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Dolomites 17th July - 2nd August 2009

Preamble

This trip is aimed at any member of the West Lancashire Scouts who wishes to gain, develop and practise their skills in Alpine Mountaineering, Via Ferrata, Climbing, Mountain Biking and having fun! The trip will be as low cost as possible, with travel being by vehicle and/or budget airline and accommodation in tents. The location will be the Dolomites in the Italian Alps.

Who?

The trip is open to any member of West Lancashire Scouts from Explorer Scout age upwards (especially Leaders) We are happy to take older scouts as long as they are accompanied by their Leaders who can take responsibility.
Participants are expected to be reletively fit, have had previous mountaineering experience (lightweight camping, fell walking and/or rock climbing). A good basemark is having been on Bowlander, the MAC, Snow and Ice or any of the West Lancs Mountaineering Group trips - or equivalent experience.
However, this is not a trip for pure novices or for those after an easy and relaxing holiday! Numbers will be dictated by available activity leaders, and so some selection process may be need to be applied.

The Area

The Dolomites lie in the North of Italy, close to the Austrian Border. The area we’re looking at staying in is a popular ski resort in winter and as such there are some lifts to allow access by foot and bike to the higher mountains. The higher peaks reach heights of 3400m and many have Via Ferrata in situ. With big mountains come bigger valleys so an expedition would be set with the most dramatic of scenery. The whole area is one large chunk of limestone, and as well as being excellent for rock climbing is stunning to the eye - the changes in colour on the mountains are very impressive!

The Activities

We are aiming to provide the opportunity for Mountaineering, rock climbing, mountain biking, via ferrata, low level walking, and expeditioning. There are other opt-in activities available in the local area which may be accessible - though this would be at an additional cost. All activities will be run by authorised leaders from West Lancs Scouts. All activities will be based from our base just north of the town of Cortina d'Ampezzo.
Cortina suits itself well to so many sports - it’s steep limestone valley sides are excellent for many activities, and it has been used for the Winter Olympics in the past. There are lift and alpine hut systems, making certain objectives a lot more accessible.
Read the town's website for more info. 

What’s Via Ferrata?

Back in the war the Italian soldiers needed a fast way of moving about in the hills. They bolted steel cables to the rock and used them as fixed climbing lines. They also put staples in the rock at the hard bits. This allowed them to gain a high advantage point on Zee Germans. Nowadays a few lookouts and caves still remain, but the cables (Thankfully) have all been replaced and the sport of climbing mountains by steel cable lives on. It allows the climber to gain height far faster then by traditional climbing methods. It’s exhilarating and safe, and allows the mountains to be accessed in the most improbable ways. Read needlesports website for more info.

Equipment

A detailed kit list will be issued nearer the time. Suitable bikes will be hired locally in the area as needed (alpine biking is pretty 'full on' as far as UK biking goes!) We’re camping in the Cortina Area, so tent and stove etc. Mountaineering and Mountain biking clothing and footwear would be essential. Specialist Via Ferrata kit will be provided from the County stores.

The Plan

The plan is to set off by car and possibly plane. It's an 18 hour drive, which should coincide with the arrival of those who fly. Once the flyers have landed in Venice, travel will be by rail and then bus to Cortina and head to the campsite. 2 weeks later we’ll reverse the process and go home.

Costs

The draft budget suggests that the cost of the trip will be in the order of £310. This is based on two parts: central costs and transport. Central costs (including camp fees, equipment hire and insurance) for the trip are around £190; transport (return flights or minibus ride) come in around £120. 
Feel free to make your own way there, or you may want to join most of us on a budget airline trip to Venice Treviso airport & then use public transport to get to Cortina.
People should be wary of other additional costs. If you shop cleverly than around £7 a day should do you for food. BUT, get pizzas etc. and that rockets up, could get to around £20/day. For 14 days, that's a LOT of money! People will also need basic (and reliable!) equipment for the activities undertaken ... if you don't own these then be aware you'll need to do some investing that will last you a few years and not fall to bits! We can advise on this later on if people require it.
So.... If the main cost is £310, you eat out a few nights, and cater in a team for the rest of it, hire a mountain bike for a couple of days, use some alpine lifts, stay in an alpine hut twice, then you're realistically looking at a cost of £550 for the trip. However, live cheaply and be wary about what activities you 'buy' into, and things will quite a bit cheaper!

The Build Up

A deposit of £100 by the end of January 2009 will secure a place on the trip, with the balance being due by April 2009.
Having the correct basic skills is going to be important if you want to access some of the more 'sexy' activities - multi pitch climbing, Via Ferrata and so on. The trip is open to all, but only those with the correct skills can access certain activities. As such, all participants are expected to attend Welsh Meet (1st-4th May 2009) for a full team meet and get a chance to polish up these skills.
We'll also have a full team meet early in 2009 to get together and let you meet the rest of the team.

OK I want to come… What Next?

Please complete the online application and send £100 Deposit (cheques payable to West Lancashire Scouts Mountaineering Group) to Phil Emmott, 22 Mead Avenue, Leyland, Lancashire, PR25 3FH. Once accepted your application will show as 'confirmed'.

Please note that all correspondance will be via email, so make sure that the email address to give on your application is checked regularly.

You can check your application, once accepted your application will show as 'confirmed', see Who's Applied.

For more info please contact Phil or Ash here