This past weekend we had a reunion of sorts for Friends Hut board members and associates, past and present. Instigation of the event was for work on a hut history book.
Some non-profits have boards that are mostly for show, some for management, and some that are mostly for work. Friends Hut has always been a “working” board that does a lot of hands on labor at the hut, as well as managing affairs behind the scene. After serving as a charter board member for some time in the 1980s, I’ve not been involved for a while so it was good to reconnect.
Current board members told me that the hut finances are solid, and that they’d weathered the recession quite well due to timely money management. I got the impression they’re looking to the future possibly as a time of simply managing the hut rather than the push on remodeling that was recently concluded. Nonetheless, with a board that seems to always include a few ‘developer’ types, talk did turn to future remodels or perhaps even Friends Hut II.
Past and present Friends Hut board members photo by Lisa while we posed for the 'official' portrait, left to right, Murray Cunningham, Kris Pogoloff, George Reinhardt, Rob Burnett (behind George, was pioneer staff at 10th Mountain Huts), Carol Dale, current board president Roger Sherman, Lou Dawson (attempting to art direct), Jeff Hermanson, Xavier Fane (kneeling), Norm Bardeen, Brian Dale, Graeme Means.
Primary purpose of the gathering was to record tall tales from the old days. Two stories that got big laughs: Board member Norm Bardeen carrying a 20 foot rake board up the fairly rough 5-mile hike to the hut, to repair damage from a tree fall. (Norm is a fine carpenter from the Kingdom, and just hates cutting a board in half that can be installed full length.) Graeme Means and Robin Ferguson wearing kilts during a snowy hypothermia hike to the hut, then down to Crested Butte where the local mountain girls found their attire to be quite fascinating, especially when they checked out one of the boy’s “Loch Ness Monster.” Hopefully, you’ll read those stories in the book!
A few more photos from Lisa:
Gorgeous Crested Butte. It will take a few more weeks for the high country snow to melt out, opening the popular hike between Aspen and Crested Butte. Now you'd encounter at least a 1000 vert of post holing.
The sweet scent from fields of purple lupine filled the air as we walked around town, giving credence to Crested Butte's claim as the wildflower capital of Colorado.
WildSnow.com publisher emeritus and founder Lou (Louis Dawson) has a 50+ years career in climbing, backcountry skiing and ski mountaineering. He was the first person in history to ski down all 54 Colorado 14,000-foot peaks, has authored numerous books about about backcountry skiing, and has skied from the summit of Denali in Alaska, North America’s highest mountain.
