The Mountain Ear

April 2025

President’s Message

Greetings Members,

As I sit down to write this, dusk is overtaking the Missoula valley after the nicest day thus far this spring. Things are starting to green up. People are out everywhere- running, hiking, biking, paddling, skiing-feeling alive! Almost (but not quite) makes one forget about the current messy state of affairs with the good ole US of A. These challenging times are so very frustrating. Fortunately, we have the mountains and an escape! (and…mother nature always bats last)

As mentioned several times previously, several of us club officers are coming to the end of our terms. Several folks have stepped up and expressed interest in helping with the management of the club. We always need more though, and we would welcome any of you that have an inkling of getting more involved. In addition to officers, we are always looking for more folks to lead trips or spearhead educational events (roundtables, field days, etc). Throw your name our way now. Nominations are wanted by April 15th.

We are rapidly approaching one of our most popular annual events- our Spring Fling and BBQ. This event will take place on May 3 rd - see below for all the details. We are looking for more cool raffle prizes-if you have something to donate or get donated, please let us know. Most of all, put the date on your calendar and make plans to attend!

Also, note the article below on the Kercher Glacier Classic. If you have plans to attend (and we hope you do!) please remember to make a reservation as soon as possible for the camping at Divide Creek Campground.

Unfortunately, we were unable to track down a speaker for the monthly presentation in April. Our apologies to all of you who regularly attend these. Please reach out to any of the officers if you have connections to folks who you think would make for an interesting presenter for next year. We are always looking.

I hope to see a whole bunch of you at the Spring Fling in a few weeks. In the meantime, enjoy spring and thank you for being part of this community!

Forest

“The more I learn about people, the more I like my dog.” – Mark Twain

TRM GEAR CLOSET

Our ‘exclusive to member use’ Gear Closet continues to grow. We recently added some BCA 2-way radios along with some CAMP alpine ice tools. This gear is for YOU to use at no charge. If you’d like to check something out of the Closet send an email to Forest- mtnear1@gmail.com.

A complete listing of all the gear we currently have available in the Gear Closet can be found on our website.

SPRING FLING AND BBQ

On SATURDAY, MAY 3rd, we will have our Annual Spring BBQ. This will be held in conjunction with a day of activities! Please mark this on your calendar and consider attending!! Here is the plan:

• Several trips to choose from during the day (see calendar)
• 6:00pm- BBQ in Missoula @ Ft. Missoula's Meadowlark Shelter. Food, Beer & Drinks!
• Raffle Prizes! So far, we have (2) Lift tickets to Showdown Ski area and (1) Liquor Basket from Grizzly Liquor! And more coming! But, you need to be there to win!
• Lawn Games!

To help cover our food costs and the shelter rental, we would like to ask all attendees to contribute $5.00 (kids are free). You will get one free raffle ticket for your contribution. (More tickets can be purchased as well)

The Meadowlark Shelter is at the Fort Missoula Regional Park at 2920 South Avenue West. This is just past the Community Medical Center parking lot on the other side of a parking lot south of South Avenue. See Meadowlark Shelter.

We REALLY want you to attend this event! Hope to see ALL of you there! MEMBERSHIP IS REQUIRED TO ATTEND (members can bring guests though). Also, an RSVP is requested. Email: Forest Dean - mtnear1@gmail.com

BOARD OF DIRECTOR ELECTIONS

As we approach the end of our fiscal year (April 30) it is time to start thinking about nominations for our Board of Directors. A new Board will be elected at our Annual meeting on May 12 (members will have the opportunity to vote on the slate of officers via electronic format prior to that). Any current dues paying member who will have retained membership for at least one year as of April 30th is eligible to be an officer (must be 18 years of age). Members can nominate themselves or other members. We have four positions: President, Vice President, Treasurer, Secretary. All are one year terms with a maximum of two consecutive terms (except Treasurer- 4 terms).

Anyone meeting the above criteria is eligible. If you would like to get involved in the direction of the club, please don’t hesitate to nominate yourself or at least let us know you are interested! All nominations must be made by April 15th .

21st ANNUAL KERCHER GLACIER CLASSIC

August 29- September 1

We are very excited to once again be putting together plans for the signature event of The Rocky Mountaineers—The Kercher Glacier Classic!  Whether it’s your first time or 21st, it will be a weekend of great hikes, climbs and camp camaraderie! This year we are moving things back a little from our normal mid-August time frame to Labor Day Weekend.

New to the club or the area? Asking yourself, “what is the Kercher Glacier Classic”?

We began this event in 2005. Our idea was to have one weekend every August where we would basecamp around Glacier and have several hikes and climbs each day. In the evenings, meet back in camp and tell stories of the days’ adventures. Make new friends, reacquaint yourself with old ones. What began as a small gathering of eight attendees has since grown to usually host between 30-40. We
have held it in various locations around the Park but have recently settled on private campgrounds in the St. Mary area due to the ability to easily reserve for a large group, as well as its proximity to a high concentration of relatively easily accessible adventures.

