Unió Excursionista de Sabadell

The Unió Excursionista de Sabadell (UES) is the principal mountaineering and hiking association of Sabadell, a city in the Vallès Occidental comarca of Catalonia, Spain. It was constituted on 27 February 1970 through the merger of three earlier local clubs: the Centre Excursionista del Vallès (founded 1908, the first hiking entity in the whole of the Vallès), the Centre Excursionista Sabadell (founded 1919) and the Agrupació Excursionista Terra i Mar (founded 1926). The UES is the heir to all three and preserves their archives and heritage. Its stated purpose is to promote the practice of excursionisme — hiking, mountaineering and all mountain sports — as well as the defence of culture and the surrounding natural environment. By membership, the UES is described as the second-largest hiking association in the Països Catalans (Catalan-speaking lands) and the third-largest entity of any kind in the city of Sabadell. It is affiliated with a broad set of federations: the Federació d'Entitats Excursionistes de Catalunya (FEEC), the Federación Española de Deportes de Montaña y Escalada (FEDME), the Federació Catalana d'Espeleologia (FEC), the Federació de Curses d'Orientació de Catalunya (FCOC), the Federació Catalana d'Esports d'Hivern (FCEH) and the Federació Catalana de Ciclisme (FCC). The association organises a dense weekly programme of activities through its many sections. Sporting sections include Aventura, BTT (mountain biking), Caminades de Resistència (long-distance walks), Club Alpí, Escalada (climbing), Escola de Muntanya (mountain school), Espeleo Club, Esquí (skiing), Marxa Nòrdica (Nordic walking), Muntanya, Orientació (orienteering) and Senders (trails). Social sections include Campaments, the youth leisure group Grup d'Esplai La Ganyota de la UES, Famílies and Veterans. Cultural sections include Coral (choir), Història, Natura and Cultura. Signature recurring activities include the sardanes at La Mola, the Marxa Infantil de Regularitat, the Ronda Vallesana and morning walks around the city for older members; the choir section has repeatedly organised the Festa de la cançó de muntanya. In competitive and exploratory terms, UES athletes have summited several eight-thousanders — Shisha Pangma, Cho Oyu, Manāslu, Gasherbrum II and Dhaulagiri — and the club is credited with the first Catalan ascent of Manāslu in 1999. In caving, members completed a descent to -1,122 m in the Gouffre Berger in 1995. The entity has been honoured with the Festa de l'Esport Sabadellenc award in 1970, 1998, 1999, 2001 and 2007, the Premi El Corte Inglés for sports promotion and the Premi Snooker for event organisation (both at the 2018 Festa de l'Esport de Sabadell), and the Medalla d'Honor de la Ciutat de Sabadell in 2008. In 2014 it published '100 anys d'excursionisme a Sabadell, 1908-2008', a book gathering the history of its three founding centres, and since 1993 it has published 'Sabadell ahir', an annual calendar of commented historical photographs of the city.

The Unió Excursionista de Sabadell was formally constituted on 27 February 1970 as a merger of three pre-existing Sabadell hiking organisations. The oldest of these, the Centre Excursionista del Vallès, had been founded in 1908 and was the first hiking entity in the entire Vallès region. It was followed by the Centre Excursionista Sabadell in 1919 and the Agrupació Excursionista Terra i Mar in 1926. The new union inherited the assets, archives and traditions of all three, making it the direct heir of more than six decades of local excursionisme. The association's stated mission is to foster the practice of hiking and all mountain sports, and to defend culture and the natural surroundings. Over the decades it grew into one of the largest hiking associations in the Catalan-speaking lands, second only in membership among the Països Catalans and third among all entities in Sabadell. It affiliated with the main Catalan and Spanish federations covering mountaineering, caving, orienteering, winter sports and cycling. In 1993 the UES began publishing 'Sabadell ahir', an annual calendar illustrated with historical photographs of the city and accompanied by commentary, a project that reflects its cultural and historical section. In 1995 members completed a descent to -1,122 metres in the Gouffre Berger, one of the classic deep cave systems, a landmark in Catalan speleology. In 1999 a UES expedition achieved the first Catalan ascent of Manāslu in the Himalayas. UES athletes have also reached the summits of Shisha Pangma, Cho Oyu, Gasherbrum II and Dhaulagiri. In 2008 the entity celebrated the centenary of Sabadell excursionisme, marking 100 years since the founding of the Centre Excursionista del Vallès. That same year it received the Medalla d'Honor de la Ciutat de Sabadell. In 2014 it published '100 anys d'excursionisme a Sabadell, 1908-2008', a book that gathers the history of the three founding centres and the relevant events of the entity. The association has been recognised repeatedly at the Festa de l'Esport Sabadellenc, winning in 1970, 1998, 1999, 2001 and 2007, and in 2018 it received both the Premi El Corte Inglés for sports promotion and the Premi Snooker for event organisation (for La Llanera Trial). Today the UES maintains a broad programme of weekly activities across its sporting, social and cultural sections, ranging from high-mountain treks and climbing to orienteering, caving, skiing, Nordic walking, mountain biking, family camps and choir performances. Its website publishes an events calendar, membership and federation sign-up options, and links to its activities and blog.

• 2018

  Receives Premi El Corte Inglés for sports promotion and Premi Snooker for event organisation at the Festa de l'Esport de Sabadell.

• 2014

  Publishes '100 anys d'excursionisme a Sabadell, 1908-2008'.

• 2008

  Celebrates the centenary of Sabadell excursionisme; receives Medalla d'Honor de la Ciutat de Sabadell.

• 1999

  First Catalan ascent of Manāslu; wins Festa de l'Esport Sabadellenc.

• 1998

  Wins Festa de l'Esport Sabadellenc.

• 1995

  Members descend to -1,122 m in the Gouffre Berger.

• 1993

  Begins publishing the annual historical calendar 'Sabadell ahir'.

• 1970

  Unió Excursionista de Sabadell constituted on 27 February by merging the three clubs; wins Festa de l'Esport Sabadellenc.

• 1926

  Agrupació Excursionista Terra i Mar founded.

• 1919

  Centre Excursionista Sabadell founded.

• 1908

  Centre Excursionista del Vallès founded, the first hiking entity in the Vallès region.

A large, member-based, non-profit Catalan mountaineering association combining sport, culture and heritage conservation in Sabadell.

• Weekly section excursions

• Marxa Infantil de Regularitat

• Ronda Vallesana

• Sardanes a la Mola

• Sabadell ahir annual calendar

• 100 anys d'excursionisme a Sabadell, 1908-2008 (book)

1. 1UES | Unió Excursionista de Sabadellues.cat
2. 2Resum de la xerrada El Montsec | UESues.cat
3. 3Resum de la xerrada El Camí del Mestral | UESues.cat
4. 4Unió Excursionista de Sabadellwikidata.org
5. 5Unió Excursionista de Sabadellca.wikipedia.org