Clubrooms: 3 Young
St, St Kilda
Postal Address: Box
1120, Dunedin
Welcome
Brochure
The OTMC invites
you to come: Tramping, Mountaineering, Cross Country Skiing and
Camping
THE OTAGO
TRAMPING & MOUNTAINEERING CLUB (INC) (FOUNDED 1923)
Welcome to
the Club!
This brochure,
along with the Trip Card and monthly Bulletin will tell you what
you need to know about the OTMC and a little about tramping in
general.
We hope you
will join our trips and activities and enjoy the beauty of the
country with us.
This enjoyment
is gained from our outdoor environment combined with companionship,
achievement, and the satisfaction of building up knowledge and
experience.
We are very
fortunate in Dunedin to have a wide variety of excellent tramping
country within easy reach. Most of our day trips centre on the
Silver Peaks where we own or maintain 3 huts - Jubilee, Yellow,
and Ben Rudd's Shelter. We also own / look after Leaning Lodge
on the Rock and Pillar Range, and 25 Mile Hut in the Rees Valley.
The Parks and Forests of Otago and Southland provide excellent
venues for over 20 weekend tramps and climbs each year.
We welcome non-members
on all these trips; in fact, if you want to become a Club member,
we ask you to take part in at least two trips before you join.
The purpose of this Tramping Club is to share skills with beginners,
to provide facilities and a meeting place for people with similar
interests, and to promote safe tramping practices.
The OTMC takes
an active part in Mountain Safety Dunedin's programmes, and in
the local Search and Rescue organisation. We respect the environment
we tramp in, and approve the Environmental Care Code for minimising
impact on the back country. This Code was prepared for trampers
by the Federated Mountain Clubs of NZ (FMC), to which we are affiliated.
The OTMC was among the Clubs which, in 1931, helped set up the
FMC. Our Club membership fee includes a subscription to this trampers'
"Union".
Membership
Classes of membership:
Full, Junior, Married or Family, Postal. Postal members receive
publications but do not have trip privileges or voting rights.
Trips
The OTMC runs
a day trip most Sundays (except on some long weekends). These
leave the Clubrooms at garn unless noted otherwise. Most of these
trips are suitable for beginners, and are a good way to meet Club
members and to see the Silver Peaks and other local hills. Please
contact the leader beforehand if you are not a member.
Weekend trips
are run about twice a month, often to areas in our National Parks.
These are usually suited to people of all grades of fitness.
The Trip Card
gives details for six months of destinations and leaders, as well
as a list of current Office Bearers and Contacts.
For those
intending to come on an OTMC weekend trip:
A trip list
is on a shelf at the back of the Clubrooms, and may be signed
any time until 8 days before the trip starts.
On it please
put both your first name and surname, phone number and address.
If no-one will be at home while you are on the trip, please note
also an alternative contact number
Make yourself
known to the trip leader. This is very helpful for you both.
If you can't
get to the Clubrooms, you can register for a trip by phoning the
leader.
Indicate the
grade of trip you prefer to do.
Trip costs must
be paid when you sign up, either in person or by mail.
Signing the
trip list commits you to going. If you withdraw after the list
closes, you must give an explanation in writing to the Committee
to get a refund.
The trip leader
will put you in a group of about four trampers asking for the
same grade trip, with a group leader who will organise food and
party gear. This group leader will contact you during the week
before the trip to arrange details.
Non-members
pay a surcharge on weekend transport costs, but this is refunded
n you join the Club.
A Dunedin contact
person is arranged for every trip. This person stays at home and
is contacted by the trip leader if the trip will be late home
or there is some other problem. S/he then rings your home or contact
number to pass on the information. Your folk can also ring this
person if they have some urgent concern.
Keep your copy
of the trip card handy. It gives specific information about the
Club, and trips for each six months. But check the monthly Bulletin
for more up-to-date info.
We do not allow
dogs, firearms or trailbikes on Club trips. Always leave gates
as you find them. We want to stay onside with farmers and avoid
problems of access which we enjoy by their goodwill.
Virtually no-one
takes cigarettes tramping, and smoking is discouraged at Club
functions. Smoking and alcohol are not allowed on Club transport.
Meetings
The Clubroom
opens at 7.30pm each Thursday when people can meet informally
sign up and pay for trips, use the library and wall map display,
read the notice boards, and hire gear such as ice axes and crampons,
packs and tent flies. This is the only time gear-hire is available.
At 8pm upcoming
trips are publicised, and about 8.30 the social programme starts,
often a speaker with slides of some special tramp or other topic
of interest. The evening ends with supper, providing another opportunity
to chat, and perhaps talk to the speaker. There is a door charge
(except for the first night anyone comes) to cover expenses including
supper.
Members are
posted the monthly Bulletin, but newcomers are welcome to take
a copy, and a Trip Card, from the table inside the door.
Work
Parties
The Club relies
on volunteers to maintain tracks, huts and the Clubrooms. Club
working bees can be a lot of fun, and a good way to get to know
other members.
Publications
The monthly
Bulletin tells about the next month's trips and social programme,
reports on recent trips, and publishes letters to the editor among
other items of tramping interest. Outdoors is the Annual Journal
which has room for accounts of longer trips, and is intended to
be issued each April so that it can contain Christmas holiday
stories.
Instruction
Courses
Courses on Bushcraft,
Snow Skills and Snow Shelters are normally held each year. Mountain
Safety Dunedin also runs Courses on Outdoor First Aid, Risk Management,
and several levels of Bushcraft Skills, which our members are
welcome to attend. But lots can also be learnt on a weekend tramp
by an observant member with a good leader.
Introduction
