Joan Chambers/Cliff Chambers
Down Under Adventure in New Zealand
SUMMARY OF TRIP INFORMATION
Down Under Adventure in New Zealand
Leader Joan Chambers
Co-leader Cliff Chambers
New Zealand, South Island
Feb 5 to Feb 20, 2010
Total # of days 17
Hiking
Downhill skiing
Kayaking
Title of trip
Leadership
Location(s)
Dates
Type of trip
check all that apply
Backpacking
Cultural
Road biking
Nordic ski
Mountain biking
Snorkeling
Other – please describe
Max 12
Number of participants
(excluding leaders)
Advertised cost
Airfare range if not included
Do you wish to have your trip
listed online before it is
published in The Outdoors?
Smaller trips and leader
subsidization
Min 10
$ 3300
Does it include airfare? Yes
No
$ Advertised cost includes airfare from LAX or SFO to New Zealand and does not
include airfare to/from LAX or SFO.
Yes
No If yes, please list the approximate month (max is one year in
advance of trip)
Feb., 2009
Is this proposal for a small group trip – i.e., less than 14 participants and 2
leaders or 7 participants and 1 leader? Yes
No
If yes, why is a small group proposed? To ensure hut accommodations and improve
the group exerience and safety in an unfamiliar and backcountry setting.
If a participant fee increase of more than 15% is proposed, please explain
why? This trip is a backpack.
LEADER AND CO-LEADER INFORMATION
Leader name
Leader address
Leader email
Leader phone
Wilderness first aid training
CPR training
Prior leading experience
Trip one
Trip two
Trip three
Other related trip experience
Joan Chambers
16 Harcourt St., #5H, Boston, MA 02116
wu.chambers@gmail.com
Home 617-680-6717
Work
WFA
AWFA
WFR
Expiration: Will retake before the trip.
CPR
BLS
Expiration: Will retake before the trip.
Please list the last three longer (5+ day) trips you have led for the AMC including
destination, type of trip, 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.
Wild Wyoming Backpack 8/8 to 8/16 2009, 7 participants
California Sierras (co-leader) 8/9 to 8/23 2008, 10 participants
White Mountains Pemi Traverse 8/19 to 8/25 2007, 8 participants
Hut to Hut Presidentail Traverse 2006, Aug. 21-26. Hut to Hut Presidential Traverse in
NH White Mountains, 10 participants;

To lead a major excursion you must have current CPR and WFA at the time of your trip (or AWFA for all backcountry
trips). If you do not have the required level of certification at the time you submit your proposal or it will expire before
the date of your trip, you will need to make arrangements to recertify in a timely manner.
Revised 7/15/2016
Major Excursions Trip Proposal Form, page 1 of 5
Joan Chambers/Cliff Chambers
Down Under Adventure in New Zealand
Co-leader name
Co-leader address
Co-leader email
Co-leader phone
Wilderness first aid training*
CPR training*
Prior leading experience
Cliff Chambers
16 Harcourt St., #5H, Boston, MA 02116
wu.chambers@gmail.com
Home 617-938-4589
Work
WFA
AWFA
WFR
Expiration: Will retake before the trip.
CPR
BLS
Expiration: Will retake before the trip.
If you are a new co-leader you must submit an application to be a major excursions
leader or co-leader prior to submitting this application.
Scouting
Have either of you led this trip
before or traveled to this
area?
Languages
Does either the co-leader or
leader speak the local
language?
Couples
Do the leader and co-leader
have a significant personal
relationship?
Private trips
Do either of you lead trips that
are private - not sponsored by
the AMC?
Yes
No
If yes, please describe below:
Executive summary
Please provide a brief
description of the trip and the
activities planned.
Accommodations
Please describe your plan for
accommodation(s)
Meals
Please describe your plan for
providing meals
Permits or permissions
Does the trip require special
permits or permissions?
(required on many U.S.
federal lands and national
parks)
We will fly from LAX to Auckland and then to the South Island, where we will
backpack three of the country's Great Walks: the Abel Tasman, Kepler, and Routeburn
Tracks. We will be on the trail a total of ten days and seven nights.
Co-leader: Yes
No
Leader: Yes
No
Not applicable:
Yes
No
If yes, please list who has agreed to be your back-up in case one or
both of you need to drop out. This is required for approval!
