Trip # Assigned: ___________ Leader Name: Kathy Didier
Joyce Minosh
Destination: _ Italy - Cinque Terre and Northwestern Tuscany
APPLICATION TO LEAD AN AMC MAJOR EXCURSION
If possible, please fill this form out electronically so that it can be distributed by email.
Type on or over lines and directly into the appropriate sections of tables. When responding to Yes/No questions, please delete the answer you do not want so that only the appropriate answer remains. If you are filling out a hard copy, please attach additional pages if you find there is not enough space to answer thoroughly.
I. TRIP PROPOSED
Trip Title: Exploring Cinque Terre and Northwestern Tuscany
Type of Trip: Day hiking and Sight seeing.
Date: Start April 22, 2005 End May 1, 2005 Length of Trip 10 days
Participants: (not counting leaders) Minimum # 12 Maximum # 16
Brief outline of trip and trip activities.
You may write or type below or attach as a separate sheet. A complete itinerary with all available contact information must be provided before departure.
Fly in and out of Pisa Airport in Italy. Will not include cost of airline ticket in cost of trip. Will make note of the cost in trip notice. Will assist participants in finding the best price.
Transportation: Charter Bus pickup at Airport. Charter bus from Barga to
Levanto (Cinque Terre). Charter Bus from Levanto to Pisa .
Charter Bus for two days in Barga. We will take public transportation (trains and boats)while in Cinque Terre. We will hike from town to town.
Lodging: 3 nights in Villa or Hotel in Barga, Tuscany
4 nights in two or three star hotel in Levanto….a few minutes by train from Cinque Terre
1 night in Pisa (because we have early flights the next morning)
Meals: Breakfasts and most dinners are included in cost of trip.
Activities: day hikes, boat rides, sightseeing, guided exploration of cave,

There will be admission charges (included in cost of trip) for museums and caves.
Permits: Does the trip require special permits (required on all U.S. federal lands)?
NO
If yes, please explain what permits will be needed and how/when they will be acquired.
Equipment: Does the trip require special technical equipment? No
If yes, what equipment is needed and will any of it be provided by the trip?
Educational Aspect: What are the specific education, conservation, or recreation components of this trip?
Geology: We plan to visit Carrara where the marble for Michelangelo’s sculptures was mined. We will visit Grotta del Vento one of the largest stalactite caves in
Europe.
Flora and Fauna: Spring Wildflowers will be abundant at this time. Perhaps they will have a pet dog …or mice at the Villa for Fauna.
History: We will have local guides for walking tours in Pisa and Lucca as well as out on the trail in Barga area.
Cinque Terre: Interesting landscape. Will visit museums in the small towns.
Outfitters: Will this trip require an outfitter? No
Why or why not?
_ We are not hiring an outfitter . But, we will hire a bus to take us from the airport to Barga, from Barga to Levanto, and Levanto back to Pisa.
We will spend two full days in area of Barga. On those days, we will hire local hiking guides and a bus.
In Cinque Terre, we will not need these services as Joyce is familiar with the area and we have excellent maps and trail descriptions.

Who are they? _Bus company - Boscolo Tours
What is their safety record? Excellent…
Do they have liability insurance?
Yes___________________________________________________
Can they provide a certificate of insurance listing AMC as an additional party insured?
Yes No
How do they handle emergencies? _Call 918. Bus drivers carry cell phones.
II. LEADER INFORMATION
A) Contact Information
Leader:Kathy Didier Co-Leader: Joyce Minosh
Address:PO Box C
Woodstock, NH 03293
Home Phone: 603-726-3553
Address: 19 Kirsi Circle
Westford, MA 01886
Home Phone:978-692-2323
Work Phone: Work Phone:
Email: kdidier@coopresources.net Email:westfordconnections@aol.com
B) First Aid Training – To lead a Major Excursion, you must have current CPR and
Wilderness First Aid (WFA) or its equivalent at the time of your trip.
Course
Leader
Exp. Date Copy Attached
Co-Leader
Course Exp. Date Copy Attached
4/04
4/04
11/05
1/05
Other cert.: Other cert.:
If copies of CPR and WFA or equivalent are not attached, please detail your specific plan to obtain this certification. Kathy scheduled to renew CPR and AWFA in April 2004.
Joyce will renew in early 2005
C) Leader Experience and Training

