The American Alpine Club E-News: November 2002

Dear AAC Member,

One of the most important functions of E-News is being able to communicate timely information of interest to our members and the broader climbing community. As our lead story discusses, Mount Rainier National Park is proposing to increase the mountaineering fee that has been in place since 1995. The Club's Policy Committee is investigating this specific request and will comment on behalf of the organization. We encourage you to comment directly to the Park to share your thoughts on the four alternatives proposed.

It also is important to remember that Mount Rainier is not the only area with a mountaineering-specific fee. Mounts McKinley and Foraker have a fee, as do three Cascade volcanoes: Mount St. Helens, Mount Adams, and Mount Shasta. Congress directed two years ago that the McKinley/Foraker fee be evaluated, and Congress next year will debate making the Fee Demonstration program permanent.

You can be sure the AAC's Policy Committee will stay on top of these fee issues and will advocate on behalf of American climbers. The committee is interested to learn of member concerns, so please send your thoughts on climbing fees to mailto:lathearn@americanalpineclub.org. Timely updates about these and other issues will continue to be sent via the E-News.

Wishing you safe climbing and a happy Thanksgiving.

Regards,

Lloyd Athearn
Managing Editor
mailto:lathearn@americanalpineclub.org

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In this issue:

MOUNT RAINIER PROPOSES TO DOUBLE MOUNTAINEERING FEE

AAC MEMBERS WIN AWARDS IN BANFF MOUNTAIN BOOK/FILM FESTIVALS

AMERICAN ALPINE JOURNAL SEEKS 2002 FIRST ASCENT REPORTS

NEW ENGLAND SECTION WELCOMES AAC ANNUAL MEETING

TRAVEL WARNING ANNOUNCED FOR PAKISTAN

CLARIFICATION ABOUT NEPALESE CLIMBING ORGANIZATIONS

SECTION NEWS/COMING EVENTS

E-NEWS POLICIES

MOUNT RAINIER PROPOSES TO DOUBLE MOUNTAINEERING FEE

The AAC learned last Thursday that Mount Rainier planned to announce a review of their mountaineering special use fee, with the preferred alternative being a doubling of the fee to $30 per person. The $15 per person fee has not been altered since it was imposed in 1995, and the four alternatives proposed range from no change to increasing the fee to a total of $40 per climbing permit. The various alternatives contain commensurate increases in service levels to climbers.

The Park Service’s document outlining the problem and the need for expanded fees can be found on the Mount Rainier website at http://www.nps.gov/mora/climb/costrecovery.htm. Comments on the proposed fee change will be accepted until Wednesday, January 22, 2003, and can be submitted by email to mailto:mora_climbing_fees@nps.gov or may be sent by postal mail to:

Chief Ranger Jill Hawk

Mount Rainier National Park

Star Route

Tahoma Woods WA 98304-9751

Three public meetings have been scheduled to discuss the proposal:

December 9, 6:30-9 p.m., Doubletree Hotel-Yakima Valley, 1507 North First St., Yakima

December 11, 6:30-9 p.m., Washington State History Museum, 1911 Pacific Ave., Tacoma

December 17, 6:30-9 p.m., The Mountaineers Clubhouse, 300 Third Ave, West, Seattle.

Any fee change would take effect on April 1, 2003. We will provide further updates on the issue in future E-News issues.

AAC MEMBERS WIN AWARDS IN BANFF MOUNTAIN BOOK/FILM FESTIVALS

AAC members and AAC-sponsored projects walked away with some of the top prizes at the recent 2002 Banff Mountain Film and Book Festivals.

Board member David Jones won the Best Book-Mountain Exposition Award sponsored by the Mountain Lights Bookstore in Lake Louise for his guidebook, Selkirks South, published by Elaho Press (Canada, 2001). A member of the selection committee remarked, "This is a book that will change how we measure our mountains in Canada, and that’s a remarkable achievement."

Vertical Frontier, a documentary film on the history of climbing in Yosemite that was directed and produced by Kristi Denton-Cohen and financed in part by a grant from the AAC, won the Alpine Club of Canada Award for Best Film on Climbing. "Vertical Frontier captures the spirit of American climbing," says judge Jean Afanassieff, a French film maker. Vertical Frontier will be part of the traveling "Best of Banff" film tour.

Above the Clouds, a compilation of Club member Anatoli Boukreev's mountaineering diaries from 1989 to his death on Annapurna in 1997 that was edited by his partner, Linda Wylie, won the Jon Whyte Award for Mountain Literature, sponsored by The Whyte Museum of the Canadian Rockies. "It presents a much more rounded and sympathetic view of this important — and to some extent sidelined — player in the history of the Himalaya," said judge Geoff Powter, editor of the Canadian Alpine Journal.

