Southern Appalachian Section. The primary objective for the new Southern Appalachian Section was to establish itself as relevant to AAC members as well as to the broader climbing community across the southern Appalachian mountains. Our membership continued to grow, fueling a expanded offering of Section events. In early April the Section welcomed the spring rock climbing season at the Moore Weekend with the AAC, held at the home of Susan and Jeff Hanks in Oak Ridge, North Carolina. We climbed at Moore's Wall and Pilot Mountain on a beautiful spring Saturday, enjoyed drinks and dinner that evening courtesy of Susan and Jeff, camped out in the Hanks’ backyard Saturday night, rose early on Sunday for a robust country breakfast, and then headed out for another beautiful day of climbing. Adding to the AAC camaraderie were visiting members of the Blue Ridge Section.

A superb example of increased emphasis on locally produced AAC events were the selfrescue classes taught in June and July in Brevard, North Carolina, by AAC partner Fox Mountain Guides and Climbing School. These classes were offered free to AAC members. Class pricing for non-AAC members was set to encourage participants to join the AAC rather than pay class tuition. Attendees came away with new or enhanced self rescue skills; the AAC gained new members. Our thanks to Adam Fox and AAC Ambassador Karsten Delap for their contributions.

As a follow-up to the success of the AAC Wilderness First Aid class delivered in 2009 in the Raleigh/Durham area, two classes were offered to AAC members in March and October. Instructor Danny McCracken delivered the classes to Red Cross WFA certification standards with significant customization to focus upon climbing accident first response.

Building on a strong tradition, the 6th Annual Eastern North Carolina AAC Get-Together was held on November 6 in Wake Forest. Thirty members and their guests gathered at the home of Brigitte Weston and Keith Nangle to discuss over food and drink how the AAC community could help.

people achieve climbing goals. The speaker was Dr. Amer Adam, who presented slides from his 2010 expedition to Mt. Everest.

I would like to thank all of the AAC staff for their support for our Section. In 2011 we will focus on recruitment of additional AAC Ambassadors, an increased focus on alpine conservation issues in the Appalachian range, and the continuing effort to build a strong AAC community across our region.

David Thoenen, Chair