The Club is engaged in a number of different activities:
Hiking
Our most done activity is surely hiking, be it short, half-day hikes or multi day off-trail tours into our vast wilderness areas. Sections go out on regular basis to what are called ‘meets’. The sections’ calendars are full with these hikes and you can choose what suits your interest and level of fitness.
Climbing
One of the MCSA’s main activities is climbing. South Africa really lends itself to climbing having not only an abundance of rock but the weather to go with it. On these meets climbers get together to climb routes at a specific venue. Check out a section listed on our home page closest to you to see their meets program.
Expeditions
At times, under the auspices of the MCSA, expeditions are organised by members of the Club to various remote and often unexplored areas. Over the years expeditions have taken place in the Himalayas, South America, China and even places such as Antarctica.
Community
Some of our sections run youth and outreach programmes to nurture up the next generation of mountain lovers and give the opportunity to experience the outdoors to less privileged kids in our neighbourhoods.
Youth Meets
Together with the UIAA we organise the attendance of young MCSA members to yearly Global Youth Summits.
Conservation
The MCSA is the oldest amateur conservation body in South Africa and its members have contributed to increasing awareness of environmental issues as well as actual conservation for a long time. Valuable work in the field of alien eradication has been done as Club members often visit areas which are difficult to access.
Mountain Rescue
Currently MCSA search and rescue comprises of 5 permanent Search and Rescue teams in various parts of the country. The MCSA Search and Rescue teams are run on a volunteer basis. The teams work with organisations such as the South African Air Force, Wilderness Search and Rescue Western Cape, SARZA, SA Police, SASAR, ARCC and others.
National Events
National meets are a great way to share our love for the mountains with each other. The MCSA organises a number of yearly recurrent multi-day camps, always in another part of the country, hosted by one of the sections. Further we partake and send delegates to international meets with other mountain clubs and associations, like the UIAA Youth Meet. All of that is a great way to see new parts of our country, or the world, and meet like-minded people while doing so. Join us next time.