Potomac Appalachian Trail Club. The principal activity of the P.A.T.C. during 1950 was the maintenance of trails, closed shelters and open lean-tos along sections of the Appalachian Trail in Maryland, Virginia and Pennsylvania. The broader interest of members in climbing was recognized when the Club renamed the Rock Climbing Committee as the Mountaineering Committee. Regular Sunday climbs on local rocks provided instruction for beginners and practice of all degrees of difficulty for experienced climbers. Safety has been emphasized in all training, and also in field and laboratory tests of climbing equipment. A recently completed drop- tower allows free fall of a weight from 20 feet above to 20 feet below a belayer. The fall of a leader from above the belayer can be simulated, and the resulting stresses on equipment and climbers can be studied under controlled conditions. Publications issued during the year included a Bulletin of Hiking, Camping, Mountaineering and Trail Clearing Equipment, with a section on technical mountaineering equipment. The Club continued its series of lectures. Members participated in expeditions to the Wind Rivers of Wyoming, the Bad Shots in the Southern Selkirks and the Windy and Adamant groups in the Northern Selkirks.

Arthur C. Lembeck