The Hiking Club Society is running again, but this site is no longer maintained.
Please see https://www.swansea-union.co.uk/activities/society/7159/

To gain control of the website and email addresses send an email to info{at}hiking.org.uk
Chris Jones
2024-10-16

September 2005 Newsletter

Chairman's introduction

Hello and welcome back to the Hiking club! This newsletter will hopefully give those joining our ranks for the first time a gentle introduction to the various activities planned for the coming term and a reminder of some of the great things we got up to last year for our returning members.

Now where to start? there's a lot going on this year, with a healthy mix of old and new walks, we've had to start it all off a week earlier to fit it all in! The club is blessed with lots of excellent local walking, with the Gower, Brecon Beacons and Pembrokeshire within easy travelling distance. This years walk programme attempts to take the very best from each and mix them up, with the odd trip further afield thrown in for good measure.

We aim to provide walks for all abilities and tastes, from nice relaxing strolls on the Gower to fairly serious treks in the Brecon Beacons. the club also runs weekends away to the Peak District and snowdonia, as well as longer trips in the Easter and Summer breaks

This year sees several new walks up the Neath valley and into The Brecon Beacons. The Easter camping trip ventureing further south west to Dartmoor, and the Summer trip returning to the Lake District.

This years walks kick off with our favourite walks from the Gower, Pembrokeshire and The Brecon Beacons and also handily provide you with great examples of each grade of walk we do.

On the social front (no, its not just walking!) we kick off with the equipment trip, to make sure you have everything you need before we head for the hills! Bowling, which provides great entertainment as you get to laugh at the committee's great (lack of) skill! The round the world pub crawl (our unique interpretation of the mumbles mile), and then rounding off the term with the club's Christmas dinner.

Also, if this is your first year in the club, then you can stand for a place on the committee in October as a First Year Rep. you can find out more by asking a member of the committee or reading what Elen has to say later on.

Finally i would like to stress that this is your club, and if you feel that we could do better then tell us! Any help is much appreciated!

See you soon!

Chris

Chris Jones (Chairman)

Meet the committee

For the committee contact details see the notice board or the committee page

Chairman: Chris Jones

Chris

Chris or "Granddad" is the wise and noble leader of the club. Chris seems to spend most of his time signing forms and arguing with the AU. If you are ever hungry on a walk Chris is the person to see as he seems to have a never-ending supply of food and none of its Tesco Value.

Vice Chairman: Alan Brownlie

Alan

All you need to know is that I’m great and that any problems in the club are usually down to me leaving stuff to the last minute e.g. booking the coach. Often found swimming on walks and trying to compete for War Wounds title, my bruised and battered body seems to do anything but walk. In my spare time I dump various parts of club kit around my house.

Treasurer: Karl Adock

Karl

With Karl being a postgrad, members of the club felt we needed a wise and old head to look after the money. Alas this was not the case with the club’s money sitting in a pint glass on Karl’s fireplace. Karl is also in charge of setting up a Swiss retirement fund for the Chairman, but due to financial irregularities this has now been moved to the Cayman islands.

Secretary: Joey Talbot

Joey

Joey’s main aim in the club is to make the minutes interesting for future committees, he also books accommodation or weekends away and post walk pubs. He likes to join in on the fun stuff on walks due to the boring nature of his job and his new hairstyle.

Social Secretary: Izzy Clarke

Izzy

Izzy, when she turns up, is in charge of the social calendar and, like all good Social Secs., leads by example. In fact, one of the many reasons for not turning up to walks or meetings is that she enjoys the social side too much.

Publicity Secretary: Elen Matthews

Elen

Elen’s job is to let people know what’s happening within the club either through the exciting weekly email or the fabulous notice board. On walks she spends most of her time translating random but amusing Welsh place names.

Webmaster: Chris Laider

Chris

(Young) Chris looks after the club website, which involves adding new photos. To make up for this, Chris is very active in other areas of the club and certainly enjoys the social occasions. Like some many other members of the responsible committee Chris enjoys his swimming and wearing rubber on walks.

