Over 25 years ago in his living room, Paul Fish designed a better backpack. Then he made it. By hand.

Several packs and a few other product modifications later, Paul and his wife Karn opened a small retail shop in Spokane, Washington. The first Mountain Gear location was just a few thousand square feet and served a core group of climbers, backpackers and mountaineers in the inland northwest.

A few years later, Mountain Gear moved into its current retail home at 2002 N Division in Spokane, with an indoor climbing wall and pool. With a passionate, experienced staff teaching classes in climbing, kayaking, backcountry cooking, how to layer clothing, and more, Mountain Gear has helped thousands of people start amazing adventures and life-long hobbies.

Mountain Gear’s catalog was first published in 1993 and is now considered an encyclopedic reference of climbing, mountaineering and backpacking gear. The mountaingear.com website launched 2 years later and supports the retail and catalog foundation with a full assortment of clothing and equipment.

Mountain Gear’s corporate headquarters and environmentally sustainable distribution center now live in a newly renovated, 112,000-square-foot LEED Gold certified building in Spokane Valley. From humble beginnings, the owners and staff at Mountain Gear are excited to be on the nationwide and international scene as the experts in backcountry adventures.

Mountain Gear hosts events and classes that highlight the sports we love. UClimb Learn to Climb takes place through the spring and summer at regional climbing hot spots: Joshua Tree, Red River Gorge and Donner Summit are just a few of the places we hold clinics for beginning-level climbers. Climbers of all skill level can develop their skills at Red Rock Rendezvous – a 3-day event in Las Vegas. For those who like the colder times of year, we offer the Kootenay Coldsmoke Powderfest in Nelson, BC.

We also care about supporting charitable causes that help protect and share the outdoors. We're partners with The Access Fund, as well as with Big City Mountaineers Summit for Someone, a program that gets at-risk urban youth into the outdoors.