What to expect on your first trip

One of the questions that new members always ask is what they should expect on their first trip. Really, this will depend on what trip it is, but this page should hopefully answer a few questions.

First things first, the club is not a training organisation. Members are expected to be self-sufficient and be able to look after themselves on the hill. If you need training, you should seek the assistance of professional guide or attend a professionally organised training course.

That disclaimer aside, more experienced members are usually happy to help the less experienced where they can. If you need help or advice, feel free to ask - everyone started somewhere.

The trip outline

Before the trip (usually a couple of weeks before, depending on the trip) the trip organiser sends out an email to the members email list advertising the trip. This email will have some details on where we will be staying, how to get in touch with them, often a bit of information about the area and any special instructions.
If you want to go, you will need to email the organiser back with your details, typically including your telephone number, where you will be travelling from, if you need a lift and if you have a car and can provide lifts to other people.
Once the trip organiser has given people a chance to reply, they will try to match people who can give lifts with people who need lifts and sends out details to those people.
The trip organiser may ask you to pay for your accommodation in advance, in which case follow the details that they give out.
When you hear back from the trip organiser about who you're travelling with, you make contact directly with them and organise exactly when and where to meet up.
Meet your co-travellers at the time and place you agreed and head off on the trip together.
Spend time during the trip doing the activities you want, then meet up with your co-travellers to head back at the end of the trip.

When does the trip happen?

Usually, trips leave London on Friday evening and return on Sunday evening. Notable exceptions are bank holiday weekends (when we would return on the Monday evening), the club's New Year trip and the Easter trip.

How much does the trip cost?

During the summer months (deemed by the club as from after the Easter trip to the club's Annual Dinner trip), trips stay at campsites. For these, you are usually required to pay the campsite any fees directly and it would typically be in the region of Ł5-Ł10 per night. During the winter months, trips usually stay at a combination of camping barns, bunkhouses, club huts and hostels with charges ranging from about Ł5-Ł17 per night, more normally around Ł10 per night.

The club often has to pay in advance for accommodation. This means that we cannot plan the exact amount of accommodation needed. As such, the club bases it charges on roughly 80% of the booked accommodation being used to help to prevent the club from losing too much money. Because some trips are under booked and some overbooked, the club makes a little bit of money on some trips and loses on others, but the prices are charged to help break even over the year.

You should also be prepared to pay your share of fuel, tolls and any car hire charges direct to your driver.

What food do I need?

Usually, you would be travelling on a Friday evening and returning on a Sunday evening. Most drivers will stop to break up the journeys at a motorway service station, where you could buy or eat your own prepared food.

You should expect to be self-sufficient in terms of food and take anything you would want to eat for breakfast and lunch with you. Assume that there will not be a shop near where you're staying.

Trips are often to areas where there is a nearby pub serving food. If there isn't one, the trip organiser will usually make a point of saying so in their email. Many people choose to eat in the local pub in the evening, but there are also a good number of people who choose to eat at the campsite / accommodation instead.

What should I do during the trip?

In the morning, there will usually be a bit of procrastination as people mill about eating their breakfast and drinking tea and coffee, planning their activity. Depending on what area the trip is in and what the weather is like, it is likely that there will be some people wanting to go walking and some people wanting to go climbing. A few plans will form (you should feel free to propose one) and people will split off into groups and head off for the day, returning in the late afternoon for dinner.

What should I take with me?

See the Kit List page.