Alan Brownlie (Vice Chair)

Get involved!

1st Year Rep Elections

If, like we did, after being in the Hiking Club a few months and you appreciate just what a fab society we are, you may fancy getting a little more involved. Well, conveniently the position of First Year Rep gives you that exact opportunity!

As a first year rep you will be expected to attend weekly meetings that last around an hour and share your views on issues and matters arising within the hiking club. Here you will gain a useful insight into the running, communication and organization of the club, which will come in very handy if you fancy standing for a position on the committee at the AGM, later on in the year.

To get elected to be a First Year Rep (you don't even need to be in your first year, just your first year with the club), all you have to do is turn up to the election and cocktails evening at Café Mambo on Tuesday the 25th of October say a few words and get all the friends you've made in the club to vote for you, Easy peasy!

It'll look fab on your CV and it's really good fun as well!

Drivers and Leaders

The club is always on the lookout for more drivers and walk leaders.

To drive for the club you have to be over 21 and have 2 years' driving experience. We organize a short (free) minibus test, which has practical and theory elements. Perks of being a driver include free Sunday walks (if you're driving) and half price weekend away (again if you're driving).

Walk leaders are the peeps at the very front and back of all our walks, kitted out with a map and compass. They keep our walks on the straight and narrow, making sure we don't leave people behind and practically never get lost. If you're a dab hand at navigating or would like to learn, talk to one of the current leaders or a member of the committee.

T-Shirt Competition

Every year the club produces a T-shirt for sale to its members, but first we need a design! If you are new to the club, you will no doubt will see a selection of designs on our older members.

If you have a creative mind, or just fancy a free T-shirt then you need to come up with a design that will persuade the panel of expert judges (the Committee) that its the best they've seen. The prize is a copy of your design handily printed on a T-shirt!

Your design must consist of an A4 sized design for the back and a 10cm square logo for the front. The words “Swansea Hiking Club 2005-2006” must feature on the design so we don't forget which year we got the T-shirt (once you've been here for a few years you get quite a collection!) The design will work best if its simple and just black and white.

Entries to be handed in by early December (see the notice board of website closer to the time). We hope, if all goes well to be ordering sometime after this.

Elen Matthews (Publicity Secretary)

Social Calender

Izzy Clarke (Social Sec)

Orientbeering 2005

The people who came up the idea of Orientbeering was evidently a genius of the very highest order - quite likely they were alcoholics too, but that is beside the point!

The general idea is to navigate your way from one point to another collecting beer and chocolate en route. At the end of the course you must provide the empty beer bottles and chocolate wrappers as proof you have been to each point.

So at around lunchtime I met up with other hiking club members at the entrance to the student village. We had been told that Sarah and George, who had set the course, would meet us here at around 1.30pm with instructions, but it was nearer to 2pm when they finally turned up looking very hot and muddy. It would be fair to say they looked like they had been dragged through a bramble bush backwards (and it was actually quite likely that they had!). We were provided with maps, divided into groups of three or four and finally set off at 15 minute intervals.

I was paired up with the skirts (Jeni and Rosie), we were the last group to go and set off at a fast walk. Now it didn’t help us very much that the group in front was Ali’s group. Ali had firstly paid double so he could have twice as much beer and secondly was moving all the beer bags and so we were the most disadvantaged group. We crossed Ali’s path quite often and each time we saw him he was slightly more drunk.

One of the funniest moments was undoubtedly when me and Jeni let Rosie “find the path for us”, or at least Rosie ended up with mud all over her boots and walking through a bramble so Jeni and I knew that probably wasn’t the way to go, we walked round the path instead! (Hee hee, sorry Rosie!).

I think the beer must have been very gaseous because Jeni and Rosie were being most unlady-like and burping all the time… tut tut! Also on our way round we had a beer fight (alternative to a water fight but slightly more wasteful).

