Do I have to be a member?CAEX welcomes visitors on club walks and activities. All walkers, including visitors are required to register with the walk leader, usually a couple of days in advance of the walk. Non-members are asked to identify themselves as visitors when contacting walk leaders to ensure that arrangements are fully explained.
Due to insurance requirements, all walkers must sign a walk registration form (Pdf, 49k) at the commencement of the walk or activity. Visitors will be made temporary members for the duration of the walk or activity that they register for and prior to commencing the walk or activity will be required to sign a temporary member waiver form (Pdf, 60k) acknowledging the risks and obligations of participating.
How
do I find information about each walk?Walk notices providing full details of each walk are included in the clubs magazine 'The Cakewalk'. The Cakewalk is made available to members and potential members either my mail or electronically. Please see the becoming a member page for more information.
How are walks organised?All club activities, including walks have a designated leader. The leader is responsible for all aspects of the activity including selecting the venue, day and date, publicising the details of the walk in the club magazine 'The Cakewalk' and leading the actual activity. Please read Walk Etiquette for more details on how walks are actually run.
How fit do I need to be?Like all physical activities, a certain level of fitness is required to go bushwalking, but it is not necessary to be super fit. However, the higher your level of fitness the easier it will be for you to undertake a walk and the more you should enjoy yourself.
Walks generally involve walking from approximately 10:00 am to 4:00 pm, during which time you can expect to cover 12 to 15 kilometres. If you have not done any bushwalking before, this might seem a long distance, but in fact it is generally not that difficult. It's usually the hills you go up and down along the way that affect how hard a walk is. The walk leader should be able to give an explanation of how easy or difficult their walk should be. There are plenty of rest breaks, and all our groups walk at the pace of the slowest member.
How often are walks scheduled?There is usually a walk scheduled on most weekends throughout the year. Most of our walks are day walks which are held on Sundays. Weekend trips are also scheduled, especially in Spring and Autumn. Weekend trips can be base camps where we camp in the one location or they can be accommodated trips where we stay in a ski lodge, caravan park cabins or backpacker accommodation.
How much travelling is involved?Day walks are generally held within 90 minutes drive of Melbourne. During winter walks are often closer to or in the city as the daylight hours are shorter and members prefer not to travel in the dark. Weekend walks will usually be further away as we have more time available to travel. Walk leaders will try to arrange car-pooling.
Where are walks held?We are lucky to live in Melbourne where we have easy access to a wide range of locations including mountains, forests, beaches, metropolitan parks and historical areas. Factors such as the weather, seasons, long weekends and holiday periods will affect where we go. Many walks are be in National and State Parks and sometimes state forests.
How do I get to a walk?Because most of our walks are in country areas private transport is required to get to/from most walks. However all walks have a leader who is able to assist with car pooling arrangements to help share the responsibility and costs of driving and the transport of members who may not have access to their own vehicle.
What will I need to take on a walk?The items carried on a walk vary with the season and the individual. The following list will give you a guide.
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*personal first aid items |
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*personal medications |
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camera |
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binoculars |
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*day pack |
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*sunscreen |
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*toilet trowel and toilet paper |
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Are walks cancelled due to bad weather?Despite all the bad jokes about Melbourne's weather it is very rare for it to rain all day, but sometimes it does. It is up to the walk leader to decide, based on the weather forecast whether or not to walk. During summer, if there is a total fire ban it is club policy to automatically cancel any scheduled walk. This is in consideration of our own safety and the safety of emergency services workers who might be called to assist us if a bushfire did start.
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