Colorado Mountain Club
The Colorado Mountain Club is a Colorado-based nonprofit organization focused on outdoor education, mountaineering, recreation, conservation, and mountain-related publishing.
Last updated November 4, 2026
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Overview
The Colorado Mountain Club (CMC) is a nonprofit outdoor education and recreation organization headquartered in Golden, Colorado. Established in 1912, it brings together people interested in hiking, climbing, mountaineering, wilderness travel, photography, conservation, and the study of Colorado’s mountain environment. Its work combines member-led recreation with formal instruction, stewardship, advocacy, information management, and publishing. The organization emerged from an early twentieth-century movement to explore, document, and protect Colorado’s mountain landscapes. Mary Sabin and Denver lawyer and outdoorsman James Grafton Rogers are credited with developing the idea for the club. An informal meeting at Sabin’s home on April 3, 1912, brought together seven people, followed by a charter meeting on April 26 attended by 25 members. Rogers became the first president. Early activities included organized outings, hikes, annual camping trips, and the collection and distribution of information about the state’s peaks and alpine regions. Membership expanded rapidly, reaching roughly 200 people within its first year and about 1,000 by 1921. CMC’s historical influence extends beyond recreation. The club supported the campaign that led to the creation of Rocky Mountain National Park, endorsing a congressional proposal in 1914. It also advocated for more carefully managed mountain landscapes, including a 1919 campaign against advertising signs and billboards in Denver’s mountain parks. The organization has participated in trail construction and maintenance, including the Beaver Brook Trail near Golden, and continues to represent hiking and conservation interests through volunteer work and advocacy. Education became a central part of the club’s identity in 1939, when it established a mountaineering school. Contemporary instruction covers subjects such as hiking and wilderness trekking, climbing, mountaineering, wilderness first aid, leadership, nature photography, and fly fishing. Courses generally combine classroom or lecture-based learning with practical field sessions. Many programs are taught or supported by volunteers, reflecting the club’s membership-based operating model. The CMC also organizes trips led by trained volunteer leaders. Most activities take place in Colorado and are offered at different experience and difficulty levels, ranging from hiking and photography outings to climbing, fishing, and technical mountaineering. An adventure-travel program extends the organization’s reach to selected international destinations. Through its twelve local groups, the club serves communities including Denver, Boulder, Colorado Springs, Pueblo, and the Roaring Fork region, while maintaining a statewide identity. A distinctive part of the CMC’s public role is its work related to Colorado’s fourteeners. It serves as the official repository for summit registers on popular Colorado fourteeners and maintains a historical list of people reported to have climbed all 53 of the state’s traditionally recognized fourteeners. Its mySummits service allows hikers to record ascents among Colorado’s 100 highest peaks. These activities support both community recognition and the preservation of mountaineering history. Publishing and cultural preservation are additional areas of activity. The club began publishing Trail and Timberline, its official newsletter, in 1918, and has operated a press responsible for more than 30 titles on hiking, climbing, mountaineering, natural history, and related subjects. In 1993, it partnered with the American Alpine Club to establish the American Mountaineering Center in Golden. The center brought together major mountaineering library and museum resources, including the Henry Bradford Washburn American Mountaineering Museum, which opened in 2008. In September 2024, the CMC announced plans to sell the American Mountaineering Center and relocate its operations to a new CMC Basecamp, also in Golden. The move marks a change in facilities rather than an end to the club’s education, recreation, conservation, and publishing programs.
