Welcome to the Rocky Mountain Chapter of
The Explorers Club
We are 130 explorers and adventurers who are passionate about the advancement of field research and the ideal that it is vital to preserve the instinct to explore. Since its inception in 1904, the Club has served as a meeting point and unifying force for explorers and scientists worldwide.
Founded in New York City in 1904, The Explorers Club promotes the scientific exploration of land, sea, air and space by supporting research and education in the physical, natural, and biological sciences. The Club’s members have been responsible for an illustrious series of famous firsts: first to the North Pole, first to the South Pole, first to the summit of Mount Everest, first to the deepest point in the ocean, first to the surface of the Moon – all accomplished by our members.
The Club provides expedition resources including funding, online information, and member-to-member consultation. And our famed annual dinners honor accomplishments in exploration. But probably the most powerful resource available to those who join the Club is fellowship with other members—a global network of expertise, experience, technology, industry, and support.
The Explorers Club actively encourages public interest in exploration and the sciences through its public lectures program, publications, travel program, and other events. The Club also maintains Research Collections, including a library and map room, to preserve the history of the Club and to assist those interested and engaged in exploration and scientific research.
If you are located within the Rocky Mountain region from the Canadian to Mexican borders, you can learn more about joining by logging onto Explorers.org.
Watch this space for news about chapter activities for members and their guests.
Contact Us
Thanks for your interest in the Rocky Mountain Chapter of the Explorers Club! If you have a question or want to find out about membership, complete the form to the left or contact the chapter chair:
Jeff Blumenfeld
- 203-326-1200
- jeff@blumenfeldpr.com
Upcoming Events…
-
Science at Sea: Inside Modern Ocean Exploration
What does it take to explore the ocean in the modern age? Far from shore, in some of the most remote regions on Earth, research vessels operate around the clock, mapping the seafloor, imaging deep geological structures, sampling the water column, and collecting scientific data that will be studied for years to come. Behind every expedition lies a system few people ever see: a fleet of ships operating across the globe, complex operations carried out at sea, and a network that turns raw observations into lasting scientific knowledge. This talk offers a rare, firsthand look inside that world. From the…
News and Events
Read out about our past lectures featuring members of The Explorers Club.
-
Science at Sea: Inside Modern Ocean Exploration
in EventsWhat does it take to explore the ocean in the modern age? Far from shore, in some of the most remote regions on Earth, research vessels operate around the clock, mapping the seafloor, imaging deep geological structures, sampling the water column, and collecting scientific data that will be studied for years to come. Behind every expedition lies a system few people ever see: a fleet of ships operating across the globe, complex operations carried out at sea, and a network that turns raw observations into lasting scientific knowledge. This talk offers a rare, firsthand look inside that world. From the… Explore more…
-
From the Deep: New Frontiers in Shark Research
in Events6:30 p.m., Thursday, Jan. 8, 2026 Academy University Hill, 833 10th Street, Boulder Presented by Mikki McComb-Kobza, Ph.D. CEO & Chief Scientist, Ocean First InstituteExplorers Club FellowPast President American Elasmobranch SocietyWomen Divers Hall of FameAssistant Professor Adjunct CU Boulder Ecology & Evolutionary Biology Most of us have an irrational fear of sharks when in reality, more people die each year from falling vending machines than from shark bites, so desperate as they are to shake loose that final bag of Cheetos. Learn more amazing facts about shark conservation and the cutting edge of shark science from one of the country’s… Explore more…
