What: To begin the semester off we are having a social camping trip at Gap Creek campground (https://www.nationalparks.nsw.gov.au/camping-and-accommodation/campgrounds/gap-creek-campground) in the Watagans. No hiking or camping experience is necessary.  To Expect: Light hiking, chilling around camp, a rustically beautiful pit toilet, Waterfall! A small amount of rain is forcast for this weekend so the waterfall should be good ! Plan: The plan is to meet at the gearshed (https://tinyurl.com/t2f3cmr) on Saturday the 22/02/2020 at 9:00am sharp to check gear and drive to Gap Creek campground at 9:30am. Saturday Dinner will be a group dinner that will be included in the cost of your ticket. We will packup camp and return to the gearshed on Sunday the 23/02/2020 after lunch.  To Bring: Sturdy Shoes / Swimmers / Headtorches / Raincoat / Jumper / Sunscreen / A tent (or a share in a tent) / Sleeping Bag / Sleeping Mat. Bring all food for meals and snacks (Breakfast/ Lunch/ Dinner/ Snacks, etc.) except a single dinner (Saturday). Water is not avaliable at the campsite so bring 3L/Per Day !! Camping gear can be hired from the NUMC gear store or BYO. A more detailed camping list will follow ! If you're avaliable to drive please buy a Driver ticket !    As of this year NUMC is aiming to go carbon neutral! For an optional $3 you can offset your carbon emissions from this trip by purchasing the 'carbon offset' ticket as well as the event ticket. For your carbon offset ticket, follow this link (also available on our FB page) http://tdy.cl/se/28jhiHY Hope to see you all there!!!  For any questions contact Jarred at 0422039226 or jarred.zeman@uon.edu.au  

This page is used for gear store deposits. Please checkout: - 1 x gear store deposit per group (refundable on return of items borrowed) OR - 1 x extended hire deposit for hire periods exceeding one week - 1 x deposit per wetsuit hired For each wetsuit borrowed, a separate wetsuit deposit must be included. This is in addition to any gear deposit, and is fully refunded on return of undammaged and clean wetsuit.  Hired equipment must be returned within one week, unless otherwise organised with the attendant gear store officer. Failure to return hired equipment on time and in acceptable condition may result in the forfeit of the gear hire deposit. 

This page is used for gear store deposits and gear hire fees. Please checkout: - 1 x gear store deposit per group (refundable on return of items borrowed) - each item borrowed (non-refundable hire cost) For each wetsuit borrowed, a separate wetsuit deposit must be included. This is in addition to any gear deposit, and is fully refunded on return of undammaged and clean wetsuit.  These funds all go to maintaining and purchasing equipment for users of the club.  Hired equipment must be returned within one week, unless otherwise organised with the attendant gear store officer. Failure to return hired equipment on time and in acceptable condition may result in the forfeit of the gear hire deposit. 

We've got two days of FREE intro to hiking in the Watagans forest, run by Hunter TAFE, beginners welcome! As part of their certification, outdoor recreation students need to demonstrate proficiency in teaching people to hike, so the NUMC - in return for providing students as novice hikers - get a free introduction to hiking!  You do not need to be a novice to attend this trip, everyone is welcome. There are two days the TAFE has set out for training; Day 1 : Monday 25th November Day 2: Tuesday 26th November Please select a FREE ticket for the event on the day(s) you wish to attend. This will reserve your place.  Car pooling will be organised once attendance has been sorted. On each of these days we can take up to 12 students on the hike. Start time 09:00 Finish time 16:00 NUMC members to bring:  -sturdy walking shoes -backpack (can be borrowed from the club) -water ~2L -food for the day -hat and sunblock -long pants and long shirt are suggested (tick protection) Any questions, email Phillip at ptin265@aucklanduni.ac.nz