AMERICAN ALPINE JOURNAL SEEKS 2002 FIRST ASCENT REPORTS

American Alpine Journal Editor John Harlin wants to know what you did last year.

"Since 1929 the American Alpine Journal has been the journal of record for American climbing worldwide. A few decades ago the AAJ's mission began shifting toward documenting world climbing, irrespective of the team's nationality. This is a proud tradition and earns our Club a great deal of respect across the globe. But the Journal needs your help.

"The AAJ relies on a small team of correspondents to help us locate many of the important new routes. More than that, we rely on climbers themselves to put pen to paper (so to speak) and let us know what they did. Don't think of this as ego; think of it as history. Whether your new route is one of the great climbs of the century, or whether it's simply a route that others might enjoy repeating (or should avoid at all costs!), we need it in the AAJ. Climbing history is the synthesis of everything that's been done, big and little, and the American Alpine Journal is where this documentation reaches those who care to read it. Assuming you report your routes.

"We can't record everything. Because of space limitations, we've been forced to report only routes of Grade IV (all-day climbs) or longer. Sure, there are occasional exceptions to this "rule," as to any rule, but we stick to it as best we can. The other caveat is Europe. Because of the volume of what's being done in the Alps, we leave Alpine documentation to European publications, other than an occasional feature story in the front of the AAJ.

"We sometimes hear complaints that the AAJ devotes more space to the Cordillera Blanca (Peru) or the Sentinel Range (Antarctica) than to the Cascades or the Sierra Nevada. That's not our goal. Our objective is to report all new routes (and occasional significant second ascents) that are Grade IV or bigger. If we don't include your route, we either screwed up or you didn't send it to us.

"Accounts should be told in the first-person, be brief (250 – 500 words is usual), and include What, When, Where, Who, and Why. If you can be entertaining, that's great, but documentation is the priority. Contributors' Guidelines can be found on page 482 of the 2002 AAJ or on the AAC's website at http://www.americanalpineclub.org/programs/press_aaj_submissions.shtml, or write for details. The deadline for submissions on routes done in 2002 is February 1, 2003. Next year's Journal will be going to the printer several months earlier than the 2002 AAJ, so your timely reports will be vital.

"Lastly, we would very much appreciate it if you could spread the word to your new-routing buddies, or let us know who they might be so we can write directly.

"Thanks!"

John Harlin III
Editor, American Alpine Journal
mailto:aaj@americanalpineclub.org (preferred!)
710 Tenth Street, Suite 140
Golden, CO 80401
phone: 541.354.6142 fax: 541.354.6143

NEW ENGLAND SECTION WELCOMES AAC ANNUAL MEETING

New England Section Chair Bill Atkinson welcomes the AAC's national membership to the Annual Meeting in Boston this February for the first time in a decade. "We hope that many of you will come to visit us," said Atknison.

The Annual Meeting will be held on Friday, February 28 and Saturday, March 1 at the elegant Westin Hotel in Waltham on Route 128 (I-95) convenient to all local transportation. Special discounted lodging rates have been obtained for $99 per night (+tax) for single or double-occupancy. Reservations must be made by calling 1.800.937.8461 and identifying your reservation with the American Alpine Club Annual Meeting. Speakers are being lined up for the meeting. Complete registration information will be mailed with the Winter AAN and posted on the AAC’s website: http://www.americanalpineclub.org.

Locals section members are asked to contact Bill by email at mailto:watkinson@compuserve.com or by phone at 781.899.7388 to assist with Annual Meeting logistics, including leading climbing groups to some of the local crags if the weather cooperates. "A half day at the Quarries, College Rock, Hammond Pond, Rattlesnake, (or even Rumney) might be welcome to our visitors." Check the section website at http://www.atkinsopht.com from time to time for details.

The section is hoping to assemble a half-hour program about New England climbing, and Bill wants to hear from anyone who may have a historical or contemporary story to tell.

Owing to the time proximity of the Boston meeting, the Eighth Annual AAC New England Section Dinner will be postponed until March of 2004.

TRAVEL WARNING ANNOUNCED FOR PAKISTAN

Greg Mortenson, executive director of the Central Asia Institute and one of the most knowledgeable Americans about Pakistan, recently sent out an email warning Americans about travel to Pakistan due to the execution of Mir Aimal Kasi on November 15. "I've never sent out a 'warning' in 26 trips to and a decade of work in Pakistan and Afghanistan, but today's (11/15/02)impending execution of Mir Aimal Kasi takes the cake," wrote Mortenson. "Please notify anyone you have in the field to keep a low profile for the next week or two. There is an extremely HIGH probability Americans WILL be targeted soon if this execution happens today."

Mir Aimal Kasi, a Pakistani (actually a Beluchistan Pusthan), killed two CIA agents outside Langley Virginia on January 25, 1993. Immediately after he was sentenced to death in November 1997, four American oil accountants were gunned down in their car and killed in Karachi. His execution in Virginia may become a lightening rod for further unrest. News reports indicate that thousands chanted anti-American slogans when Kasi's body arrived home in Pakistan on Monday.