Marianne Page <mariannepage@comcast.net> has kindly offered to serve as a backup
leader for this trip.
Yes
No
If yes, please note that you cannot advertise AMC and private trips
together unless there is a clear distinction between the two in any marketing
materials you send out.
LOGISTICAL DETAILS OF TRIP
Special equipment
Does the trip require special
equipment?
Special experience
Does the trip require special
Revised 7/15/2016
While on the trail, we will stay in New Zealand Department of Conservation huts. In
towns, we will stay in YHA youth hostels.
We will buy food and prepare all meals while backpacking; restaurant meals on off days
will be the responsibility of the participants.
Yes
No
If yes, please describe below what you will need to do to obtain them:
We do need hut and hostel reservations. Huts are reserved through NZ DOC. Individual
YHA hostels handle their own reservations.
If no, please describe the process you went through to find out that they were not
required:
The Great Walks are well documented on the website of the NZ DOC. Also, similar
trips on the South Island have been run several times before.
Yes
No
If yes, please describe below what type of equipment and how you
will ensure that people know how to use it:
Backpacks for gear, clothing and food for up to three nights and four days out at a time;
sleeping bags. Careful phone interviews will be conducted if participants are not known
to the leaders.
Yes
No
If yes, please describe below what type of experience? Also describe
how you will ensure that the participant has this experience?
Major Excursions Trip Proposal Form, page 2 of 5
Joan Chambers/Cliff Chambers
Down Under Adventure in New Zealand
skills on the part of the
participant?
Pre-trip activities
Do you plan to get your group
together before the trip for an
activity or social event?
Conservation, education and
recreation
How will this major excursion
meet the mission of the AMC?
www.outdoors.org/about/
mission.cfm
Participants must have at least intermediate backpacking experience and exhibit good
personal condition. The trip screening process will involve e-mail and telephone
communications, augmented with personal reference checks (i.e. speaking with
leaders of past trips that included participants) as necessary.
Yes
No
If yes, please describe below what you will do:
Pre-hike and/or social event.
We will be seeing and learning about an entirely different ecology than that of the
Whites and New England; there will be the opportunity to learn about endangered
species and invasive and non-indigenous flora and fauna that have changed NZ over the
years. We will be having a blast while doing do!
TOUR OPERATOR AND GUIDE SERVICE INFORMATION
Will this trip require a tour
operator or guide service
during part, or the entire
trip?
Name of tour operator/guide
service
Tour operator website
Safety record
Please provide information
about their safety record.
Insurance
Do they have liability
insurance?
Emergency response
Please describe the outfitters’
response plan in the case of an
emergency.
Yes
No
Please describe their services. If you are using a tour operator for the entire trip,
please describe why you will be using them rather than doing this trip on your own:
Liability? Yes
No
Are they willing to list AMC as an
additional insured?
Maximum amt: $
Yes
No
RISK ASSESSMENT
Please assess the risks and hazards of your trip. Carefully consider each area of risk and how it may affect your trip.
Devise a plan to prevent each hazard and to respond to it if it becomes necessary. Please be very specific for each section
if applicable.
Trail conditions, river crossings, weather, wildlife (bears, snakes, etc.)
Climate/terrain
Potential hazards
There are tidal crossings on the Abel Tasman and potential for flooding and landslides
on the other two walks.
Response
We will plan to do the Abel Tasman on a schedule that has us making the tidal crossings
near low tide. We will pay close heed to the weather and trail conditions as supplied by
the rangers on all tracks.
Political concerns, crime, language translation, terrorism
Foreign Country
Potential hazards
English speaking New Zealand is first world, law abiding, and very visitor friendly.
Response
Pay attention, pretty much as if we were in the US.
Road conditions, drivers, insurance
Transportation
Potential hazards
We will be using commercial van and bus lines for transport between walks and
accommodations; normal traffic hazards.
Response
Will likely use the satisfactory companies used in 2007.
Level of fitness, screening concerns, experience with equipment or activity
Participants
Potential hazards
Participants need to be fit and able to keep up with the group; pace will be moderate.