Alrighty my adrenaline junkies, time for the actual deets for our AGM! Our 2019 AGM will be held at Dixon Park, just behind Bar/Dixon Beach in Merewether, starting 1:30 pm on Sunday 10th of November. We will provide food and soft drinks, as well as banter and games, and some swims at the beach. There will be vegan and vego options available. The actual meeting will take about 15-20 minutes, the rest of the afternoon will be reserved for shenanigans We have received some interest for committee positions, but will continue to accept nominations until midnight Saturday 11th.. Any positions that remain vacant as of then will be open to nomination at the event. So grab your (free) ticket at from tidyHQ so we can get a firm idea of numbers and dietary requirements.  Reasons to nominate for committee: - Implement ideas you've had for the club - Learning admin and leadership skills - Open access to the gear store - In house training in outdoor adventure sports - Altruism - Looks great on your CV. Role descriptions and nomination forms are available on the club facebook page or by request. Any questions can be sent to myself or committee@numc.org.au. Our committees are run in a very fluid way, each member gets to learn every job, so your learning will not be confined to any single aspect of club administration. You will learn both the administrative skills of how to plan a trip, as well as the technical skills required to implement one. Nominate for any position you feel you would like to learn, or be good at. You may nominate for more than one. We'd love to have some new committee members, we have so much to teach and share so that this great club can thrive for years to come! Give it some thought, check it out. It is so worth it.   I hope to see you all there! Cooper Walters President NUMC cooperwalters217@gmail.com

A picturesque 9km/2-3 hour hike (each way) through Brisbane Waters National Park. The track winds its way up and down Mt Wondabyne, letting us admire views of the Hawkesbury River and various waterfalls before arriving at the basic, Tommo's campsite for the night. There is no running water and no toilets at this campsite or along the track. There is a waterfall near camp however the water needs to be treated (boiled/filtered) before drinking. We will meet at the gear shed at 9 am on Saturday the 26th of October, before driving to Staples Lookout near Woy Woy. We will return on Sunday the 27th, aiming to be at the gear shed by about 4pm.  While this trip is beginner friendly you must have a reasonable level of fitness (e.g. do not get out of breath walking from the Hunter building to bar on the hill). Bare minimum packing list: Tent (or spot in someone else's tent) - the club has tents Sleeping mat -the club has mats Sleeping bag - the club has sleeping bags Food (lunch Saturday, dinner Saturday, breakfast Sunday and lunch Sunday + snacks) Water (at least 2L a day) Warm clothes for at night Sturdy shoes for walking in Stove (if cooking food - the club has a few), cutlery and other associated cooking and eating implements For any questions contact Sophie at 0430177740 or sophie.mckay@uon.edu.au

We've got two days of FREE intro to canoeing at Speers Point, run by Hunter Tafe, beginners welcome! As part of their certification, cert. 4 outdoor recreaction students need to demonstrate proficiency in teaching people to canoe, so the NUMC - in return for providing students as novice canoers - get a free introduction to canoeing! There are two days the TAFE has set out for training; Day 1 : Wednesday 23rd October. Day 2: Tuesday 5th November Please select a FREE ticket for the event on the day(s) you wish to attend. This will reserve your place.  There will be pick up and drop off available from the uni, with  only 12 spots available (9am pick up, 4 pm drop off) Start time 09:30 (at speers point) Finish time 15:00 (at speers point) TAFE will provide boats, paddles, lifejackets.   UoN students to bring: Enclosed shoes to wear whilst canoeing                                           Clothes which can get wet                                           Towel and change of clothes / shoes                                           Packed lunch and water for the day                                           Wide brimmed hat / cap & sunscreen                                           Rain jackets / warm clothes if not nice weather.   Any questions, flick me an email at cooperwalters217@gmail.com

