Wasatch Mountain Club

The Wasatch Mountain Club is a recreational outdoor club for adults based in Salt Lake City, Utah. It is a non-profit organization and has no restrictions on who may join. Some of its missions are:

To promote the physical and spiritual well being through outdoor activities;
to unite the energy, knowledge, and interests of students, explorers and lovers of the Utah wilderness;
to encourage the preservation of nature.

History

The club was officailly founded on the 13 May 1920 with the purpose of providing an education and activity group for those who enjoyed hiking, ski touring, river running and mountain climbing. However, it was informally organized earlier, sometime in August 1913. The were seven original participants who were met in the mountains, on various trails near Salt Lake City. Originally there were thirteen charter members of the club, but within five years they grew past 500.

Starting in the 1920s, the Club played a key role in the growth of skiing in Utah, including organizing the first "ski train" in 1924.

In the 1950s, the club began to include such activities as river running and ski mountaineering. In the 1960s the club became increasingly concerned with the wilderness conservation. Since then the club members have made extensive studies and participated in lobbying efforts aimed at preserving the Wasatch and Uintah Ranges and many areas of Southern Utah and neighboring states. These efforts have been gratified by the designation of the Lone Peak Wilderness Area in the 1970s and eight other wilderness areas in Utah in 1984.