Revised 7/15/2016
Major Excursions Trip Proposal Form, page 3 of 5
Down Under Adventure in New Zealand
Response
Other
Potential hazards
Response
Joan Chambers/Cliff Chambers
A full screening process will eliminate many potential problems and those that arise will
be dealt with on an individual basis. Both leaders have extensive group leadership
experience and are practiced at handling uncomfortable situations. Potential health
threats will be aired during the screening process so leaders will be aware of participants'
risks.
Conditions unique to this type of trip
Those pesky keas (parrots) that will steal your boots and shred them.
Don't leave boots on the ground outside the huts!
EMERGENCY ACTION PLAN
Please describe your plans for dealing with emergencies. Use as much detail as possible, and list any special
communications equipment you may need to ensure the safety of your participants. DO NOT LEAVE THIS SECTION
BLANK
All huts have resident rangers who have radios; when we are off the trail, we are in
Emergency communication
Phone contacts, language,
major urban areas (Nelson, Te Anau and Queenstown) that have the usual medical and
documentation, distance from
emergency facilities and personnel.
emergency services
None
Emergency equipment
What sort of emergency first
aid or communication
equipment (satellite phone,
two-way radios) do you plan
to use, if any?
We would work with the rangers who staff the huts and patrol the Walks
Evacuation
Please describe your plan for
evacuation from the
backcountry location if
applicable?
Each city we are staying is has medical facilities and the hostels can provide that info if
Medical care
Please describe the medical
needed. Country-wide emergency services phone number is 111. Leader and CL will
care available in the area(s)
carry full first aid kits and the rangers in the huts are also trained in wilderness first aid.
where you will be traveling
and list names and telephone
numbers for these facilities.
COST AND BUDGET DETAILS
Foreign currencies
For int’l trips list each foreign
currency, the current $US
dollar exchange rate and what
contingencies you have if that
rate changes. If a tour
operator or agent is being
used, what currency is the
agent to be paid in?
Deposits
What deposits will be required
by airlines, hotels, tour
operators, etc., and when?
Refunds
What is the latest date you can
cancel and still receive a full
refund?
Participant deposit
Revised 7/15/2016
As of 12/03/09, the New Zealand dollar is worth about $0.72; our budget assumes $0.85
and doesn't use up the continency until the price rises 37% to $1.00. All
accommodations, food, and transportation will be paid in NZD, sometimes in advance
from the US. We expect to be able to use charge cards and ATM machines for
everything we need to pay there, rather than having to carry cash into the country.
Despite the trip's bargain price, our budget allows a large contingency, to be refunded (of
course) if not needed.
Air New Zealand requires a deposit of $75 per seat at the time we make our reservation.
The NZ DOC requires payment in full for the Great Walks huts when we make the
reservations in July. If any payments must be made before enough participant deposits
have been received, the leaders will advance the necessary funds.
Deposits paid to Air New Zealand are fully refundable until 60 days before departure.
Hut payments to the DOC are 75% refundable until 10 days before the start date of the
stay.
Initial deposit of $500 is due with application. Second payment of $1,200 is due two
Major Excursions Trip Proposal Form, page 4 of 5
Down Under Adventure in New Zealand
What are the initial deposit
and your schedule of
payments?
Cancellation policy
What will your cancellation
policy be for the participants?
Minimum numbers
Will you still run the trip if you
do not get the minimum
number?
Reference web links:
MEC Home Page:
Forms:
Deadlines:
E-Mail Addresses:
Club House:
MEC Chair:
Revised 7/15/2016
Joan Chambers/Cliff Chambers
weeks after acceptance. Final balance of $1,600 is due November 1, 2010. Deposit
checks from wait listed applicants will not be cashed unless and until we accept them
AND they confirm continued interest.
Cancellation will not be allowed to raise the cost to the other participants or to the
leaders. Published minimum penalty schedule: zero before July 2010, $200 from July
through September 2010, $400 after September 2010. If actual costs are higher, they
will be assessed instead. We reserve the right to reduce cancellation penalties if costs
incurred can be passed to a replacement participant.
Yes
No
If yes, please describe conditions:
http://snebulos.mit.edu/orgs/amc/
http://snebulos.mit.edu/orgs/amc/application/
http://snebulos.mit.edu/orgs/amc/listings
cyout@outdoors.org
mecchair@amcboston.org
Major Excursions Trip Proposal Form, page 5 of 5