Eventually we found all the beer bags and headed for the pub, which was the finish line. We weren’t the last group back though; Ali and the other drunks accompanying him didn’t find the pub until an hour or so after everyone else. The winners were Joey and Alan with a impressive time of 1hour 26minutes (But they ran... nutters! - Ed), well done to them! (me and the skirts came third). Hope to see you all at Orientbeering next year!

Chris Laider (Web Master)

Rhinog’s 2005 Report

The journey to North Wales was broken by a stop in Aberystwyth and made shorter and more enjoyable by the lack of available minibuses. The Athletics Union kindly organized brand new people-carriers for us, complete with extremely loud stereo systems which served the dual purposes of: a) allowing us to locate each other in remote areas, if necessary, but more importantly b) distracting us from Alan’s driving!

Upon arrival at the Youth Hostel, calm ensued. The accommodation was situated a couple of miles into a valley. The silence was amplified by the clear sky where I’ve rarely seen so many stars. The rooms were comfortable, the kitchen spacious and well equipped; it was a great place to have as base camp.

The following day, taking advantage of the new right to roam legislation, we spent the morning doing some ‘off piste’ walking – the allusion to snow and ice should not be ignored. We took lunch just below our summit with views out to the Snowdonia range and the coast around Porthmadog. After a quick scramble to our summit and the mandatory snow fight at the top we descended out of the snow to finish our walk with a gentle stroll through a valley reminiscent of the Pyranees.

In the evening, the mountain-boarders avoided the river by virtue of the trees along the bank while the more adventurous took the Aqua bus to the local pub, announcing our arrival miles before we arrived. Apparently it was a very eventful evening. It is just as well that we made the most of it because I don’t think we’ll be allowed back, although I don’t remember why, just that they had a great whisky collection.

Refreshed and revitalized we made our ascent on Cadir Idris on the Sunday. Usually shrouded in clouds, we were blessed with one of the most crystal clear days other walkers on Cadir Idris had seen. The last part of our ascent was through snow which provided endless entertainment – some stayed lower down the mountain to enjoy the views and rest weary legs. As it turns out, sledges are part of the club kit. Choosing our spot carefully we had lots of fun racing and avoiding rocks. All the passers by were incredibly jealous and even though our vice-chairman (Alan) got damaged during an attempt at a threesome (Sledging, honest! -Ed) we left Cadir Idris in a state of bliss, grateful for a perfect weekend.

Everyone had a great time (even Alan) and it was a shame to leave but hey! We’re going to do it all over again this year. I can’t wait!

Karl Adcock (Treasurer)

Walks Program

Joey Talbot (Secretary)

General Information

Sign Ups

JC's bar (quiet side)

The first few hikes of the term tend to be very busy so sign up early. Weekends Away have separate sign up meetings.

Coach Pick-ups

On a Sunday Morning:

We normally arrive back in Swansea between 18:30 - 21:00 in the evening.

Club Notice Board

For the latest information on club events, the notice board is on the ground floor of Fulton House, opposite the Health Centre.

Walk Equipment

Please refer to the Equipment and Safety Rules or the equipment page on the website for information on what you should wear and take with you on walks. Jeans and Trainers are not allowed. If you are unsuitably equipped, you will not be allowed to walk for the safety of the group. If you are unsure of what you should bring contact the committee.

Outdoor Shops in Swansea

Millets
234 High Street, Swansea, SA1 1NZ
Tel: 01792 655637
Student Discount: 10%

Out and About
36 Castle Street, Swansea, SA1 1HZ
Tel: 01792 461777
Student Discount: 15%

Blacks
22-23 High Street, Swansea, SA1 1LT
Tel: 01792 645430
Student Discount: 10% over £10

Leisure Quest
7 High Street, Swansea, SA1 1LE
Tel: 01792 646647
Student Discount: 10% over £25

Get Firefox Hosted By SUCS