The first
Alpine Club,
founded in
London in 1857, was once described as:
- a club of English gentlemen devoted to mountaineering, first of all in the Alps, members of which have successfully addressed themselves to attempts of the kind on loftier mountains. (The Nuttall Encyclopaedia 1907)
Today, Alpine clubs stage
climbing competitions, operate
alpine huts and paths, and are active in protecting the Alpine
environment. The oldest is the UK Alpine Club, originally founded as a
gentlemen's club (see List of London's gentlemen's clubs). With around 1,000,000 members the
German Alpine Club is the largest Alpine club in the world.