-
Annals of a Bee-Seeking Wayfinder
in EventsPresented by Dr. Samuel Ramsey, Assistant ProfessorMarvin H. Caruthers Endowed Chair for Early-Career FacultyUniversity of Colorado Boulder BioFrontiers Institute Thursday, Nov. 20, 2025, Boulder, Colorado Southeast Asia is the only region of the world where every honey bee species is present. With that unparalleled biodiversity comes quite a few parasites, diseases, and specialized predators from “Murder Hornets” to Parasitic Mite Syndrome. Dr. Ramsey’s goal of understanding this disease reservoir dynamic has taken him all over Asia on adventure after adventure. Dr. Ramsey received his B.S. in entomology from Cornell University and his Ph.D. in entomology from the University of Maryland… Explore more…
-
A View From Afar
in NewsThe Rocky Mt. chapter invited Mike Kaplan (left), a thought leader in multiple space domains with extensive experience in government and the aerospace industry, to provide an update on the James Webb Space Telescope, launched in 2021, and how it compares to the Hubble Space Telescope launched in 1990 – a night and day difference in its view of the galaxies. The talk was Mar. 3, 2025, and was open to the public; approximately 80 attended. Mike, a new TEC member who dazzled in his space-themed shirt, has been instrumental in creating several groundbreaking space missions, including the Webb and… Explore more…
-
When a Life of Adventure Goes Sideways
Chapter chair Jeff Blumenfeld will describe the work of The Explorers Club and his projects with Norman D. Vaughan, Will Steger, Barry Clifford, and other explorers and adventurers during a presentation to the Boulder Newcomers Club. He’ll then explain his own two-year expedition searching for a living kidney donor. Chapter members and guests are invited. No admission fee. Explore more…
-
-
Dr. Brian Buma – To The Ends of the Earth: Geographic Extremes of the Human Species
in Events6:30 p.m., Wednesday, April 9, 2025 Explore more…
-
Flash Talk “Show & Tell”
in EventsJoin us for our third bimonthly Flash Talk session in CU Boulder’s Gamow Tower top floor Reading Room. The format is simple: bring an item from a past expedition and tell us about the project’s goals and results. You’ll have five minutes. Members and their invited guests only; this will not be open to the public – just us chickens. No admission fee. Bring refreshments and munchies to enjoy and share. Paper cups and napkins provided. Come for the informal discussion, camaraderie, and networking. Explore more…
-
The Six – A Book Talk by TEC Member Steven Schwankert
One of our fellow TEC members is coming to Boulder Tuesday night and chapter members are invited. Steven is a Fellow of the Royal Geographical Society, a Fellow and East and South Asia Chapter Chair of The Explorers Club, and founded SinoScuba, Beijing’s first professional scuba diving operator. In 2007, he led the first-ever scientific expedition to dive Mongolia’s Lake Khovsgol, where he and his team found two wooden shipwrecks from the early 20th century. He is an alumnus of the University of Massachusetts at Amherst’s Asian Languages department, and received his Masters in journalism at the University of Colorado… Explore more…
-
Think South: Early Exploration and New Research in West Antarctica and the Thwaites “Doomsday” Glacier
in EventsThe United States Antarctic Service Expedition (1939-1941), also known as Richard Byrd’s Third Antarctic Expedition, is often left out of timelines and history books. While the expedition was cut short by World War II, it made compelling discoveries of huge swaths of the continent. Byrd was one of the most important figures of twentieth century exploration. Leilani Henry’s father, George W. Gibbs, Jr., participated as a crew member on one of the expedition ships, the USS Bear. Gibbs became the first person of his race to step on Antarctica. The expedition had 125 men and 80 dogs. Fifty-nine of the… Explore more…
-
Dig This: Discovery in the Mesozoic of Utah – Fieldwork by the Prehistoric Museum and How You Can Participate
