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Monthly Program:

Tree Climbing for Science and Conservation

published by bill on Sat, 2025-06-28 10:46
Date: 
Tue, 2025-08-26

The August 26 Mountaineers meeting will feature a talk by Judah Epstein, a passionate volunteer with the Tree Monkey Project, for a presentation on how the specialized skill of tree climbing is being used around the world to support science, conservation, and community empowerment. Drawing from his firsthand experiences, Judah will share stories from a wide range of fieldwork and environmental missions that span multiple continents.

Learn about the critical role of canopy access in wildlife research and habitat preservation—from assisting Orangutan and Sun Bear conservation efforts in the dense rainforests of Borneo, to training Indigenous communities in Ecuador to safely access the forest canopy for ecological monitoring and sustainable practices. Judah will also discuss his involvement in the Arizona Gray Hawk Project, the installation of "monkey bridges" to support wildlife connectivity in fragmented Costa Rican landscapes, and direct action initiatives to counter illegal logging and poaching in the Peruvian Amazon.

This talk will highlight how the unique practice of professional tree climbing is not only a tool for scientific discovery but also a powerful means of supporting conservation goals, protecting biodiversity, and fostering collaboration with local communities.

We welcome all to this Mountaineers’ meeting, held on the usual fourth Tuesday of the month. The social hour, with cookies, begins at 6:45 PM and the program at 7:00 PM. The presentation will be in-person at Los Alamos Nature Center; the slides will be live-streamed on Zoom. Registration is required to Zoom and recommended for in-person – we would love to see your smiling face. Registration details are available at https://peecla.app.neoncrm.com/np/clients/peecla/event.jsp?event=57339&.

Judah above the forest canopy in Borneo.

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Climbing School Update

Registration is Open for Los Alamos Mountaineers Climbing School

The Los Alamos Mountaineers are thrilled to announce that they will be offering a climbing school following last year’s successful revival of the school, in conjunction with Mountain Skills Rock Climbing Adventures of Taos. Details can be found on their climbing school page, here .
Mountain Skills, supported by Mountaineers volunteers, will teach rock climbing with a safety first attitude, including movement on rock, belaying, rappelling, cleaning protective gear, and removing anchors, with extensive on-rock practice. The course objective is such that successful students should develop the skills needed to participate in top roping, follow a leader in a multi-pitch trad climb, and be able to climb or descend moderate technical obstacles in unplanned backcountry situations using improvised gear (e.g. rope and carabiners). No previous rock climbing experience is required.

 

Ongoing Events


 

Monthly Public Meeting and Presentation:


Normally held in the planetarium of the Pajarito Environmental Education Center (PEEC)
on the fourth Tuesday of each month. Now offering hybrid meetings with in-person and zoom options! Sign up for each talk at the Monthly Program page.

Social at 6:45.  Reports of recent and upcoming trips at 7:05pm.   Program to follow.

Visitors are always welcome!  Free refreshments!

Past presentations, and occasionally future, can be viewed here

 

Future Club Speakers:  In addition to frequent presentations by nationally known adventurers, we love to hear from our own members....not that some of you aren't in that group.  A presentation gets you a free club membership and dinner at the restaurant of your choice in Los Alamos.

LAM Member Presentations Wanted! The LAM Board would like to encourage our members to provide more of our monthly presentations.  We understand well that club members are an active lot, with a wealth of activities in their repertoire that can and have been inspiring to new and old members alike.  We have often focused our monthly presentations on the elite of the outdoor adventure world, and perhaps created the undesired effect of squelching the voices of our own members who participate in frequent beautiful and exciting adventures of their own.  Although our own activities are not always "world class", they are representative of what we "weekend" athletes can and do accomplish.  We want many of our programs to inspire the "I can do that" attitude in our members, not merely entertain.  Shock and awe may have their rightful place, but inspiration to participate and shine is our true goal.

 

Trip Leaders:  Post your trip by logging in and then going here.  If you do not have an account, contact  the webmaster. For overnight trips, please ensure that membership waivers for participants are current and recorded by the club Membership Chairperson prior to your trip. Non-members may participate in day trips. All club sponsored trips require the trip waiver. After the trip, please scan and email a PDF of the waiver to the Trip Coordinator.

