Iowa Mountaineers

Publication Year: 1993.

Iowa Mountaineers. The Iowa Mountaineers, as usual, had an active year in 1992. Membership has grown to 5100 members from 38 states. Over 4200 people participated in the many instructional courses, mountaineering camps or foreign expeditions.

The club taught over 400 members cross-country skiing at Devils Lake State Park, Wisconsin, during weekends in January and February. Winter survival skills, emergency shelters, proper dress, measures against hypothermia and frostbite, and avalanche awareness and precautions were taught. Jim Ebert was in charge of instruction.

Fifty-eight members spent five days hiking in Arizona’s Havasu Canyon. The flash flood that went down the canyon in September 1990 did most of its visual damage from below Mooney Falls to the Colorado River. Mooney and Havasu Falls have never looked better. Jim Ebert served as outing leader.

A small but enthusiastic group took part in our first organized trip to Colorado National Monument near Grand Junction and the Canyonlands area around Moab, Utah, in May. The area offered exceptional climbing from classic crack climbs to multi-pitch routes up desert spires. These included Independence Monument, Sentinel Spire, Six Shooter peaks and Castleton Tower via the 5.9 Kor-Ingalls route.

Over 62 members from 10 states took one-week basic-rock-climbing courses at Devils Lake State Park. Four courses were offered in May, June and August. Thirty-two members took a four-day intermediate rock-climbing course at Devils Tower, Wyoming, over Memorial Day weekend and the following weekend.

The annual summer mountaineering camp was held in the Sawtooths of Idaho from July 26 to August 5. Twenty-two members attended, doing climbs of the classic peaks of the area: Finger of Fate, the Mountaineers Route on Elephant Perch, Mount Heyburn and Goat Perch.

The club taught 32 three-day weekend courses with 822 members participating in the basic rock-climbing course, and 2809 members in the instructional hiking course. The weekend courses were taught at Devils Lake State Park with Jim Ebert in charge of instruction.

The Iowa Mountaineers held their 32nd annual banquet in May, with 75 members in attendance. Dr. Geoffrey Tabin presented a slide show on his climbing the highest peaks on seven continents.

The club’s travel adventure film series presented seven programs at Mac- Bride Auditorium in Iowa City with 2500 members attending.

For further information about membership in the Iowa Mountaineers and its 1993 trips and courses, write to the club at P.O. Box 163, Iowa City, IA 52244.

Jim Ebert, President