I grew up with and these images have been part of my outdoor memories for a long time. The subject matter of now vintage gear makes this an instant favorite, as it’s both useful as a checklist and entertaining (loving that fishnet action) at the same time. It’s also a testament to the timelessness of camping and spending time outdoors.

Today’s gear may be lighter, faster, and stronger, but most outdoor-experienced baby boomers and their kids grew up with the same kind of gear pictured, which in its day was better than the equipment used by generations past. This shot is from just after the peak of the backpacking boom in 1975, where there were enough enthusiasts to foster the development of lighter weight gear and to support an industry of outdoor gear innovation and manufacturing. As more and more people have picked up on the benefits and enjoyment of being outside, the gear has kept up a pretty good pace as well.

My gear lust issues are no less fervent today than they were 15 years ago, and the bigger problem now is how to hide the receipts…

Grivel’s North American arm is done. One of my first axes was a Grivel, and with me being the sad little sentimental gearhead that I am, this news is unfortunate to hear. My current crampons are Grivel’s - I’ll be curious to see how difficult or possible it will be to get any kind of warranty/customer service work out of them from overseas…