Lately, three articles have been living rent-free in my mind, stories of women harmed, abandoned, or abused in places that were supposed to be about freedom and adventure. Stories that should never have happened, but did, because of the culture surrounding our outdoor and mountain communities.

They’ve left me asking questions I can’t shake:

How do we reconcile a community that celebrates pushing limits, while ignoring who gets left behind or harmed in the process?

How do we talk about empowerment, when the culture still makes some people more disposable than others?

Because these articles, these tragedies, are connected. They come from the same soil.

When Violence Shows Up in the Mountains

Recently, Outside and the Denver Gazette published stories that cut deep:

• ​A woman left to die on a 12,461-foot peak, with her boyfriend, described as an “experienced mountaineer” , now facing felony charges after allegedly abandoning her.​
• ​A woman in the climbing and outdoor community whose death revealed years of trauma, silence, and disbelief from the people around her, a story that hit so close to home I actually searched her name in my studio software because I couldn’t believe I didn’t know her.​
• ​Many women finally speaking out and celebrating accountability for a known predator in the climbing and outdoor community.​

These stories aren’t random. They’re not “freak incidents.” And they’re definitely not just about “bad people.” They’re about the culture we’ve built in mountain communities, and the parts we refuse to look at.

Why Is This Happening?

We’ve Romanticized Risk to the Point of Denial

Our mythology is familiar:
The dirtbag outdoors adventurer.
The backcountry purist.
The ultra athlete who pushes through anything.
The woman who “keeps up.”
The man who leads.

We celebrate grit and minimize fear. We praise resilience but reject vulnerability. And we forget that risk is not equally distributed.

Women are taught to “be cool,” “be chill,” “don’t complain,” and “don’t ruin the vibe.” Predators, reckless partners, and emotionally unstable people thrive in environments where speaking up is socially punished.

Après Culture Is Not Harmless

Alcohol and drugs don’t cause violence, but they absolutely create the perfect ecosystem for it.

Mountain towns often run on:

• “Just one more”
• “Everyone parties here”
• Shots as bonding
• Big emotions + substance misuse
• Late nights
• Social pressure

Suddenly, boundaries blur. Consent becomes murky. People get away with dangerous behavior because “they were drunk” or “that’s just how they are.” When a culture is built around alcohol and substances, accountability disappears.

Isolation Makes Everything Riskier

Mountain communities attract transplants, people chasing snow, adventure, identity, or escape.

Which often means:

• fewer built-in support systems
• fewer people to call if something feels wrong
• smaller dating pools with worse behavior
• more tolerance for “unconventional” or unstable partners
• women trying to belong in male-dominated spaces where they often feel replaceable

It’s easy to lose your safety net in a place where you were already trying to reinvent yourself.

Mental Health Strain Is Real, But It’s Not a Free Pass

Depression, loneliness, addiction, concussions, seasonal instability, and financial insecurity run deep in mountain towns. But even under extreme stress, most people don’t abandon their partners on mountain peaks. Most don’t harm the people they love, or themselves.

Mental health is a factor, not an excuse. The system is failing both victims and perpetrators long before tragedy happens.

So… What Do We Do?

Here’s the part where I remind you, and myself, that we aren’t powerless.

We build communities where women, and marginalized people, are centered, not added in later. Studios, classes, groups, and trainings where they learn strength and agency in ways not dependent on male approval.

We reduce alcohol-centered culture. We don't have to eliminate, but rebalance. Offer other ways to connect. Normalize sober or low-substance social lives in mountain towns.

We name harmful behavior early, instead of waiting for a headline:
In relationships.
In activity partnerships.
In friend groups.
In leadership roles.

We train coaches, not just therapists, to intervene. Coaches see clients and students weekly. They notice behavior shifts. They hear the things people are afraid to tell a therapist. They help build the skills therapists recommend, but don’t teach.

This is where Summit Stronger matters. It fills the gap between “care” and “application.” Between “go do yoga” and actually knowing how to breathe, move, and regulate. Between “you should find community” and actually feeling like you belong.

We tell the truth about what’s happening. Even when it’s uncomfortable.Even when it scares us. Even when it angers people who benefit from silence.

The Mountains Don’t Make Us Better

We Have to Choose Better

Violence against women in outdoor spaces is not new. But talking about it with honesty is. And if we want our mountain towns to be more than playgrounds for risk-taking, if we want our daughters and sons to inherit something stronger, wiser, and safer, we cannot pretend these stories are outliers.

