Responsibilities > Trip Leaders
Trip Leaders
Trip Leader Responsibilities
Trip Leaders volunteer to help with at least one trip each year to:
- Serve as an enthusiastic champion for all CHOuting Club trips with other parents in your grade, encouraging them to sign up for trips to ensure a critical mass of participants.
- Go on as many CHOuting Club trips as you can.
- Communicate with Grade Coordinator about Mailchimp emails about booking deadlines to whole grade and then to all trip participants with updated trip information or logistics (weather, gear, route options, parking etc).
- On Fall AMC hut hiking trips, follow the instructions below.
- On Spring trips, serve as a representative and liaison with the booking entity (Hostelling International) and any other service providers (i.e. kayaking outfitter/guide).
When you arrive at a hut or hostel, identify yourself to the hut/hostel manager and serve as liaison to trip participants who are all representatives of the school.
Remind SHS parents that they are responsible for monitoring the behavior of their children on CHOuting Club trips: Go to: CHOuting Club – Behavior Guidelines
Specifically, for AMC hut overnight trips:
Our goal at the CHOuting Club is to encourage SHS classmates and their families to learn to hike well, and to enjoy the outdoors and being together. A critical component to hiking well is hiking safely with consideration for the group and for the environment. With this in mind, guidelines are as follows:
- A Trip Leader should arrive at each designated trailhead 30 minutes before the stated departure time.
- Approximately 5-10 minutes before the stated departure time, the Trip Leader should assemble all parents and children, and summarize the key points of the CHOuting Club – Behavior Guidelines. (Downloadable PDF)
- Before participants depart the trailhead, the Trip Leader should identify subgroups that plan to hike together. Each subgroup should have at least one member who is an experienced hiker, knows the trail route, and has an adequate trail map.
- Immediately prior to sitting down for dinner, the Trip Leader should assemble all parents and children and summarize the key points from the above guidelines regarding “BEHAVIOR AT HUTS, LODGES AND HOSTELS”.
- Immediately following breakfast the next morning in the hut, and before anyone starts hiking, the Trip Leader should assemble all parents and children and again summarize the key points of the CHOuting Club’s “HIKING AND SAFETY GUIDELINES”. The Trip Leader should make sure each parent knows with whom their child is hiking down, on which trail, and ensure that each hiking group has at least one experienced hiker who knows the route, and has a trail map.
