This weekend twenty-six salmon advocates will summit Mt. Rainier the highest point in Washington state, and one of the most challenging peaks in North America. Each climber raised at least $2,000 to help support the work of the Save Our Wild Salmon Coalition a coalition of commercial fishing, sportfishing, conservation and taxpayer groups dedicated to the restoration of salmon to self-sustaining, harvestable populations.
Scientists tell us the most cost effective method of restoring wild salmon and steelhead is the removal of the four lower Snake River dams.
“These twenty-six climbers are demonstrating their commitment to salmon and the Northwest way of life they exemplify,” said Pat Ford, executive director, Save Our Wild Salmon. “The lengths to which they are going to raise money and awareness for this issue shows how passionate the people of the Northwest are about the survival and recovery of wild salmon.”
Rainier Mountaineering, Inc. will provide their vast experience in guiding the teams to the summit of Mt. Rainier. The team of expert mountain guides includes Dave Hahn, contributor to Outside Magazine and a web correspondent for Mountainzone.com. Dave has over 220 summits of Mt. Rainier, 15 summits of Mt. McKinley and 5 summits of Mt. Everest under his belt, as well as numerous Alps and Antarctica peak ascents.
“Mt. Rainier is an undeniable presence in our NW environment and the challenge that we face in attempting its summit can be likened to the challenges that we face in protecting and preserving wild salmon and steelhead,” said Kati Reid, Technical Representative for Sage fly-fishing. “I believe that at the end of the day the more people who we can make aware of the problem, the greater the chance we have of successfully restoring the wild salmon and steelhead populations in the area. If climbing a mountain achieves this goal then count us in!”
Hundreds of businesses from the outdoor recreation sector support the work of the Save Our Wild Salmon Coalition. Major sponsors of this years Summit for Salmon benefit climb include Sage, Kelty and Patagonia. In addition, employees from Sage and Patagonia will be among the Summit for Salmon climbers attempting the summit.
“Recovering a free-flowing Snake River and abundant wild salmon is vital to the businesses that depend on our Northwest quality of life.” said Andy Mitchell, Wholesale Representative, Patagonia, Inc., purveyor of technical outdoor clothing and leader among environmentally responsible businesses. “People from across the country come to recreate in the beauty of wild places, and that brings dollars to rural communities. Having abundant salmon and a restored Snake River means not only a healthy environment but also a thriving economy, if climbing a mountain will help us get there, I'm willing to give it a shot.”
“Despite billions of taxpayer dollars being spent on efforts to mitigate and minimize the impacts of the federal hydrosystem, wild salmon, healthy rivers – and the businesses of the Pacific Northwest remain seriously constrained,” says Neil Beaver, Legislative Assistant for Washington senate majority leader Lisa Brown. “We need to restore salmon and steelhead populations back to healthy and harvestable levels for our future generations to enjoy.”