They are warnings. And they are invitations.

To build something healthier. To lead with integrity. To create communities that actually care for one another. To change the culture from the inside out.

Because the mountains don’t magically heal us or make us whole.

That’s our work.

NBC-HWC | ACSM-CPT

⛰️PEAKS: Organizations Changing Outdoor Culture, Locally and Beyond

These organizations are doing the essential work of making outdoor and mountain communities safer, more inclusive, and more supportive, especially for women, marginalized groups, and those navigating trauma, injury, mental health challenges, or systemic barriers. They don’t just promote participation; they address the cultural conditions that determine who feels safe, supported, and seen in outdoor spaces.

Local & Regional Leaders

High Fives Foundation (Truckee)​
High Fives supports athletes after life-altering injuries with resources that span adaptive sports, mental health support, and community reintegration. Their work recognizes that recovery isn’t just physical, it’s emotional, social, and deeply human.
​https://highfivesfoundation.org/​

Gateway Mountain Center​
Gateway Mountain Center provides long-term, relationship-based support for young adults facing substance use challenges, mental health struggles, and life instability. Through structured programs, mentorship, and community connection, Gateway helps participants build accountability, resilience, and purpose, offering an alternative to cycles of isolation and crisis common in mountain communities.
​https://gatewaymountaincenter.org/​

The Courage Project​
The Courage Project increases access to mental health care by funding therapy for individuals who otherwise couldn’t afford it. By partnering with licensed therapists, they remove financial barriers to care, a critical intervention in high-cost mountain communities where access, not awareness, is often the challenge.
​https://www.courageproject.org/​

Speedy Foundation​
Founded in memory of ski racer Jeff “Speedy” Olson, the Speedy Foundation supports youth mental health through access to counseling, education, and stigma-reduction efforts. Their mission centers on connection, early intervention, and reminding young people they are not alone.
​https://speedyfoundation.org/​

---

National Organizations Shifting Outdoor Culture

Beyond the Boundaries (BTB)​
A women-led snowboard progression program focused on confidence, skill-building, and trauma-informed instruction, creating safer learning environments where agency matters as much as performance. https://www.btbounds.com/​

Boarding for Breast Cancer (B4BC)​
B4BC connects action sports with education around women’s health, prevention, and survivorship, placing physical and mental wellness at the center of outdoor culture.https://b4bc.org/​

SheJumps​
SheJumps works to close the confidence and access gap for girls and women through free and low-cost outdoor programming that emphasizes skill development, leadership, and community. https://www.shejumps.org/​

Chill Foundation (Burton Chill)​
Founded by Burton, Chill supports youth facing systemic barriers and mental health challenges through board sports and mentorship, demonstrating how outdoor experiences can build regulation, resilience, and belonging. https://www.chill.org/​

American Alpine Club – Climbing Grief Fund​
One of the few resources addressing grief and trauma directly within the climbing community, providing crisis support and healing resources for individuals and communities after loss. https://americanalpineclub.org/climbing-grief-fund​

Outdoor Inclusion Coalition (OIC)​
An industry-wide organization helping outdoor brands and communities dismantle systemic exclusion and build safer, more equitable cultures from the organizational level down. https://outdoorinclusioncoalition.org/​

Outdoor Afro​
Outdoor Afro builds leadership, connection, and safety in nature for Black communities, modeling how outdoor spaces can center joy, belonging, and care.https://outdoorafro.org/​

Indigenous Women Outdoors (IWO)​
Supports Indigenous women in reclaiming outdoor spaces through cultural knowledge, leadership, and land-based healing, centering voices long excluded from mainstream outdoor narratives. https://indigenouswomenoutdoors.ca/​

Why This Matters

These organizations exist because culture determines safety.

They expand access, normalize mental health care, teach agency, build community, and create accountability, the very conditions that prevent harm long before it becomes a headline.

This is what choosing better actually looks like.

Never Stop Learning:

Get your resources here...

• ​Stronger Easeful Nutrition E-Book​
• ​Goal Smashing E-Workbook
• ​Stronger Prep High Protein E-Book​
• ​Summit Stronger Blog​
• ​Meal Prep Done For You!​
• ​Coach Christine's Insight Timer Meditations​

Summit Stronger LLC | PO Box 2805 Kings Beach, CA 96143

​Unsubscribe · Preferences​