in EventsPresented by Joshua Lively, Ph.D., Curator of Paleontology, Prehistoric Museum, Utah State University Eastern Prehistoric Museum The Prehistoric Museum at Utah State University Eastern in Price, Utah, is within less than two hours – in every direction – of some of the most important fossiliferous rocks in the United States. These are rocks that span the entire Age of Dinosaurs (Triassic – Cretaceous) as well as rocks from the Eocene. “If you can get yourself to Price or our field localities, love paleontology, and are ready to prospect some of the most remote areas of Utah for ancient life, you… Explore more…
-
From Buckskin to Gore-Tex: How the Development of Outdoor Gear and Equipment Led to Modern-Day Exploration
in EventsEvent Report Sept. 26, 2024 – Modern Outdoor Gear Makes Today’s Exploration Possible Rachel S. Gross, historian and author based at the University of Colorado Denver addressed the Rocky Mt. chapter on Sept. 25, 2024 at the Fjallraven Boulder store, to review how the development of outdoor gear and equipment led to modern-day exploration. Gross is author of Shopping All the Way to the Woods: How the Outdoor Industry Sold Nature to America (Yale University Press, 2024). Her book is partly a business history how various entrepreneurs found a market for outdoor products, and partly a cultural history of the… Explore more…
-
RMEC Mentioned in Titan Disaster Op-Ed
The recent Titan tragedy appeared in media worldwide and mesmerized the nation, perhaps because the Titan represented a collection of humankind’s greatest fears (drowning, claustrophobia, darkness, cold, a ticking countdown clock, etc.) all wrapped up in a carbon fiber cocoon. By one account, CNN alone had over 100 people interviewed on their network during the week, including Captain McLaren. Coverage spawned unprecedented scrutiny on the use of extreme tourism to fund exploration, whether regulation stifles innovation, and at what cost. It encouraged me to pause and ponder the risks inherent in exploration. This op-ed appeared in the June 28 Denver Post. That version is paywalled, but you can… Explore more…
-
Rocky Mt. Dinner Breaks Five-Year Attendance Record as Members “Share Their Bearings”
The Rocky Mountain Chapter of The Explorers Club broke a five-year dinner attendance record when it changed up the format of its typical bi-monthly dinners. Instead of one speaker, the evening featured nine speakers – all members – presenting their most recent projects with no more than a five-year look-back of previous projects. Each speaker was given only six minutes to present, creating a type of “speed dating” experience for explorers and their guests. The presenters who came to “Share Their Bearings” were: • Chapter chairman and Expedition News editor Jeff Blumenfeld – Where in the World are Explorers Going? • Citation of Merit winner (2017) George… Explore more…
-
Andes Rugby Team Crash Recalled 50 Years Later
The Andes crash of Uruguayan Air Force Flight 571 happened exactly 50 years ago on October 13, 1972. A rugby team heading to Chile crashed straight into an Andean peak at 14,200 feet. Sixteen of the 45 passengers survived 72 days trapped on a glacier, isolated from civilization and having to resort to eating the bodies of the dead to survive, drying human flesh on the fuselage in the high altitude sun. In those 72 days, they endured extremely cold temperatures, avalanches, starvation and dehydration and ultimately two of them climbed out of the Andes to bring helicopters to rescue the… Explore more…
-
Van Arsdale Pens Encounters
Congratulations to chapter member Peter W. Van Arsdale on the publication of his book: Encounters: 50 Fascinating Strangers From My Life on the Road(Amity Bridge, 2022). While neither memoir nor autobiography per se, this book nonetheless covers half a century of personal encounters – most of them unexpected – across the globe. In these 50 vignettes, Peter vividly depicts the amazing individuals he has met, and the wisdom gained from these meetings. Covering such strangers as a New Guinea warrior, a moonwalker, a witch, a sheik, a slave, a genocide survivor, a land mine survivor, a resistance fighter, and the… Explore more…
-
Rocky Mt. Chapter Hosts First Live Virtual Tour of Research Collections – Live From New York!
