How To Organize Club Outings

Organizing a Club Outing

Thank you for your interest in organizing an outing! Club outings provide a basis for club members to hike and climb together, fostering skill development and community building within the club. To organize a club outing, you must first submit an Outing Proposal Form (Word document) to the Outings Committee at bwcc_outings@bushwhackerclimbingclub.org.

The Outings Committee will respond as soon as possible but no later within two weeks of receipt of a completed Outing Proposal Form. You are encouraged to submit proposals as early as possible. You will be notified via phone and/or e-mail.

Outing Plan

Organizers should select an outing that is within their abilities to lead. For glacier climbs, alpine/technical and off-trail trips, you must have climbed or traveled the route previously. You should develop a travel plan that clearly identifies the intended route and accounts for the anticipated difficulties. Please note that some outings may be considered too dangerous because they expose the participants and/or the club to an unacceptable level of risk.

Team Selection

Organizers are responsible for vetting outing participants. All participants must be current club members, with the requisite skills and abilities for the outing. To verify that a participant is a club member and has signed the club release, email the club Secretary at clubsecretary@bushwhackerclimbingclub.org. An additional release may be required for specific activities; the Outings Committee will inform you if this is the case. Please note that team composition and individual participation are ultimately your prerogative and that as the organizer, you have the authority to refuse participants if you feel the person is not sufficiently skilled or fit, or could pose a danger to the team.

Participants on glacier/alpine/rock climbs should have the requisite climbing skills and experience to ensure that the team climbs together with comparable climbing skills. For glacier climbs, the team should have a common understanding of how to approach roped travel, initial response, and crevasse rescue. Consequently, all participants should have taken the BWCC glacier climbing course or participated in the BWCC glacier skills refresher or received equivalent training.

Depending on the difficulty of the outing, you are encouraged to select a team that includes experienced participants.

All outings must have at least one participant who has current certification for MOFA, WAFA, WFR, or other wilderness first aid or medical training of similar or greater rigor.

Pre-trip team meetings are strongly encouraged for club outings. These meetings provide an opportunity for the team to get acquainted, determine skill levels, discuss the trip conditions, work out team logistics, collect waiver signatures, and determine technical gear requirements and team gear assignments.

The trip organizer is asked to provide the Outings Committee with a roster of participants before the outing. This roster should include names, email addresses, and phone numbers.

Helpful Documents

For the convenience of trip organizers, the club liability release form (PDF) is provided here. Also, see the page Tips for Outing Organizers.