Jay MacArthur

Jay MacArthur joined The Alpine Club of Canada in 1973 while still in high school. A few years later he joined the UBC Varsity Outdoor Club while studying electrical engineering. He soon found the opportunity to share his mountaineering skills with other members.

In 1979 he started his decades long service as a member of the executives of the ACC Vancouver Section as well as the Federation of Mountain Clubs of British Columbia.
In 1980 he served his first term as FMCBC president and took on the position of ACC Vancouver Assistant Chair.

In the early 1980s Jay became a founding member and served as president of the Southern Chilcotin Wilderness Society. The society’s work eventually led to the establishment of South Chilcotin and Big Creek Provincial Parks.

In 2001 the Vancouver Section recognized Jay’s environmental work with the ACC Distinguished Service Award. During the decades Jay has practised safe climbing and backcountry skiing while participating in the leadership of ACC Section camps to many Coast Mountain locations.

In 2021 the Vancouver Section honoured Jay with the ACC’s coveted Silver Rope for Leadership Award. In support of his nomination Bruce Fairley wrote, “Personally, I feel very fortunate to have encountered such a steady and capable climber early in my climbing career. Jay was a great inspiration to me and a stellar role model in terms of his enthusiasm, knowledge and high level of competence.”

Due to a serious cancer diagnosis his award pin was presented to him in the lobby of the Lions Gate Hospital on December 17, 2021 in front of a gathering of family and friends.

Jay MacArthur was awarded the Alpine Club of Canada’s Silver Ropes Award in 2021.