MEET NEW FRIENDS IN HIGH PLACES
Website last updated 2nd April 2020
CORONAVIRUS (COVID-19) STATEMENT
In no way can any of us ignore the effects of this
pandemic, either at the personal level or the wider global one and the
intention of this statement is to advise all members of the situation regarding our meets for 2020. It is an ever
changing situation, which is being monitored regularly; club meet organisers will be guided by national advice. As a responsible club we have a duty
of care to all our members and the general public. According to the government’s
medical advisors, this current pandemic is estimated to last for several months.
Unfortunately some meets will be either cancelled or postponed to a
later date. NO new
meets will be scheduled into the programme until the pandemic is
over.
More information can be found
on the individual meets on the club website (Forthcoming Meets and Events). Further cancellations and
postponements are inevitable and will be posted on the website, but in the
first instance members will be notified directly.
The organiser of a specific meet will try and get a
refund of the deposit and or balance, but we are generally dealing with small
businesses who will struggle financially the longer the pandemic continues, at
best we may get a discount for a future meet. Any meet organiser,
who has already paid out any money to venues and not received money from the
membership, will be refunded from club funds. The organisers of meets booked so far
will look into the terms and conditions of the meet venue, to see when balances
have to be paid, so we don't pay any unnecessary balances.
Unfortunately, we will loose
a few meets and some members will loose a small amount of money from cancelled
/ postponed meets. Personal travel insurance may cover you for some of the
losses.
For those that live near the
mountains or hills, please note the advice from the BMC / MCofS, which can be
found HERE. Basically the mountains and hills are 'off limits' at present to ALL, as frustrating as it is!
Take heed and keep yourself and others safe.
There is
much information on the internet, some of it being false, but the website below
is worth looking at:
Thank you for your patience and understanding during these difficult times.
Aw Ra Best and Keep
Safe
Alan Mitchell -
Chairman 26th March 2020
To lighten the mood, this is dedicated to those that haven't ridden a bicycle for years - A joke overheard:
Yesterday, I went for cycle ride, but ended up at the Doctors, with a sore bum.
Today, I went for a cycle ride, but ended up in Casualty, with a broken shoulder - I fell off.
Tomorrow, I'm staying at home .........
The Bard of Cumbria
These pages are regularly updated, so drop in any time and thank you for taking the time to view the website. It's your website; your news and views are always very welcome, so if you'd like to contribute, please do not hesitate to contact us at the E-mail address below:
In November 1989 The Over the Hill Club was formed through the coming together of a group of friends with 'Challengers', those participants of the Ultimate Challenge, now The Great Outdoors Challenge, coast to coast back-packing event across Scotland. The club was set up to keep like minded people together, to spend more time in each others company, enjoying the hills, mountains, friendships and the occasional drink, which had initially brought them together. The club has since grown and is affiliated to the British Mountaineering Council.
The aims of the Club are to provide the kindredship of the hills and to promote the awareness of and conservation of wilderness areas. Members must be proficient hill people, over 18 years old, interested (some fanatical) in taking to the hills and mountains in all kinds of weather where we enjoy the beauty of the landscape and endeavor to protect it. Members live in all parts of the UK, so we are a national club or should that be an international club, as in recent years we have welcomed new members from abroad.
The club has a varied programme of about six weekend meets throughout the year in all parts of Britain and typically between 15 and 45 people attend. We tend not to organise walks, apart from at the AGM, but split into smaller informal groups. Some meander, whilst others attempt longer and more serious routes. Accommodation is normally in bunkhouses, hostels or camping, with an emphasis on low cost, so nobody is turned away on price.
We also hold international meets all over the world in places such as Morocco, Poland, The Dolomites, Corsica, Slovenia, Nepal, the Austrian, French, Italian and Swiss Alps and even Holland. In 2001 a small party reached the summit of Mont Blanc, which was no mean achievement considering the weather and avalanche risk.
Today the club has in the region of 100 members, with about half the membership having over 20 years with the club, which is a great testament to the success of the club. The members come from all 'walks of life', with quite diverse backgrounds and varying views on life. As one member puts it, the "Hill and Mountain Walking Club is a club for un-clubable people, who enjoy the hills." Within the club there is a wealth of knowledge and experience of the hills, which is all past on freely to younger, newer or less experienced members. Some members hold many formal outdoor qualifications, such as Summer / Winter Mountain Leader Awards, compleatists of all the Munros and / or the Corbetts, ex Mountain Rescue Team Members, walked and climbed in all parts of the world, including The Alps and Himalayas. The club membership, as a whole, have well over 600 coast to coast 'Challenge' crossings of Scotland.
The patron of the club is Hamish Brown, the well known mountaineer, writer and photographer and to him we owe a great deal; without him dreaming up the Ultimate Challenge, we would not have the 'Hill and Mountain Walking Club' today.
Benefits:
* BMC third party insurance, whenever you are out on the UK hills.
* Join like minded people and share The Great Outdoors.
* A wealth of knowledge, which is freely available.
* Members can join any Club meet, if not full.
* Receive regular Club newsletters and information.
* Discounts at many retailers, due to BMC affiliation.
* The Club is affiliated to the BMC, therefore members are entitled
to utilise other affiliated club’s huts and huts owned directly by the
BMC or MCoS ( 'Click' HERE for a list of all these huts ) for group
bookings and in some cases by individual members or small group
bookings. If anyone should be interested in visiting any of these
locations they should, firstly contact John Donohoe to express
their interest.
Click the underlined link above to see the many discounts
