FORTIFICATION HILL

Toby is excited about his first "solo" LVMC hike

Bob, Amy, Kristi & Toby pause for a photo along the trail

It's a cakewalk along the plateau near the summit

Group summit photo

Bob pondering Hoover Dam and Lake Mead

LAS VEGAS MOUNTAINEERS CLUB
BOARD OF DIRECTORS

President: Chris Ransel
Vice President/Training Director: Chris Meyer
Secretary: Kristi Meyer
Treasurer: Jim Albamont
Newsletter Editor: Joel Brewster
Outings Director: Josh Owen
Membership Director: Dawna Herndon
Website Director: Amy Brewster
Public Relations Director: Chris Ransel
Club Gear Director: Kim Friedman
Assistant Director: Bruce Lacroix
Assistant Director: Richard Baugh
Assistant Director: Howard Herndon
Assistant Director: Alan Andrunas
Past President: Xavier Wasiak

The Ascender is published monthly by the Las Vegas Mountaineers Club. It can be viewed on the “Members Only” section of our website. Current Club membership is approximately 150.
All Club members are invited to submit trip reports, photos, trip listings, recipes, classified ads and other related information. Please include the name and date of the trip or outing and the author’s name. April 10th is the deadline for the next issue.

SUBMIT ARTICLES TO:
Joel Brewster
E-mail: amyjoel@cox.net
Phone: 456-8520

MEMBERSHIP ISSUES...

To the following members, please note that your membership will expire this month:

Michael Jacobs
Alan Andrunas
Robert "Ditch" Ellis
Kelly Evans
Allen Gibbs
Bill Guida
Chip Johnson
John Kolacz
Paul Kuroda

Bruce Lacroix
Deborah McCormick
Patricia Snider
Brett Dawson
Gretchen Huie
Charles Kajkowski
Barb Speckert
Nicole Tassone
Tice Umberger

Please make your check payable to the Las Vegas Mountaineers Club and mail to: P.O. Box 36026, Las Vegas, NV 89133-6026.
Single membership is $30 per year, $85 for three years. Family annual membership is $40, $110 for three years. Please mail all renewals prior to the end of the month to ensure uninterrupted notification of your Ascender password.

To All Members:
Please send any address, phone number and e-mail changes to Dawna Herndon.

Dawna Herndon
Membership Director

CLUB GEAR

This club gear is available at no charge to members:

4-season tent
Helmets
Bear Barrels
Alpine Axes*
Snowshoes
Strap-on Crampons*

Quantity
1
5
3
5
3
6

Deposit
$150
$20
$20
$25
$25
$30

*Will require a signed waiver.

Non-members are not eligible to borrow club gear. Deposits taken on gear must be in the form of cash or check and will be returned upon return of equipment. Gear is also available to members for courses with no deposit required. If you have any questions or would like to inquire about club gear, please contact Kim Friedman.

ADVERTISING

Classified Ads
Members: Free
Non-members: $5

Business Ads
1/8 page (business card): $5
1/4 page: $10
1/2 page: $15
Full page: $20
All rates are per issue and will be discontinued automatically unless renewed. Ads must be prepaid and sent by e-mail or submitted on CD. Please make checks payable to Las Vegas Mountaineers Club.

ATTENTION PHOTOGRAPHERS

Send in your best photos from LVMC outings for the First Annual LVMC Photo Contest. The contest will be open through November 2006 and prizes will be awarded at the annual Christmas Party! Click HERE for the contest rules. Please submit photos via e-mail to Joel Brewster and happy shooting!
(Remember, photos must be taken during an LVMC outing.)

FORTIFICATION HILL

February 26, 2006
Report by Amy Brewster, Photos by Joel Brewster

Participants: Alda Behie, Bob Grozenski, Kristi Meyer, Peggy Rescheske, Joel, Amy, Toby & Sierra Brewster

We started out on a beautiful February day, hoping to successfully hike Fortification Hill. The last time Joel, Amy, Toby, and Bob tried to get to Fortification Hill, we were thwarted by the Hoover Dam Bypass project. We had heard the road was passable again, so Alda, Kristi, Peggy and 2-month-old Sierra joined us this time to check it out. This was four-year-old Toby’s first LVMC hike without being carried at all. He last ascended Fortification Hill at 10 months old via backpack. (Click HERE for photo.)

The weather was gorgeous. The sun might have been too hot while we exerted ourselves if not for a perfect cool breeze. Our conversation was interrupted at times by helicopters and a few small planes flying overhead. The group (well, mostly Toby and Joel) counted 49 helicopters that passed overhead during our hike, carrying tourists to spectacular views of Lake Mead.

Kristi pointed out how memorable this hike is because Fortification Hill’s flat top is so visible in the Lake Mead area. When viewed from below, it’s fun to remember hiking across the “table-top” in the final moments before the summit.

Sierra hitches a ride from Kristi

We enjoyed a moderate to slow pace, as no one was in a hurry and four-year-old legs are pretty short. At the top, we munched on lunch while taking in a 360-degree view of the Strip, Lake Mead, Hoover Dam, Hamblin Mountain, Muddy Mountain and even snow on Mt.Charleston all the way across the valley. We all took our turn to sign the register (even Toby), then headed down.

Toby signing his first summit register!

Click HERE for a great panoramic photo of Fortification Hill on hikinglasvegas.com. Thanks, Brandon for letting us use this awesome photo!
We finished our trip with a stop at the Boulder City A&W Root Beer. Brett Dawson initiated us seven years ago into his tradition of root beer floats after Lake Mead-area hikes. We’ve never had reason to challenge a yummy tradition like that.

Replacing those precious calories at A&W

INTERESTED IN CLIMBING THURSDAY NIGHTS?
Come join us Thursday evenings at the rock gym (now called Red Rock Climbing Center), located at Charleston and Cimarron.
No experience required. We're there 6-8 pm.
Shoes are available to rent at the gym and some harnesses are available.
Contact Bruce Lacroix.

CLICK HERE FOR LVMC EVENT SCHEDULE

GENERAL MEETINGS

The Las Vegas Mountaineers hold their monthly meetings at the Sahara West Library,
9600 West Sahara. Click HERE for map. Meeting time is 7:00 p.m.

MARCH

Tuesday, March 28, 2006
Cascades
Courtney Purcell

APRIL

Tuesday, April 25, 2006
My Sierra Summer 2005
Xavier Wasiak