California Mountaineering Group
Region |
California, USA |
Membership |
>300 |
Homepage |
|
The California Mountaineering Group (CMG) is a mountaineering organization located in California. The CMG has several hundred members and is affiliated with the Access Fund. The CMG maintains a regular schedule of technical climbing trips in all seasons.
Organization
The CMG is run by volunteers. Each year, a list of potential trips is sought from the group. The list is prioritized and dates area set with applicable trail head permits. Car pooling is facilitated as well as other logistics and necessary equipment. The CMG maintains a Yahoo Group which acts an electronic mailing list for discussions. All members receive CMG Now, a monthly e-mail describing the club's activities and schedule. The CMG holds a monthly conference call (CMG All-call) to discuss trips and other matters of interest. In June 2008, the CMG became an alliance partner with the Access Fund. The CMG regularly participates in and promotes American Alpine Club events.
Journal of Mountaineering
The CMG publishes the Journal of Mountaineering which provides news and other information of interest to the mountaineering community. Library of Congress: “Journal of Mountaineering” ISSN: 1948-9110 (print), 1948-9129 (online)
Qualifications
Liability is avoided by not maintaining any pretense of qualifications, such as those held by mountain guides, or respondeat superior type of structure. There is no leadership, but instead, individuals act as a point of contact only, with no further responsibilities. Trips are open at the discretion of the contact. The CMG does not insure mountaineering activities. Each participant is responsible for their safety and thus must be experienced and self-sufficient. For this reason, each participant must be able to survive on their own. Many trips require specialized skills such as fall protection, self rescue, solo climbing, and crevasse rescue.
Outings
Outings are for the most part mountaineering, but also include ice climbing, and rock climbing and typically go every other weekend. Each trip decides on its own form of leadership. On some trips a signed waiver will be requested. There are no costs to be a part of the CMG; costs for trips are shared by the participants. Some outings are appropriate and educational for children.
Typical destinations include:
- Mount Rainier
- Mount Shasta
- Mt. Whitney
- Joshua Tree National Park
- Tuolumne Meadows
- Mount Hood
- Mount Conness
- Tenaya Canyon
- Mount Sill
- Cathedral Peak (California)
- Lover's Leap
History
In 2008 a group of climbers launched an organization modeled after the original Sierra Club Rock Climbing Section 1, which no longer practices technical climbing following a lawsuit in 1988 2. The origin of the CMG was a Yahoo Group web site, with about twenty members, that was used to improve communication within the now unrelated California Mountaineering Club 3.
Notable Members
- Hans Florine - Guide, Yosemite El Capitan record holder
- Harrison Hood - Guide
- Dan Mazur - Guide
- Steve Thaw - Sierra club leader
- Kurt Wedburg - Guide