Mazamas


The Mazamas is a mountaineering organization based in Portland, Oregon, United States, founded in 1894.

Promotion of mountaineering

The Mazamas has been an important part of the climbing community in the Pacific Northwest of the United States since its founding. The Mazamas is similar in its aims and activities to The Mountaineers of Seattle, Washington, which began in 1906 as an auxiliary of the Mazamas.
The Mazamas offers more than 900 hikes and 350 climbs annually for more than 13,000 participants. A variety of classes and activities are offered for every skill and fitness level and are open to both members and nonmembers. The group also promotes mountaineering through education, climbing, hiking, fellowship, safety, and the protection of mountain environments.

Foundation

Mazamas was officially founded July 19, 1894 on the summit of Mount Hood by a group of 105 climbers. Members of the former Oregon Alpine Club, J. Francis Drake, Martin W. Gorman, Francis C. Little, William G. Steel, Charles H. Sholes, and Oliver C. Yocum, had planned the climb to found the new club and chosen the name on March 19. The climbers had responded to an advertisement in the Morning Oregonian of June 12, 1894 announcing a meeting at the summit. Soon after, members made pioneering climbs throughout Oregon and Washington.

Name

The name Mazamas means mountain goat, from Nahuatl mazatl, deer. Mount Mazama, the collapsed volcano that formed Crater Lake, is located in Oregon and was named after the organization on August 21, 1896, while on their annual outing. They also named the Mazama Glacier on Mount Adams and the Mazama Glacier on Mount Baker after themselves in 1895 and 1907 respectively.