A.A.C., Oregon Section. 1986 was an eventful year for the Oregon Section, although we had few actual climbs to report. Our most time-consuming activity was the continuing and almost successful effort to have Mount Saint Helens opened to climbers. This was brought to a head when Jim Angell filed a formal appeal with the chief of the Forest Service in Washington, D.C. He supported the club position on all points but one, and the Mount Saint Helens staff announced in December that the mountain would soon be open to climbers. “Soon” has not come to pass, and Jim is again boiling the pot. The Section continued the annual trail work party at Smith Rock State Park with the cooperation of the State Parks Division. The 1987 work date is Saturday, March 28, and all rock climbers are encouraged to participate.

Oregon has been saddened by two tragedies in the past year. The first was the death in May of the Episcopal School climbers including A.A.C. member Tom Goman. The second was the loss of Alan Pennington and John Smolich on K2. Both were in the process of joining the Club before they left for the Himalaya. In the wake of the loss on Mount Hood, the Section has been active in the effort to improve coordination and communication between the various groups involved in search and rescue.

Climbing continues on a local level with Beacon Rock and Smith Rock among the more attractive spots. There is also some activity on the coast on sea stacks and shoreline rocks. The Section has had evening meetings with both slides and video cassettes as well as our regular December outing to the Snow Shoe Cabin on the north side of Mount Hood. In the winter, the three-mile, uphill ski trip provides a welcome seclusion.

At our annual meeting the following officers were elected: Section Chair, Jim Angell; Vice-Chair, Tim Carpenter; Secretary, Kurt Wehbring; Treasurer, Jim Angell. As Jim Angell is now commuting to Los Angeles, he resigned as Chairman in December, but remained as Treasurer. Tim Carpenter succeeded Jim as Chairman.

Lewis L. McArthur