The American Alpine Institute has been offering programs on Koma Kulshan (Mt. Baker) since 1975. However, that is just a sliver of time. Native Americans have been visiting the mountain since they first arrived in the Pacific Northwest.
Mt. Baker has had many names over the centuries. Before the arrival of Europeans it was known as Koma Kulshan, meaning “Great White Watcher.” The first European name for the volcano comes from the maps of Spanish mariner Gonzalo Lopez de Haro who labeled the mountain “La Gran Montana del Carmelo” in 1790.
The modern nomenclature, however, did not come until 1792, when Joseph Baker, third-lieutenant to English Captain George Vancouver on the British ship Discovery, spied the mountain while in the Strait of Juan de Fuca.
It was not until nearly three-quarters of a century later that anyone took any interest in climbing the glacier-clad peak. It should be noted that Koma Kulshan or Kulshan is the most commonly accepted indigenous name. There are several others, from both local tribes and those that lived further away.
The Mt. Baker Marathon was an event that was run from 1911 to 1913. Runners started from Bellingham all three years. There was another concurrent version from Concrete in 1913, but there was only one participant, Herman Schrieber.
They used whatever means necessary (car, train, etc.) to get to the top of the mountain and then get back to Bellingham. This race went away after two things happened. First, an accident nearly claimed a runner’s life (Victor Galbraith) while training. And second, the Mt. Baker Club — the race sponsor — no longer had the funds to keep it running.
The race eventually became the Ski to Sea relay race that is run every spring. Another variation of the revitalized race is the Mt. Baker Ultra, a foot race from Concrete to the summit of Sherman Peak and back (nearly 100 miles of running).
On October 13th, 2025, local outdoor advocate and trail runner, Daniel Probst, wrote the following on Facebook:
Today on Indigenous Peoples Day, I would like to share a few stories that connect the Coast Salish Peoples with centuries of mountaineering on Koma Kulshan / Mt. Baker. If you have climbed, skied, raced or set eyes upon the Squak and Talum Glaciers, here are their stories.
These glaciers are named after the two Nooksack guides who led Colman’s Expedition up the river from Bellingham to snowline in 1868. Squak was the son-in-law of Umptlalum, the principal chief of the Nooksack at that time. They were invited to join the mountaineers to the summit but declined, sharing a legend handed down to them. This story was written down 45 years later when the last survivor of the expedition, David A. N. Ogilvy, came to Bellingham to watch the 1913 Mount Baker Marathon. In this article, Mr. Ogilvy shares his appreciation for the generosity shown to them by their guides.
That same year, Eugene Butler, a Makah mountain runner was in town training to compete in the Marathon. Unable to secure a ride to the trailhead for the race, he was sidelined from the start. I can only imagine that if Mr. Ogilvy knew of Eugene’s circumstances he would have personally ensured Eugene’s transportation.
It would be another century until Makah runner, Glenn Ellis would step into Eugene’s shoes, and compete in the 2022 Mount Baker Ultra. As history would repeat, they both caught the last years of the race up the Great White Watcher.
Maybe in another century, we can come together again to help each other succeed on the mountain. Until then, it’s on us to carry that same spirit of cooperation forward into our everyday lives.
Eugene Butler is the child on the left. There are no known images of him as an adult.