In 2021 the Glacier Classic was renamed the Kercher Glacier Classic in honor of our dear friend and club member Bryan Kercher. Bryan tragically lost his life in a mountaineering accident in the spring of 2021. He loved Glacier National Park as much or more than anyone we ever knew. What better way to celebrate his contagious smile, energy and spirit than to share some adventures in this magnificent place!

We do require membership for this event. Want to join in on the fun? Here is what you need to do:

Our basecamp this year will once again be the Divide Creek Campground in St. Mary.   First, RSVP to Mark Albrecht (email below) so we know you are coming. For camping, you then need to book directly with Veronica at Divide Creek Campground. We have a bunch of sites reserved, but we will be having all of you pay directly this year to make it less complicated. (We do have a group site reserved, so if you would like to share this site- and spend less- just let her know when you book). Don’t delay! The campground will likely be full on this holiday weekend so we will likely only have the reserved sites available to us.

Divide Creek Campground - Veronica Kempfert- vkempfert1@gmail.com or 406-239-4454

More trips and details will be added as the event gets closer.  Stay tuned and check out our online calendar for updates.

Organizer:  Mark Albrecht- mark.albrecht@gmail.com

GREAT BURN TRAIL WORK WEEKEND

Thursday-Sunday, September 4-7

In an effort for our club to help out and give back to the areas we love to recreate in, we decided to partner with the Great Burn Conservation Alliance to help them clear some trail in the Great Burn. Over the last three years several of us have spent some significant time cutting logs and brush on a very overgrown Trail 510.  This year we will start work on a new needing-to-be-cleared trail: Schley
Mountain. In this day and age of brutal budget cuts, volunteers like us are needed more than ever. Please consider lending a hand and joining us for part or all of a weekend helping this great organization get this trail opened up!

From the Great Burn Conservation Alliance Website:
Join us for our fourth year partnering with the Rocky Mountaineers on a trail improvement project. You do NOT have to be a member of the group to sign up, however, we can bet that you’ll want to be after a trip with these awesome folks! We are lucky to have such a hardworking group so passionate about
maintaining trails. This year, we will be car camping from the Schley Mountain trailhead. There won’t be much hiking involved, but lots of hard work and views from Schley Mountain itself!

Trailhead: Schley Mountain #110, Ninemile RD, Lolo NF
**All volunteer trips are subject to change due to ever-changing fire activity.
Our work begins right at the trailhead as we brush and log out the Schley Mtn trail. The entire section we will work on is 2.5 miles. This trip involves heavy trail work including brushing, logging out, and realigning tread. Hand tools may include: shovels, picks, mattocks, McLeods, Pulaskis, loppers, hand saws, and more. Volunteers may have the opportunity to use a crosscut.

Itinerary
Day 1 | Meet at the Schley Mountain trailhead at 0900 MST. The group will get camp set up and be briefed on the project at hand. We will begin working on clearing and repairing the trail. After a full day’s work, we’ll head back to the trailhead for a night of car camping.
Day 2 | Continue working to clear and brush the trail.
Day 3 | Continue working to clear and brush the trail.
Day 4 | Finish up any work that needs to be done in the morning. Pack up camp and head out in the early afternoon.

Click here to register

Questions: Forest Dean - mtnear1@gmail.com

UPCOMING TRIPS AND ACTIVITIES

BC Ski - Winter Rando Ski - Snowbowl - Every Wednesday
XC Ski/Hike - March Outing- Sun, Mar 23
Community - Monthly Presentation - Tues, Apr 8
Education - Snow Climbing & Glacier Travel Roundtable & Field Days - Thur, Apr 10 & Sat-Sun, Apr 12-13
BC Ski - Backcountry Progression Series – Pinball Wizard- Sat, Apr 12
Hike - April Outing Whitaker Bridge - Sun, Apr 13
TRM Community - Various Activities & Spring Fling & BBQ- Sat, May 3

Please visit our event calendar for details on these trips and events!!

TRM MERCHANDISE
We have merchandise for sale and available for purchase at our presentations, quarterly business meetings, the Spring picnic, etc.  Please contact Elizabeth at heyartemisoutside@gmail.com if you’d like to purchase something for local pickup.

Beanie $25	Pint Glass $10	Keychain $5
T-Shirt $20	Trucker Hat $20	Buff $5

ONGOING CALL FOR PHOTOS AND VIDEOS

If you have some photos or videos you'd like to share that we can use for social media, event promotion, sponsor videos and our newsletter please email Elizabeth at heyartemisoutside@gmail.com or upload to this google photo/video link: https://photos.app.goo.gl/173AgLc4wrkYofvWA

CLUB OFFICERS

President- Forest Dean
Vice President – Mark Albrecht
Secretary- Candy Hartman
Treasurer- Tom Statz
Website- Kyle O'Connor
Archivist- Julie Kahl
Newsletter Editor / Social Media – Elizabeth Smith