Maria Teresa Lopes’s first piece of outdoor gear was a bright pink Petzl climbing harness, a Christmas gift from her then-boyfriend, now-husband Aníbal Rocheta. Lopes, a lifelong dancer, had never considered climbing before meeting Aníbal, who was an outdoor guide. “In Venezuela, climbing is not really a common activity,” she says. “But Aníbal is not a common guy.”

Though that original harness is long since retired, Lopes has kept it as a reminder of what led her to rock climbing and the outdoors. Lopes and Rocheta run the Portland-based adventure company Loco por la Aventura, which offers low-cost, guided outdoor trips in Spanish and English. After immigrating to Portland in 2014 as political refugees from Venezuela, Lopes and Rocheta founded the company with the mission of making the outdoors more accessible to the Latino community.

One of the largest barriers to entry when it comes to outdoor sports is gear. A rock climbing gear set can cost more than $500 new, including harnesses, ropes, quickdraws, and a belay device. Aspiring backpackers will need to invest at least $800 to cover the basic tent, sleeping pad, pack, and crucial cooking and first aid supplies. The couple recognizes the importance of having reliable gear when entering the wilderness, which is why they opened BaseCamp Mountaineering Center this summer in Portland’s Central Eastside.

The snug 1,600-square-foot shop sells new and gently used gear, covering everything from rock climbing to camping to snowboarding, but BaseCamp isn’t “just a store,” Rocheta emphasizes. In addition to gear, it provides outdoor sports newbies the guidance to get started. At BaseCamp, Lopes and Rocheta offer free weekly educational workshops in Spanish and English for community members, covering outdoor fundamentals like how to pack a backpack or set up a tent, or how to minimize your impact on the environment. “We just try to educate and guide people,” Lopes says. “Because how can you start if you don’t know what you need?”

With limited funds and plans to use the small space for workshops, the couple had to get creative setting up the store. They built the shelves themselves and added wheels to move the furniture. Pegboards laden with gear for every activity line the walls from floor to ceiling: $5 chalk bags, lightly scuffed used climbing shoes, stacks of skis and snowboards, secondhand children’s winter coats to replace the ones from last season that already no longer fit. And to further minimize the financial burden of gear, BaseCamp offers a rental catalog of mountaineering packages and equipment like Rocky Talkie brand radios, tents, backpacks, helmets, crampons, and snowshoes.

BaseCamp’s opening comes at a turbulent moment for Portland’s outdoor retail landscape. As behemoths like Amazon continue to lure shoppers, Portland’s mainstay outdoor outfitters have shuttered at an alarming rate over the past five years. The US Outdoor Store declared bankruptcy in 2020. Andy & Bax closed in 2023, followed by REI’s Pearl location in 2024 (the outdoor brand opened its largest Oregon store in Beaverton that same year). And in 2025, Next Adventure owners Deek Heykamp and Bryan Knudsen announced their decision to retire and close their three Portland-area shops—including the one just around the corner from BaseCamp.

Some retailers—like REI—have cited “increased crime” as a reason to close storefronts. However, at BaseCamp, the desire to keep the store secure is also related to the safety of its patrons, as ICE raids and deportations climb across the country, including in Portland. Rocheta and Lopes installed a lock on the store’s front gate, with a bell for visitors to ring to be let in. That way, no one can enter without some form of warning. “Many people in the Latino community are afraid to go out right now, and I think this is another way we can say, ‘This is a safe space here,’” Lopes says.

BaseCamp is the first Latinx-owned outdoor store in Oregon, and its profits go to support outdoor equity programs through Loco por la Aventura. As soon as customers enter the store, they encounter a sign that reads: “When you shop at BaseCamp, you’re not just buying gear—you’re opening the outdoors to someone who’s never been invited.”

“This is a new concept,” Lopes explains. “When you buy here, you buy with a purpose.” 

BaseCamp Mountaineering Center is open 10am–6pm Monday–Friday at 544 SE Oak St, #206.