Trip Leader Awards: The club will recognize trip leaders as described here.

Borrow Equipment: We have a limited amount of mountaineering equipment for loan (e.g., avalanche transceivers). Contact our Equipment Manager listed on this page.

 

 

Trip Leaders: Anyone can lead a trip! Post your trip by logging in and then going here. If you do not have an account, contact the webmaster. For overnight trips, please ensure that membership waivers for participants are current and recorded by the club Membership Chairperson prior to your trip. Non-members may participate in day trips. All club sponsored trips require the trip waiver. After the trip, please scan and email a PDF of the waiver to the Trip Coordinator.

  • Ski Hill Potluck Dinner Hike

    published by efmillsnm on Sun, 2025-08-03 15:45
    Leader: 
    Ellen Mills
    Telephone: 
    5056602345
    Date: 
    Fri, 2025-08-08
    Leader Email: 
    efmillsnm@gmail.com
    Difficulty: 
    Moderate
    Technicality: 
    Beginner
    Are dogs allowed?: 
    Allowed

    CORRECTION - The hike is August 8th at 5:00 PM

     

    We will meet at the ski hill parking lot and begin hiking up the service road at 5:00 PM this coming Friday. Please bring a dish to share with fellow hikers, your own plate, utensils, and beverage.  The hike up takes about an hour and is an elevation gain of about 900 feet..  Be prepared for cooler weather or the possibility of rain at the top as we enjoy a meal together and specatcular views.

  • Aleutian Island Adventure with Backpacking

    published by tpietrass on Sun, 2025-02-23 10:16
    Leader: 
    Tanja Pietrass
    Telephone: 
    575-418-7969
    Date: 
    Sat, 2025-08-09
    Leader Email: 
    tpietrass@gmail.com
    Difficulty: 
    Moderate
    Technicality: 
    Intermediate
    Are dogs allowed?: 
    Not allowed

    This is a trip to Adak Island, in the Central Aleutians of the Aleutian Island Chain. I have chosen Adak for ease of access - you can fly there with Alaska Airlines. For reference, I paid ca. $1,500 for my roundtrip ticket from ABQ (August 9-20, 2025).

  • (Cancelled) Gallina Canyon Ranch Glamping/Hiking, August 13-17, 2025

    published by Anonymous on Sat, 2025-06-28 12:13
    Leader: 
    Bill Priedhorsky
    Telephone: 
    (505) 412-0376
    Date: 
    Wed, 2025-08-13
    Leader Email: 
    bill@priedhorsky.net
    Difficulty: 
    Moderate
    Technicality: 
    Intermediate
    Are dogs allowed?: 
    Allowed

    07/21/25: Sorry, cancelled due to impacts of the nearby fire

    _______________

    Inspired by two nice visits about 8 years ago, I have arranged a return to Gallina Canyon Ranch.  I know of no place that is this remote and yet so close - just 2 - 2 1/2 hours - from Los Alamos.

  • Climbing the Handies Group

    published by tim_rennick on Sun, 2025-06-01 06:36
    Leader: 
    Tim Rennick and Norbert Ensslin
    Telephone: 
    6144249906
    Date: 
    Fri, 2025-08-15
    Leader Email: 
    tim_rennick@hotmail.com
    Difficulty: 
    Moderate
    Technicality: 
    Intermediate
    Are dogs allowed?: 
    Not allowed

    We’re organizing a rewarding two-night backpacking trip into the beautiful and rugged Handies Peak Group—and we invite fellow LA Mountaineers to join us! We’ll explore the high basins and peaks of the San Juan Mountains, with the opportunity to summit several Centennial peaks, including Handies Peak (14,048 ft), Redcloud Peak (14,034 ft), and Sunshine Peak (14,001 ft). For those looking to push further, there’s also the option to climb two unnamed Centennial Thirteeners just east of Redcloud. Expect incredible alpine scenery, wildflowers, solitude—and early starts!

