SIERRA CLUB Desert Peaks Section Newsletter #8 DECEMBER 11, 1950

Dear Member: Three years ago, Henry Greenhood, then chairman of the Mountains Committee of the Desert Peaks Section, boldly set into motion a truly Herculean program for the young and struggling group in the Sierra Club known as the Desert Peaks Section. This Herculean program was to compile a "Climbers Guide to the Desert Peaks of Southwestern United States". To get the guide started, Henry began two programs: 1. Seven or eight members of the section who were quite familiar with map reading were each assigned a state, or part of a state and asked to make a survey of existing maps to determine all the ranges and peaks that were in their assigned areas. 2. A questionnaire form was composed and mimeographed. Persons climbing new peaks were then to fill out their questionnaires and return them to the chairman of the Mountains Committee. From these questionnaires was to come the information eventually to be used in the climbers guide. Also Henry wisely asked Randall Henderson and Weldon Heald to serve as advisors. They have acted as such for the past three years, and have made a number of excellent suggestions. This past year, Bob Bear has served as chairman of the Mountains Committee, with Frieda Walbrect, Willard Dean, and Tony Gamero as his committee. They have set into motion the third phase of the guide; that of actually writing the guide from the information accumulated in the various questionnaires that have been filled out by both members of the section, and others. At our regular annual meeting to be held Friday evening, January 12, 1951 (new officers for next year will be elected) you will receive a 75 page publication. Fifty pages consist of a catalogue of the ranges and peaks which the guide will cover. The remaining 25 pages will consist of a climbers guide to the White Mtns., Inyo's, Santa Rosas, and Death Valley area. All of this material has been mimeographed, for which a great deal of thanks must go to Margie Henderson. Future plans are as follows. As guides are written to new ranges or corrections made to old write-ups, these will be mimeographed and sent to the holders of the original copies either to be added to their original or to replace parts of their original as the case may be. Thus the rate of growth of our guide will depend on the enthusiasm and efforts of the members of the section. There are more than ample jobs for all members of the section, and these jobs cover a wide variety of skills: 1. Exploring ranges and peaks for which we have no data (there are better than 500 such ranges, and several thousand peaks), and filling out questionnaires on them. 2. Much more concentrated study of maps, particularly new maps that are being published, for corrections to present catalogue of ranges and peaks. 3. Research in the libraries for history, geology, and nature-lore, on the various ranges and their vicinities. 4. Actual writing parts of the guide, given the information obtained from the above three tasks. 5. Typing stencils and mimeographing. Pick out one or two of the above tasks for which you feel suited, and offer your services to your Mountains Committee Chairman. Next year's Chairman will be appointed by the Chairman of the section after he has been elected. This year's chairman is Bob Bear. Chairman of the Mountains Committee is the most important job in the Section so let's back him.

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