Denali and the Himalaya have attracted mountaineers since the early 1900s. Many climbers, including Alaskans, got their start on Denali’s bitterly cold and windy slopes, then moved on to the Himalaya. This show features Steve Mock with the Denali Rescue Volunteers, the Alex Lowe Foundation, and the Khumbu Climbing Center. Steve has been involved in all three programs, serving on their boards and/or directing them. He is the current board president of Denali Rescue Volunteers, which supports Denali National Park’s Mountain Volunteer In Park program with gear caches, training opportunities, and logistical support. The Khumbu Climbing Center is a community based vocational training program in Nepal focused on mountaineering. The Center works with Nepali climbers and high altitude workers to increase their technical climbing skills, English, first aid, safety, and emergency response. Starting in 2009 the Khumbu Climbing Center and Denali National Park started an exchange program called Sherpa Exchange Program. Most years since then one or two of the Center’s instructors have come to Alaska to share knowledge and skills in rescue, climbing, mountaineering, and land management. On this Outdoor Explorer Steve explains the history of the organizations and the deep human connection between the two mountain ranges.
HOST: Paul Twardock
GUEST: Steve Mock, Denali Rescue Volunteers, the Alex Lowe Foundation, and the Khumbu Climbing Center
LINKS:
Denali Rescue Volunteers
Khumbu Climbing Center
Denali Climbing History
Alex Lowe Foundation
Paul Twardock is a Professor of Outdoor Studies at Alaska Pacific University, where he has worked since 1988. He is the author of Kayaking and Camping in Prince William Sound and help found the Alaska Sea Kayaking Symposium/Paddle Sport Fun Day. At APU he teaches a variety of undergraduate classes included Sea Kayaking, Recreation Program Design, Nordic Skiing, The Business of Recreation, and Wildland Ecosystems and Human Impacts. Paul received his BS in Outdoor Recreation from Western Illinois University, went to work instructing for NOLS in Alaska, then received his MBA from APU. Paul’s research includes monitoring of campsites in Prince William Sound and Chugach State Park for human impact, trail use in Chugach State Park, and the Alaska Recreational Boating Safety Incident Database. His passions include sea kayaking, river boating of all sorts, hiking, mountain running, climbing, skiing of any kind, and birding. One of his last adventures involved a mule ride.
Paul is one of several hosts for Outdoor Explorer