    Trip Overview:

  • Rio Chama rafting (3-day 2-night)

    published by Anonymous on Sat, 2025-07-19 07:27
    Leader: 
    Bill Priedhorsky
    Telephone: 
    (505) 412-0376
    Date: 
    Sat, 2025-08-30
    Leader Email: 
    bill@priedhorsky.net
    Difficulty: 
    Moderate
    Technicality: 
    Intermediate
    Are dogs allowed?: 
    Not allowed

    To get into the wild and away from the crowds on the busy Labor Day weekend, we have reserved a block of slots with a commercial company for a trip down the Rio Chama, running 31 miles through the Wild and Scenic Rio Chama Wilderness. The trip will leave on the morning of Saturday, August 30 and end on Monday, September 1. The company says “The trip consists of a float through the stunning colorful sandstone and limestone walls of this amazing canyon and finishes up near the renowned artist village of Abiquiu.

  • Wind Rivers Backpack

    published by tpietrass on Sun, 2025-02-23 09:37
    Leader: 
    Tanja Pietrass
    Telephone: 
    575-418-7969
    Date: 
    Sat, 2025-09-06
    Leader Email: 
    tpietrass@gmail.com
    Difficulty: 
    Strenuous
    Technicality: 
    Intermediate
    Are dogs allowed?: 
    Not allowed

    This will be a 7-day backpacking trip in the Wind River Range, WY. The drive to the trailhead is ca. 12 hours (more including stops for gas and food), so will add 2 days to the total trip length. I am planning a 50-mile loop that is largely off-trail. We will revisit one of my favorite areas (the Cooks Lakes) and hit on a few spots that I missed last time (such as the Alpine Lakes). Mileage per day is planned to be moderate so there is time to enjoy the scenery, and to account for the fact that moving off-trail is significantly slower.

  • Hanksville-based Hiking October 5-12, 2025

    published by Anonymous on Sat, 2025-05-10 16:10
    Leader: 
    Bill Priedhorsky
    Telephone: 
    (505) 412-0376
    Date: 
    Sun, 2025-10-05
    Leader Email: 
    bill@priedhorsky.net
    Difficulty: 
    Moderate
    Technicality: 
    Intermediate
    Are dogs allowed?: 
    Not allowed

    We have returned from our last llama trip with packer BJ Orozco. Since there will not be a llama trip this fall, I have arranged to rent a very nice house in Hanksville, Utah (https://www.airbnb.com/rooms/48361359), which will our base for a week of day hiking in a part of Utah that has escaped my attention for these many years. We have the house from Sunday October 5 to Sunday October 12, giving us 6 days for hiking.

  • Moab bike/hike/explore Nov. 1-9, 2025

    published by Anonymous on Sat, 2025-03-08 15:06
    Leader: 
    Bill Priedhorsky
    Telephone: 
    5054120376
    Date: 
    Sat, 2025-11-01
    Leader Email: 
    bill@priedhorsky.net
    Difficulty: 
    Moderate
    Technicality: 
    Intermediate
    Are dogs allowed?: 
    Not allowed

    I would like to announce the seventeenth edition of our successful hike/explore/bike trips to Moab. We have been going almost every November since 2008, and every time has been a great success. The 2014 trip report can be found at http://lamountaineers.org/node/479#comment-57. Let me (Bill Priedhorsky) know if you would like to join the trip.

  • Bluff Hiking weekend Dec. 10 - Dec. 14

    published by Anonymous on Sat, 2025-06-28 11:47
    Leader: 
    Bill Priedhorsky
    Telephone: 
    (505) 412-0376
    Date: 
    Wed, 2025-12-10
    Leader Email: 
    bill@priedhorsky.net
    Difficulty: 
    Moderate
    Technicality: 
    Intermediate
    Are dogs allowed?: 
    Not allowed

    We have many times travelled to Bluff, Utah for a taste of the canyon country. Bluff is less than six hours from Los Alamos and, situated along the San Juan River, at a low altitude best suited for trips late or early in the season. Even in early December the average daily high is around 50 F. There are numerous places to hike and explore from Bluff, including the ruins and big views of Comb Ridge, the canyons accessible from Cedar Mesa, the canyon rim just north of Bluff itself, and farther afield to places like White Canyon.

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