History
The Colorado Mountain Club was formed during a period when Colorado’s mountains were becoming important sites for scientific observation, recreation, photography, conservation, and organized mountaineering. Mary Sabin and James Grafton Rogers are associated with the club’s creation. Seven people attended an initial meeting at Sabin’s home on April 3, 1912. The organization was formally established at a charter meeting on April 26, when 25 members met and elected Rogers as president. The new club quickly built a program around shared outings and the exchange of mountain knowledge. Its first official trip took place at Denver’s Cheesman Park on April 28, 1912, followed by a May 30 hike to South Boulder Peak led by George Barnard. In August, 21 members joined a seven-day annual outing in Bear Creek Basin near Mount Evans. Membership grew to approximately 200 within a year, and the club subsequently incorporated as a nonprofit organization. From its beginning, the CMC combined recreation with public-interest advocacy. In 1914, it adopted a resolution supporting legislation to establish Rocky Mountain National Park. The club’s broader preservation work included a 1919 campaign seeking the removal of advertising signs and billboards from Denver’s mountain-park system. It also created local chapters, first in Colorado Springs and Boulder in 1919 and then in Fort Collins in 1921. By 1921, membership was reported at about 1,000, with annual dues of four dollars. The club developed a more formal administrative structure in the 1920s. It rented an office in the Denver Chamber of Commerce Building in 1922 and hired Alice Manard as its first paid secretary. Its communications and publishing activities also became institutionalized. Trail and Timberline, the official club newsletter, began publication in April 1918 and became an important record of Colorado hiking and mountaineering culture. The club later operated a press that published more than 30 titles. Trail work was another early priority. In 1918, the organization built the Beaver Brook Trail near Golden. In later decades, stewardship expanded through volunteer trail maintenance, conservation programs, and representation of hiking interests in Colorado. The club’s conservation committee continues to provide a vehicle for advocacy and public participation on mountain and trail issues. Education became a major program in 1939, when the CMC created a mountaineering school. The modern education portfolio includes climbing, mountaineering, wilderness travel, first aid, leadership, nature photography, fly fishing, and related outdoor skills. Instruction commonly includes lectures and field days, and volunteer instructors and leaders remain central to the organization’s model. The club’s recreational program is delivered through local groups and volunteer trip leaders. Members can join hikes, climbs, fishing trips, photography outings, and other activities, with options for different levels of difficulty. Most trips occur in Colorado, although the club also offers adventure travel outside the state and internationally. The organization now operates a statewide structure with twelve local groups serving several Colorado communities. The CMC has also become a custodian of peak-climbing records. It maintains summit registers for popular Colorado fourteeners and a record of people who have completed the traditionally recognized list of 53 fourteeners. Its mySummits service broadens this recordkeeping function by allowing users to report ascents among Colorado’s 100 highest peaks. In 1974, the club bought its first permanent Denver home. A later institutional milestone came in 1993, when it partnered with the American Alpine Club to establish the American Mountaineering Center in Golden. The facility combined library, archival, educational, and museum functions. The Henry Bradford Washburn American Mountaineering Museum opened there in February 2008. In September 2024, the CMC announced that the center would be sold and that the organization would relocate to a new CMC Basecamp, also in Golden. The move represents a facilities and operating transition while preserving the club’s longstanding focus on education, recreation, conservation, publishing, and mountain heritage.
- 2024
Relocation to CMC Basecamp announced
[1]The club announced the planned sale of the American Mountaineering Center and relocation to a new Basecamp facility in Golden.
- 2008
Mountaineering museum opens
[1]The Henry Bradford Washburn American Mountaineering Museum opened at the American Mountaineering Center.
- 1993
American Mountaineering Center partnership
[1]The CMC and American Alpine Club founded the American Mountaineering Center in Golden.
- 1974
First permanent Denver home purchased
[1]The club acquired its first permanent headquarters property in Denver.
- 1939
Mountaineering school established
[1]The CMC formally entered outdoor education by creating a mountaineering school.
- 1921
Fort Collins chapter established
[1]The club added a Fort Collins chapter as membership reached approximately 1,000.
- 1919
Early conservation campaign and local chapters
[1]The organization campaigned against advertising signs in Denver’s mountain parks and established chapters in Colorado Springs and Boulder.