LET’S GO CAVING!!!!! This trip has places for some peeps to come to Timor caves, not far from Mururruruurrurundi (Funny name for a place, ikr?).  When: 14-15/9, leaving about 2pm on Saturday, camping Saturday night and driving back to Newcastle Sunday evening. There are no toilets, showers or other facilities at the camp site. The nearest toilet is an hour drive away.  What: Now this is the fun part. First, we find the damn things, which is much easier said than done. This requires a reasonable level of fitness, we will be carrying light packs through light bushland up and down hills, though it is only about 10 minutes walk between each cave. Second, we put on our helmets, switch on our torches and dive (almost literally in my case) into the underground world of rock, darkness and awesomeness. Once inside we walk, crawl, slide, and swear our way through the tunnels, trying to see what we can find and where we can get. It’s the ultimate in terms of exploration, the only thing stopping you finding out what’s around the corner or in that tunnel is you. If you are claustrophobic, this is not the trip for you.  Skills: No skills required, just bring clothes you never want to see again. They will never be the same colour as they were when you started.  What to bring: - Food for one day including breakfast, lunch and snacks. Dinner on Saturday night will either be a group camp meal or BYO/maccas, and Sunday nights on the drive back will probably be road dinner. The Saturday night meal will be confirmed as group or BYO the week prior to departure, so if you grab a ticket watch your emails for more info! You must bring your own lunch and snacks. - Water for one day (at least one litre in a sturdy or plastic bottle, each car will have a 10 or 20 litre water container for refills, but you NEED a bottle) - Clean clothes for the trip home - Camping gear (can be hired from the NUMC gear store or BYO) - Torches (can be hired or BYO) ***Head torch ESSENTIAL*** - Overalls (optional, limited number and sizes for hire, otherwise old clothes will do) - Spare batteries (Club torches take 4 AAA or 4 AA batteries, you MUST have a complete spare set.) ***ESSENTIAL*** - Backup torch (phones are not allowed in the cave, a $5 hand torch is fine) ***ESSENTIAL*** - Helmets (Store) - Sturdy and/or cheap shoes. Following the “they gon’ get dirty” theme. (You get the point by now, there is dirt. Everywhere. Like, EVERYWHERE. And also water. Water and dirt make mud. You get the picture.) - Wet wipes/baby wipes SERIOUSLY recommended.  - Cheap gardening gloves (Also highly recommended) For additional information, send me an email or Facebook message. That's all the info you need, so once you've got your ticket, make sure to be at the gear store by AT LEAST 1:30 pm on Staturday 14/8 for our departure at 2.  Gear can be hired on the Tuesday night prior, it's a first-in-first-served system.  That's all from me, get keen, sign up, you know the drill. Cheers, Cooper ~Prez

Hey Guys, TIME FOR SOME LAND CARE! Crag Care - Hunter are doing a joint event with National Parks to help care for our climbing crags! This one is at Monkey Face crag, a popular climbing area in Watagans National Park.  To show our support for the local climbing community and NP, we're gonna take a group to help out with the landcare by removing Lantana (a noxious weed), and basically do whatever else we need to do to support the local area! We'll be teaming up with other climbers from around the region and a BBQ lunch is being supplied by Pulse Climbing, so food is included!  So if you want to see some of our national parks, visit monkey face crag and give back a little to the environment, grab your ticket and lets go! Ticket just covers fuel btw.  More information is available at their facebook page https://www.facebook.com/events/365113507504114/ LETS GO  

This trip is for people new to outdoor climbing who want to get outside and give it a go. Your $15 ticket covers transport from the gearstore, all climbing equipment, and instruction. No previous climbing experience necessary. The walk in is about 10 minutes of dirt track up a hill. You need to bring normal going outside stuff... Lunch (Sandwiches, muesli bars, etc) | Water (2L) | Layered clothing, exercise wear for climbing, something warm for sitting | Raincoat | Sunscreen | Hat | Camera (bring a strap) | Hairband if you have long hair Leave jewellery / watches / nice things at home or in your bag. If you have any conditions that might impact your ability to participate, or if you have any questions you can contact me on the facebook post where you saw this, or my email is ptin265@aucklanduni.ac.nz and my phone is 0431 757 089 If you are an experienced climber keep in mind this is a beginner's trip so you will be in line to learn how to belay like everyone else and all the climbs set will be relatively easy. Apart from climbing, it's a nice spot to sit and socialise, and enjoy the bush. Pic above is exactly where we are going. - Phillip

A gentle 2-3 hour hike (each way) through the scenic Myall Lakes National Park. Wending its way through palm forests, along the lake front and all the way to a cosy campsite, tucked in the bush by the side of the lake.  The trip will leave on the morning of Friday 9th August and return on Saturday. We will have to carry all our supplies (including food, water and tents) in to the campsite. No experience hiking is necessary and most of the camping gear you need can be provided by the club. An email will come out closer to the trip (for those attending) with more details about what to pack and where to meet. 

This trip will be a weekend long trip to the beautiful Myall Lakes from Friday the 26th July to Saturday the 27th The group will meet at the gear shed at 9 am on Friday, load up boats and set off for Mungo Brush Campground. From there we will kayak for approximately 20km to Johnson's Beach Campsite and stay the night there.  The next day we will kayak back to the cars at Mungo Brush and drive back to Newcastle, tired, sore and happy! Most of the camping and kayaking gear you need can be hired from the club. You will need to bring your own food and clothing (for both on, and off the water). The campsite has woodfire barbecues, and toilets. We will have to carry all our own water. An email with further details will be sent out closer to the date for those who have bought a ticket. Any questions, contact Phillip at ptin265@aucklanduni.ac.nz