The club advocates for the preservation of the alpine regions, and was instrumental in the creation of Rocky Mountain National Park.

Charter members included such notable historic figures as Enos Mills, Roger Toll, and Carl Blaurock.

The CMC has a state-level organization along with 14 local groups, serving communities such as Denver, Boulder, Colorado Springs, Pueblo, and Aspen.

Trips may include such activities as hiking, climbing, fishing, and photography and are offered at various levels of difficulty.

It also provides a free online system called mySummits for hikers to report summits of Colorado's 100 highest peaks.