- 1918
Trail and Timberline begins publication
[1]The CMC issued the first number of its official newsletter and also built the Beaver Brook Trail near Golden.
- 1914
Supports Rocky Mountain National Park legislation
[1]The club endorsed a congressional bill seeking to establish Rocky Mountain National Park.
- 1912
Club founded
[1]An informal April meeting and a formal charter meeting established the Colorado Mountain Club, with James Grafton Rogers elected as its first president.
Products and positioning
A member-supported Colorado mountain institution combining outdoor education, volunteer-led adventure, conservation advocacy, mountain information services, and mountaineering culture.
Education · 1939
Outdoor education courses
The CMC offers structured learning in mountaineering, climbing, wilderness trekking, wilderness first aid, leadership, nature photography, fly fishing, and related outdoor skills. Courses commonly combine instructional sessions with field days and are supported substantially by volunteer instructors.
Outdoor recreation · 1912
Volunteer-led trips
Members can join organized hikes, climbs, fishing outings, photography trips, and other adventures led by volunteer trip leaders. Activities are planned for varied abilities and take place primarily in Colorado, with additional opportunities through the club’s adventure-travel program.
Peak-record service
mySummits
mySummits is the club’s online reporting system for recording ascents of Colorado’s 100 highest peaks. It extends the CMC’s historical role in preserving summit information and documenting the achievements of Colorado hikers and climbers.
Publication · 1918
Trail and Timberline
Trail and Timberline is the CMC’s official newsletter and a long-running record of the club’s activities, Colorado mountain travel, conservation concerns, and mountaineering culture. Its first issue appeared in April 1918.
Publishing
CMC Press publications
The club’s press has published more than 30 titles associated with Colorado hiking, climbing, mountaineering, natural history, and mountain information. These publications extend the organization’s educational mission beyond courses and trips.
Marketing campaigns
- 1919Denver Mountain Park billboard campaign
Denver, Colorado
The organization campaigned for the removal of advertising signs and billboards from the Denver Mountain Park system, framing visual protection of mountain landscapes as a public concern.
- 1918Beaver Brook Trail construction
Golden, Colorado
The CMC constructed the Beaver Brook Trail near Golden as part of its early contribution to public mountain access and trail infrastructure.
Outcome. The trail became part of the region’s established hiking infrastructure; the reference does not provide further campaign metrics.
- 1914Rocky Mountain National Park advocacy
Colorado · United States
The CMC issued a resolution supporting congressional legislation to establish Rocky Mountain National Park, contributing to the broader preservation movement surrounding Colorado’s alpine landscapes.
Outcome. Rocky Mountain National Park was subsequently established, although the available reference does not attribute the result exclusively to the CMC.
- Colorado trail stewardship
Colorado
Through its conservation committee and volunteers, the CMC participates in trail maintenance and construction and represents hiker interests in Colorado.
Brand decisions
2024
Relocation from the American Mountaineering CenterStrategyBackground
The CMC announced that the American Mountaineering Center in Golden would be sold, changing the organization’s long-term facilities arrangement.
Action taken
The club planned to relocate its operations to a new CMC Basecamp, also located in Golden.
Aftermath
The relocation preserves a Golden-based presence while ending the club’s use of the American Mountaineering Center as its primary facility. The reference does not provide sale terms or a completed transaction date.
Recent events
- 2024
Colorado Mountain Club announces sale of American Mountaineering Center and relocation[1]
Other
The club announced that the American Mountaineering Center would be sold and that its operations would move to a new CMC Basecamp in Golden.
- 2008
Henry Bradford Washburn American Mountaineering Museum opens[1]
Other
A mountaineering museum associated with the American Mountaineering Center opened to the public in February 2008.
- 1993
Colorado Mountain Club and American Alpine Club establish American Mountaineering Center[1]
M&A · Other
The two organizations partnered to create a Golden, Colorado, center for mountaineering collections, research, education, and public interpretation.
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