Frustrated as we all are about Covid restrictions, the Rocky Mountain chapter requested that Club archivist and curator Lacey Flint conduct a live, virtual tour of the Research Collections. As the mid-September event came together, we naturally thought to open it to all 3,600 of us worldwide. The 60-minute event offered insight into some of the Club’s holdings which include an archive of documents, photographs, lantern slides and maps from late 19th century exploration to present day; artifacts ranging from polar sledges to historic flags that have flown to the moon; and a library housing approximately 14,000 volumes, from Matthew… Explore more…
-
Rocky Mt. Chapter Members “Explore” Historic Silver Mine
Rocky Mt. chapter members spent the better part of a September Saturday “exploring” a large historic lead and silver mine dating to the late 19th century in the hills above Boulder. The White Raven Mine, owned by Club member Markus Raschke, a physics professor at the University of Colorado-Boulder, has been part of the Captain Jack mine/mill superfund cleanup and remediation project. Markus purchased the property to protect it from development. Temperature outside was in the 80’s degrees F., inside was a cool mid-50s degrees F. The group trekked over 400 feet inside a hillside, at one point experiencing complete darkness.… Explore more…
-
Field Trip to Montrose Provides Insight on Petroglyphs, Black Canyon and Siege of Annapurna
in EventsThe chapter traveled to Montrose on Oct. 11-13 to tour the Shavano Valley Petroglyph Park, learn the history of Black Canyon, and enjoy a fascinating talk by Kelvin Kent, a member of Chris Bonington’s British teams for Annapurna (1970) and Everest (1972), and gain some insight on expedition fundraising. Kent considers the 1970 Annapurna climb, “the last of an era of logistical sieges,” and believes there are phenomenal climbers today who are almost like ballet dancers. In regards to the rigors of climbing above 8000 meters, Kent said, “After being at altitude for long periods of time, no one can tell… Explore more…
-
Flower Power
Flower Power – Congratulations to Jim Pisarowicz and Mary Menz on publication of Common Wildflowers of the San Juan Mountains (2019). All the wildflowers in the book are found in the San Juan Mountains and specifically in Ouray, Hinsdale, San Juan and San Miguel counties – from the montane zone of 8,000 – 10,000 feet to the subalpine zone of 10,500 – 11,500 feet to the alpine zone of 11,500 – 14,400 feet. It’s a pictorial guide to plants visible on hikes and off-road adventures, offering close-ups of the flowers to make wildflower identification easy. For more information: jim.pisarowicz@gmail.com Explore more…
-
Crash site of Uruguayan Air Force flight 571
TEC national fellow Dr. Ulyana Horodyskyj traveled with Alpine Expeditions (Ricardo Peña) in January 2018 to the crash site of Uruguayan Air Force flight 571. The Fairchild 227 went down in the Andes on Friday, October 13, 1972 due to pilot error. 45 people were onboard the plane and only 16 survived. The survivors lived for 72 days on the Lagrimas glacier at nearly 12,000 ft., eating human flesh in order to survive. Rescue helicopters arrived on December 22, given a successful 10-day trek out of the crash site by survivors Nando Parrado and Roberto Canessa. Ulyana had the pleasure… Explore more…
-
Dooley Intermed International – Operation Restore Vision Gift of Sight 2017 expedition
Chapter Chair Jeff Blumenfeld, FN’89, was director of communications for the Dooley Intermed International – Operation Restore Vision Gift of Sight 2017 expedition to Nepal’s Upper Gorkha region, epicenter of the 2015 earthquakes. Read his daily trip reports here: https://dooleyintermed.org/the-adventure-begins-off-to-qatar-then-nepal-for-the-2017-dooley-intermed-gift-of-sight-eye-care-medical-mission-led-by-scott-hamilton-of-dooley-intermed-flying-to-the-other-side-of-the-world-with View the 11-minute trip documentary produced by SkyShip Films here: Explore more…
-
Four Young Explorers the World Needs to Know About
in EventsOn Nov. 8, 2023, we were honored to hear about the work and interests of four early career explorers: Cayte Bosler – Women of the Explorers Club Dr. Rebecca (Becky) Niemiec – Applying Social Science to Solve Conservation Challenges Around the World Alex Geldzahler – Excavating a 1st- Century BCE Villa in Malta Ryan A. Venturelli – Unveiling Subglacial Secrets: Adventures in Drilling Through the West Antarctic Ice Sheet Watch the event and “like” it on social media here: Facebook Post: https://www.facebook.com/groups/explorersrm/posts/2018446845179544/ Our appreciation to Fjallraven Denver for hosting the event and providing gear advice and refreshments. Explore more…
-
Mikki McComb-Kobza Inducted into Women Divers Hall of Fame