New Leaders: If you are a new leader or co-leader, you must have submitted the form
“Application to Become a Major Excursions Leader.” Please attach a copy of that from.
Experienced Major Excursions Leaders: Please list below the last three trips you have led for the AMC including destination, type of trip (backpacking, skiing, etc.), dates, and number of participants. Feel free to list additional trips you have led, particularly if they demonstrate experience related to the trip you are proposing.
1. Kathy – Utah Hiking 9/03, Guatemala 7/03, Cuernavaca, Mexico 3/03
2.Joyce – First ME will be to Cote d’Azur in September. One week Interchapter Hut to
Hut trip in June 2004. Joyce has led private trips in Italy and France for many years. She lived in these countries for many years.
3.
D) Scouting: Have you or your co-leader led this trip before or traveled in the area? Yes
No If yes, please describe:
YES – Joyce has led private trips in Barga area and has visited Cinque Terre several times. She lived in Italy and France for many years.
E) Special Experience: What special skills or experience are required to lead this trip and how do you or your co-leader bring these skills and experience?
None…other than people skills. We both have many years experience leading groups of people on tours. Joyce speaks Italian which will be very helpful.
F) Couples: If leader and co-leader are a couple or have some other close personal relationship, what are your back up plans if one if you cannot go and the other must stay behind as well? Or if you are in the field and both of you must return?
We are not a couple.
G) Medical History: Both leader and co-leader need to have a recent copy of the AMC
Confidential Medical Form on file at 5 Joy St. This form can be obtained online at http://snebulos.mit.edu/orgs/amc/ or call Katherine Byers at 617-523-0655 x333 to receive a hard copy by mail.
III. RISK ASSESSMENT

A) Please assess the risks/hazards of your trip. Carefully consider each area of risk and how it may affect your trip with specific potential hazards. Then, devise a plan to attempt to prevent each hazard and to respond to it if it becomes necessary.
Areas of Risk
Climate/Terrain trail conditions, weather, etc.
:
Foreign Countries : political concerns, crime, language translation
Potential Hazards
Terrain in Cinque Terre is irregular and steep.
Language = Joyce speaks more Italian than Kathy. Yet,
Kathy has led trips to Italy with no language problems.
Political situation is stable.
Wear hiking boots and take our time.
Anyone not physically qualified will not be able to hike with us. We will assist them in making alternate plans.
On some days, we will have local guides who speak English. There are many people there who can communicate in
English.
Prevention/Response
Transportation : vehicles, drivers, insurance
Participants : skill level, health, group dynamics
If Kathy is not behind the wheel in Italy, there should be no problem.
We have always dealt with problem people in the past.
They are few.
We are not driving. We will use a hired bus for part of the trip. In Cinque Terre, we will use the local trains and boats
We will screen our applicants. Anyone in decent physical condition can handle this trip. If someone is not in the best of physical condition, they can be with us and not do all of the harder walks.
Other :
B) Emergency Action Plan
Before you leave for you trip, you will need to provide a list of participants and their emergency contacts in case something happens to someone in the field as well as an itinerary with phone numbers (where available) in case something happens at home. In the space below, please describe your plans for dealing with emergencies. Please use as much detail as possible and attach additional sheets if necessary.
Emergency Communication (phone contacts, language, documentation)
First of all, we will speak with the personnel at our hotels to determine a plan of action should we need one. We will have everyone’s emergency contact numbers. We recommend that people take travel insurance. There are telephones everywhere…except out on the trail. If an accident happens on the trail, we make the person comfortable and one leader will go for help.
Evacuation (out of backcountry location, out of foreign country)

