Powered by the pros at Mountain Madness, this Intro to Moun­taineer­ing course is a great way for begin­ner climbers to learn the fun­da­men­tals of moun­taineer­ing, and for expe­ri­enced climbers to learn the lat­est tech­niques and review their skills. The moun­taineer­ing skills you will learn are part of the fun­da­men­tal build­ing blocks of our climb­ing school. We spend two days on Ruth Moun­tain learn­ing the essen­tials of alpine moun­taineer­ing, includ­ing ice axe and cram­pon use, self arrest, and back­coun­try camp­ing. Our high­ly moti­vat­ed and expe­ri­enced guides are com­mit­ted to mak­ing your intro to moun­taineer­ing course a reward­ing and edu­ca­tion­al experience.
 
With quick access to glaciat­ed ter­rain and a spec­tac­u­lar set­ting on the north side of Mount Shuk­san, Ruth Moun­tain offers one of the best entry lev­el peaks for first time moun­taineer­ing. From the sum­mit of Ruth Moun­tain you get a glimpse into the spec­tac­u­lar Pick­ets Range and a unique north side view of Mount Shuk­san. This trip will sure­ly get you hooked on climbing.
 
This course curriculum includes:

• Snow climb­ing, ice axe use and safe­ty, and mov­ing in balance
• Roped glac­i­er trav­el, rope team man­age­ment, route find­ing, and crevasse navigation
• Appli­ca­tion of all ice axe posi­tions and self arrest training
• Intro­duc­tion to anchors and belaying
• Cram­pon usage and techniques
• Camp con­struc­tion, camp man­age­ment, and cold weath­er camp­ing skills
• Prop­er cloth­ing and equip­ment for sur­vival in the moun­tain envi­ron­ment, moun­tain weath­er, alpine ecol­o­gy, self-depen­dent climb­ing tech­niques, and Leave No Trace ethics