Explorer, conservationist and educator, Mikki, a resident of Longmont, Colorado, was honored by the group recognizing women divers who have made outstanding contributions to the exploration, understanding, safety and enjoyment of the underwater world. The WDHOF also promotes opportunities in diving through grants, scholarships, internships and mentoring, as well as a worldwide network of industry contacts: https://www.wdhof.org Explore more…
-
June 4, 2024: First Contact: Like People You See in a Dream
in EventsPresented by Peter Van Arsdale, Ph.D. Fjallraven Denver Store, 1510 Platte Street 6:30 PM Free admission, guests welcome (no fee) From a historical exploration perspective, spanning the so-called Age of Discovery, first contacts with previously unknown people have proven fascinating, mystifying, and controversial. At times those discovered have been described as “the Other,” “savages,” or “aliens.” At other times, they’ve been described as “giants” or “superhumans.” This presentation will feature five such contacts, placing each in an anthropological context. Peter Van Arsdale’s first contact will include film footage of the men he and his team encountered exactly 50 years ago. The evocative phrase “Like… Explore more…
-
May 16, 2024: The Ninety-Nines and Women in Aviation
in EventsAcademy University Hill Chapel Hall833 10th Street, Boulder, Colorado Free admission, guests welcome, refreshments served Join us as we examine the impact of the Ninety-Nines, founded by Amelia Earhart in 1929, on exploring and breaking barriers, Learn about the post-WWII start of women’s air racing and how the innovations of the Powder Puff Derby affected FAA rules, navigation, and the aviation industry. Also, how today’s air racing continues to evolve. THE NINETY-NINES, INC.®, is an international organization of licensed women pilots from 44 countries based in Oklahoma City. Although there are other female pilot organizations in various states and nations,… Explore more…
-
Saving the Wildebeest Migration: A Maasai Perspective
in EventsFjallraven retail store 1510 Platte Street, Denver at 7 PM One of the natural wonders of the world is the annual migration of white-bearded wildebeest across the Serengeti-Maasai Mara savanna ecosystem of Kenya and Tanzania. The Maasai people are pastoralists and have herded cattle and coexisted with wildlife in savanna ecosystems for hundreds of years. Changing land ownership is altering open range by increasing the population of other non-pastoral tribes with differing land management practices. Fences are being constructed altering both traditional Maasai herding practices and impeding the wildebeest migration. Maasai are no longer able to kill problem lions to protect their… Explore more…
-
A Public/Chapter Talk by Peter Greenberg
in EventsThe Brave New World of Travel: Where I won’t Go: Understanding Fear, the True Metrics, Dealing with State Department Advisories and Mapping out the Real World Location: Nevin Platt Middle School, 6096 Baseline Rd., Boulder at 6:30 PM A multiple Emmy-winning investigative reporter and producer, Peter Greenberg is America’s most recognized, honored and respected front-line travel news journalist. Known in the travel industry as “The Travel Detective,” he is the Travel Editor for CBS News, appearing on CBS This Morning, CBS Evening News and CBS Sunday Morning. And his national CBS EYE ON TRAVEL radio show is broadcast from a different location around the world each week. The consummate… Explore more…
-
Breaking Bread with Fred
Chapter members and guests welcomed former Club president Alfred McLaren and his wife Avery (back row, third and fourth from left) back to Boulder for a terrific lunch at the Hotel Boulderado on July 19. Fred, who recently celebrated his 91st birthday, regaled us with his tales of military service as a submarine captain. He had definite opinions about the Titan disaster and remains hopeful that new safety regulations will come from the investigation of the accident. Explore more…
-
Explorers Under 35 Changing the World…That the World Needs to Know About
in EventsJoin us at this public event that features presentations by explorers under the age of 35, all of whom are making a difference. 6 p.m. at the Fjallraven Retail Store, 1510 Platte St., Denver Members and guests free. Explorers Club members and guests receive discounts for purchases that night. Cayte Bosler is an investigative journalist and sustainability scientist trained at Columbia University’s Earth Institute. As a fellow at the Solutions Journalism Network, she is committed to delving into intricate environmental subjects, with an emphasis on community involvement and a departure from the typical “doom and gloom” narratives. Her talk will walk us through… Explore more…