We will not be in the backcountry. Evacuation from Italy – If the airlines are not running…we will extend our trip to Florence and take in the museums! Will keep checking with the airlines to see when they will be able to get us home.
Medical Care (local medical facilities – location and quality)
Health and safety:
Tourists requiring urgent medical care should go to the nearest hospital emergency room
(airports and many train stations also have medical teams and first aid facilities). Those with serious illnesses or allergies should always carry a special note from their physicians certifying in detail the treatments in progress or that may be necessary.
Pharmacies (Farmacia), generally follow shops times (approx. from 8:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. and from 3:00 to 7:30 p.m., Monday to Saturday, but in large cities many are open non-stop. Night-time service is provided on a shift basis. Business hours and night shifts are displayed outside of each chemist's (they are also published in local papers). Before departure, it is advisable to procure a document certifying coverage by the national health-care service.
For Medical Emergency dial 118
Closet hospital to Barga would be Florence....
Closest hospital to Cinque Terre would be La Spezia
Genoa is a large city and has a larger hospital. That is about 2 hours from Cinque Terre and 3 hours from Barga.
IV. COST INFORMATION
Your application to lead a trip will not be accepted if a detailed cost analysis is not attached.
We are still working on our hotel reservations and getting a contract for our bus transportation. We need these figures before setting a price.
A) Estimated cost per participant with minimum # _12_________ with maximum #
__16_________
Cost per participant to be listed in AMC Outdoors _$ 1600___(without air)________
B) What deposits are required in advance? Participants pay $600 deposit.
C) What is the latest date for you to cancel and get a full refund? This will depend upon what group expenses have been paid prior to the cancellation. If a

replacement is found, the person will receive refund of amount paid, minus a non-refundable fee of $100.
D) What are your plans if you do not get the required number of people?
We will run this trip with twelve participants and two leaders. Unless the US State
Department issues warnings for people not to go to Italy….I can fill this trip quickly. I am not concerned about not filling the trip.
V. PRIVATE TRIPS
Are you currently (up to and including the time frame of this proposed trip) leading trips that are “private,” i.e. not sponsored by the AMC?
Yes, we both lead private trips .
VI. AMC OUTDOORS INFORMATION
Detailed instructions on trip listings available at <http://snebulos.mit.edu/orgs/amc/>.
E) Request month for trip to first appear in AMC Outdoors July/August, 2004
Date to be pulled April, 2005
F) Please provide an electronic copy of both the long (150 words maximum) and short form (50 word maximum) announcements. Note that the word count stops at the phrase “For info.” D
*** Caribbean trips use only short form
VII. TRIP PROPOSAL AND APPROVAL PROCESS
Trips cannot come before the Major Excursions Committee for approval unless the forms are completely filled out and received three weeks prior to MEC meetings for review.
Please make sure you have filled out all appropriate sections of this form completely and included any necessary attachments.
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First aid certifications
Leader Qualification information
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Detailed cost information
AMC Outdoors listings
 AMC Medical form for both leaders
By turning in this proposal, you are agreeing to the following:
I have read the Major Excursions Leader Handbook and I agree to follow all policies and prodecures of the Major Excursions Committee and the Appalachian
Mountain Club in preparing for and conducting my major excursion.

Thank you for completing this form!
 Copies of first aid certifications and medical forms should be submitted in hard copy only. These can be faxed (marked attn: Katherine Byers) to 617-523-0722 or mailed to the Major Excursions, 5 Joy St. address below.
 Email submissions of this trip proposal form are preferred.
Email should be sent to both of the following two addresses:
T. Walley Williams, Major Excursions Committee Chair at < vze2g9bb@verizon.net
>
Katherine Byers, AMC Outdoor Leadership Coordinator at < kbyers@amcinfo.org
>
Or, if you unable to send electronically, please mail a hard copy to the following two addresses:
T. Walley Williams, III
Chair, AMC Major Excursions Committee
Major Excursions
Appalachian Mountain Club
71 Orchard St.
Belmont, MA 02478-3509
5 Joy St.
Boston, MA 02108
Questions? Call T. Walley Williams at the above email or 617-484-1877.
He can put you in touch with an experienced MEC mentor who can help you with trip planning..