WINTER SKILLS 2022 INTEREST TICKET

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IT IS TIME FOR THE ANNUAL LUMC ANNUAL SCOTLAND TRIP!

From the facebook poll we expect the interest to be very high this year, and so the tickets will be sold differently to previous events. We will sell this expression of interest ticket, where you will fill out what course you want to do (winter walking, winter mountaineering or no course), as well as if you are a driver etc. When we know how many people are interested we will (assuming we have more interest than spaces) randomly draw who will be offered a ticket. After discussions within the exec and also at the AGM we believe this is the fairest system. 

There is a lot of information, but please read it all before expressing your interest in the trip.
The club is very lucky to be able to run a winter skills trip up to Aviemore in the North Cairngorms in Lent term with this year’s trip will be the weekend of the 14th-16th of January. This trip is slightly more expensive than a normal one as the travel is much further and it does involve two full days of instruction from professional instructors!

There will be two courses on offer, winter walking and winter mountaineering – Winter walking is open to anyone and you will learn how to be safe in the mountains in adverse conditions (avalanche awareness, navigation and more), how to put on crampons, how to walk with them and how to do an ice arrest!

The winter mountaineering course has pre-requisites of; putting on crampons, walking with crampons, Ice axe arrests, lead belaying, placing trad gear, confidence on lead – these are all skills you can learn on the walking course and through the club if you wanted to do the mountaineering course the following year. This course is significantly more expensive than the winter walking course, as there will be one instructor per 4 people. ONLY EXPRESS INTEREST FOR THIS IF YOU HAVE THE REQUIRED PRE-REQUISITES. If you have any questions ask an exec member. 

Practical information: There are 34 spaces for indoor staying and more spaces for camping (you can be indoors in the evening etc, but are expected to sleep in a tent outside). The club will provide dinner on Saturday (NOT Friday) and some breakfast/lunch options for Saturday and Sunday. We will leave Lancaster on Friday (times depending on when people are free to leave, but it should not be later than 5 as the drive is long), and we will get back late on Sunday (maybe around 9-12pm). 
OBS: drivers will be prioritised for indoor spaces. The transport/accommodation ticket will be posted first, on a first come first serve basis for non-drivers. If you ONLY want to sleep indoors, but do not get a ticket we can offer your space on the trip to someone that does not mind camping. The club has tents to lend out, but you will NEED to have adequate kit to camp in Scotland in JANUARY. 

Clothes and shoes: To enjoy the trip you do need warm layers, a hat, gloves, waterproofs(!!) etc. There might be some warm clothes to borrow from other members, but we cannot guarantee this. If you have any concerns please contact an exec member. If you do not have boots suitable for crampons you can borrow them both days from the instructor for £20 pounds (on top of prices listed below).

Expected prices (these prices might change minimally, but not by more than a couple of pounds):

Winter walking with camping = £68
Winter walking with indoor stay = £87
Winter mountaineering with camping = £111
Winter mountaineering with indoor stay = £130
No course with camping = £39
No course with indoor stay = £58

There will be reductions in prices for drivers, see further down for information. 

If you struggle to pay you will have the option to pay in 2 or 3 installments (but all have to be paid before the trip). Also consider applying to the hardship fund if you are struggling financially:

https://docs.google.com/forms/d/1LsWDgyyEmcnnvVSDXtbITjxm0FCvrIuqcFYUMYOC4fM/edit

 

DRIVERS:
Drivers are prioritised for the trip and to get indoor sleeping. It is a long way to drive (to the north of the Cairngorms, around 5-6hours), and you will drive to Scotland in January, so there might be (hopefully for the courses!) snow / bad weather. Please consider this before signing up as a driver. 
The drivers will pay £15 less than the prices listed above. You will also be refunded fully for petrol cost. 
Minibus drivers will also pay £15 less, and there will be 2 drivers per minibus.