Welcome!

YOU have always had a yen for the stunning peak-studded scenery, and get a kick out of endurance events. You are eager to put on crampons and use your ice axe to get to the most awe-inspiring places. Your dreams are made of the white fluffy stuff that your skis float in, and you want to earn your turns. You crave the adrenalin, thin air, and the giddy high of standing on a hard-earned summit. You are not new to this -- maybe you grew up running around the hills, or ski-bummed after college. You still have unfulfilled mountain dreams: perhaps they include the likes of climbing Cotopaxi, skiing Kamchatka volcanoes, or ski-touring from Chamonix to Zermatt. But now you live in DC, and often wonder if there is anybody else in this town who is into this stuff.

WELCOME TO DC MOUNTAIN MADNESS! We are a group of mountaineers and backcountry skiers who found themselves in the flatlands. We love our adopted city, but miss the freedom of the hills. We make a pilgrimage to the REAL mountains a few times a year for mountaineering, backcountry skiing, or both. Let's have these adventures together! We can choose what to explore: the Rockies, Sierras, Cascades, or more exotic destinations, including the Andes, Alps, and the Alaska Range. But most importantly, let's create a community of mountain enthusiasts who get together regularly in DC. We will train together, share slide shows of epic mountain adventures, plan new ones, or simply exchange mountain stories over drinks or meals.

READY TO JOIN? We are delighted, but note: this is a selective group. We expect that you have SOME mountaineering and/or backcountry skiing experience. These activities require multiple skills and a lifelong commitment to hone them, so you should be willing to acquire new ones, as well as teach others those skills that you are proficient in. You will need to answer profile questions to be "pre-approved" which will give you a flavor of what we are looking for in our members. Before submitting your membership request, please click on the "About" tab or the link below to see if this is the right group for you. We are excited to have you with us!