Mar 22, 2009: Celebrate Mt Rainier skiing 100 yrs

http://content.lib.washington.edu/cgi-bin/getimage.exe?CISOROOT=/social&CISOPTR=506&DMDIM=700&DMDIMW=800&DMDIMH=800
[hr]The Milnor Roberts party at Longmire, March 1909. Milnor Roberts is second from right. The party included Mr. and Mrs. Frank Dabney, Miss Edith Dabney, Carl F. Gould, Milnora Roberts (sister of Milnor Roberts, far left), and Tacoma Mayor William W. Seymour and his wife.  Photo: U.W. Special Collections, Social Issues Collection (SOC 499), see link .
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On March 18, 1909, a party of skiers arrived at Longmire on Mount Rainier for a week of skiing. They toured from Longmire to Paradise (and beyond) during several day-trips. The party was organized by Milnor Roberts, Dean of the U.W.'s College of Mines, and included architect Carl F. Gould and Mayor William W. Seymour of Tacoma. Milnor Roberts later wrote :

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We skied up to Paradise Valley and on to the Ranger's cabin of which only the ridge was visible. That was the only structure in the area at that time. As we traversed the open slopes, now smooth with a great depth of snow, our skis hidden deep in the powder snow slid quietly along to make the only marks of man's presence even for a day, or at least the only visible one. The possibilities of Paradise as a winter resort so impressed us that I wrote an article for the National Geographic Magazine, published it with some of our photos and two views by Romans in the June 1909 issue with the title "A Wonderland of Glaciers and Snow." Apparently this 8-page article was the first one on the subject to appear in a publication of national circulation.
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It's unknown what skiing was done on Rainier before this time.  Surely there was some--but not much.  For me, the March 1909 outing by Roberts marks the beginning of recreational skiing on Mount Rainier.  His National Geographic article announced the birth of a new sport in the Cascades.  (For brief notes on the article click here .)

I think it would be fitting to mark the centennial of this event somehow.  Perhaps we should organize a gathering of skiers at Paradise later this winter. With a little publicity, this could be a good way to remind the public and the National Park of the long history of skiing on Mount Rainier. What do you think?

A gathering to pay homage to our heritage sounds good to me.

Maybe an attempt can be made to bring back the dress as a womens ski garment and fashion statement. Bring it on ladies!

Great idea Lowell!  Maybe we should all dig out & don our antique gear - of whatever vintage...or, hold another Silver Ski race?  Make whatever we do benefits the NWAC, or RNP? Or, a vintage rando race or tour?  All kinds of wild and fun possibilities!!

Sounds great. Being a Don with antique gear, it's a natural.

I'm floating this idea as a trial balloon. I'm curious to see if there is interest, and wondering how such an event might be put together. If we come up with good ideas, it may be worthwhile to contact one of the newspapers to put together a story.

A commemorative event like this would be a good way to raise the profile of backcountry skiing and its long history at Paradise. This could yield benefits down the road on some of the management issues that TAY'ers are concerned about.

I'm in ! Count on me for help. Please notice that these pictured skiers were on telemark gear. . Seriously, we could have contingents by decades possibly including some 10th mountain representation. A nifty 50s or sixties wagon with ski rack? Exactly right!