CLARIFICATION ABOUT NEPALESE CLIMBING ORGANIZATIONS

The Nepal Mountaineering Association (NMA) recently sent a message to UIAA mountaineering associations alerting them to the establishment of the Nepal Mountaineering Federation, which was established recently under the direction of Mr. Tek Chandra (T.C.) Pokharel. News of the new organization has created some confusion due to the similarity in the two organizations' names. Bhumi Lal Lama, general secretary of the NMA, reiterated that the NMA remains the official federation of Nepalese mountaineering within the country and in international bodies, including the UIAA.

SECTION NEWS/COMING EVENTS

New England Section Holiday Party

The New England Section of the AAC and the Appalachian Mountain Club will host a joint holiday party on Friday, December 6, at the Sandy Burr Country Club in Wayland, Massachusetts. The "casually sophisticated" event starts at 7 p.m. with a reception, and the dinner will be served at 8 p.m. A DJ will keep the event moving until 11 p.m.

All Boston-area climbers, spouses, kids and friends are invited to attend. The cost is $15 for adults and $7 for children. Complete details, including a registration form, is available at http://www.atkinsopht.com/mtn/aacnesct.htm. You must register before Saturday, November 30.

For further information about this event or other upcoming New England Section events, contact Section Chair Bill Atkinson by email at mailto:watkinson@compuserve.com or by phone at 781.899.7388.

Cascade Section Carlos Buhler Slide Show

The American Alpine Club's Cascade Section will present a slide show by Carlos Buhler at 7:30 p.m., on Friday, December 13, in the Tahoma Auditorium of the Mountaineers Clubhouse, 300 Third Ave. W., Seattle. Buhler, one of the top American climbers today, has a staggering list of accomplishments, including multiple first ascents in the Himalayas, South America, and Alaska. On October 2, he was one of two Americans (both AAC members) to complete the first ascent of 22,821-foot Sepu Kangri in Tibet's remote Nyenchen Tanglha range.

An AAC members-only reception will be held from 5:30 to 7 p.m. in the Pinnacle Room, with food and drink provided. A $5 suggested donation at the door enters you in the raffle. Please register by Monday, November 18 to reserve your place. Be sure to state whether you will be coming to the reception and, if so, how many will attend. Mountaineers members (non AAC) may purchase tickets after November 18 for $8 from the Mountaineers bookstore or at the door (if space is available). There will be no book signing at this event.

For further information, contact Section Chair Peter Ackroyd by phone at 206.329.3447 or by email at mailto:pdack1@attbi.com.

Blue Ridge Section Monthly Meetings/Annual Meeting

The Blue Ridge Section is holding monthly section meetings and slide shows on the third Monday of each month (unless otherwise notified due to conflicts with holidays) at the Rhodeside Grill, located at 1836 Wilson Blvd. in Arlington, Virginia. Dinner and drinks start at 6:30 p.m. upstairs, and the slide shows start at 8 p.m. AAC members get happy hour prices on draft beer all evening!

Be sure to mark December 16 on your calendar for the BRS Annual Meeting, also at the Rhodeside Grill.

For more information about either event, contact Section Chair Jeanette Helfrich by email at mailto:jeanettehelfrich@comcast.net or by phone at 301.434.1964.

Central Rockies Section – Dan Mazur Slide Show

The Colorado Mountain Club's Tech Section will present a slide show by AAC member Dan Mazur at the American Mountaineering Center's auditorium at 7 p.m. on Thursday, January 23. Mazur's slide show will feature some of his recent Himalayan climbing expeditions, including Everest, K2, and new routes on lesser-known peaks in Tibet, China and Pakistan. A reception will follow at the climbing wall. Tickets are $8 and will be available in November from the Colorado Mountain Club offices. For more information, contact Susan Trapp by phone at 303.278.1801.

Northern Rockies Section – Salt Lake Meeting/Andrew McLean Slide Show

As a result of several requests, the first-ever Northern Rockies Section Event in Salt Lake City will be held at 7 p.m. on Thursday, January 30 at Brewvies, 677 South 200 West, Salt Lake City. The meeting, which is open to all members and prospective members, will include an initial discussion of the Section, its history, and the potential for additional Section events.

Immediately following the open discussion will be a slide presentation, Chute to Thrill: Peaks and Powder from Around the World, by Andrew McLean. The event is free, but donations will be accepted at the door, with all proceeds benefiting the Castleton Tower Preservation Initiative.

For more information, contact Doug Colwell by email at mailto:dcolwell@harrisdean.com.

For other events, please check the Upcoming Events page on the AAC's website: http://www.americanalpineclub.org/special_programs/Events.htm.

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