AtoZ Expeditions – FAQs

Read our comprehensive list of questions and answers to cover all your queries and concerns.

Take the right kit!

It is really important to take the right kit and not pack too much! You will be walking, canoeing or cycling so it’s vital you have the right pieces for your expedition.

General kit questions

We will cover this during the pre-expedition training and we will provide you with a copy of our Expedition Preparation Guide which has a detailed kit list. This can also be downloaded from your school website or we can email you a copy if you contact us.

We bring a small stock of spare kit to each expedition so your instructor may be able to help. Alternatively you may be able to visit a shop before you start. However you will not be able to take part unless you are properly equipped.

Yes – but it should only be used in case of an emergency. Please ensure that it is fully charged, has plenty of credit and is well protected from the elements in a tough plastic bag – a zip lock bag would be ideal

No – we do not want to see or hear participants listening to music during the expedition. It is not in the spirit of the DofE, it is antisocial and it can even be dangerous to wear headphones whilst walking.

Yes – this is a great idea, you will want to record all of those great DofE memories. They can then be uploaded onto your eDofE or used during your presentation. You might even want to consider entering your photos into our Snap Happy Photo Competition. If you do bring a camera or video camera, please ensure that it is well protected from the elements.

Some participants find walking poles very useful, when used correctly they take some of the weight off your legs and can help you to balance when walking on rough ground. They are particularly useful for participants who suffer from ankle, knee or hip problems.

Gaiters are a tube of material which fits over the bottom of your trousers and over the top of your boots. They will help to keep water, dust and grit out of your boots. Generally we only suggest using them for expeditions in Wild Country, however if you have a pair please bring them along.

Generally these are only needed for expeditions in Scotland and North Wales. If you are likely to need one we will let you know on the pre-expedition training day.

Yes – you may be able to buy some food and drink on the journey to and from your expedition and the end of the expedition. If you have forgotten anything you may be able to visit a shop before you start and it is also a good idea to bring some extra money with you in case of an emergency.

Whatever will boost your morale and keep you entertained during the expedition. Some people bring a ball, a pack of cards, a book, a cuddly toy, a Frisbee. No ipods, ipads or other electrical items please.

Your possessions may be covered on your house insurance, however we recommend taking out a travel insurance policy which will cover your personal possessions during the expedition. Your possessions are not insured through the DofE or A to Z Expeditions.

That depends – if the damage or loss was accidental eg breaking a tent pole whilst trying to pitch a tent in stormy conditions, then we will not charge you. However we reserve the right to make a charge if we believe that the damage or loss was caused wilfully or by misuse or negligence.

Shoes & clothing questions

We will cover this during the pre-expedition training and we will provide you with a copy of our Expedition Preparation Guide which has a detailed kit list. This can also be downloaded from your school website or we can email you a copy if you contact us.

We bring a small stock of spare kit to each expedition so your instructor may be able to help. Alternatively you may be able to visit a shop before you start. However you will not be able to take part unless you are properly equipped.

In order to safely take part in an expedition you must have proper walking boots which cover the ankle bone. These must have soles with good grips and heels. If you do not have proper walking boots you will not be able to take part.

You will be carrying a heavy load during the expedition so in order to prevent injury, your ankles will need extra support from your walking boots. If you do not have proper walking boots you will not be able to take part.

This isn’t necessary, however if you don’t mind carrying a little more then you may want to bring a different pair of shoes to wear in camp. You should not walk barefoot around the campsite.

If it is hot you may wish to wear shorts, however we recommend wearing long trousers when walking as they provide protection from sunburn, from cuts and scratches from long grass and from biting insects such as ticks.

Cotton absorbs lots of water and dries very slowly so if your cotton t-shirt, hoodie or tracksuit bottoms get wet, you will be cold and uncomfortable. Fleece and quick drying synthetic materials are better. A woolly jumper will also keep you warm while wet.

Even in the middle of summer it can be very cold on the hill or at night. Therefore it is essential that you can keep yourself warm.

This will depend on the length of your expedition, but as a minimum, in addition to the clothing you are wearing, you will need a spare warm jumper and a complete change of clothing.

As a minimum you will need 2 pairs, one to wear and a spare pair.  However some participants prefer to have a fresh pair of socks for each day of their expedition.

Saftey & staying in touch

Take a closer look through some of the specific safety FAQ’s we get asked regularly here at A to Z expeditions.

Keep in touch

Yes – but it should only be used in case of an emergency. Please ensure that it is fully charged, has plenty of credit and is well protected from the elements in a tough plastic bag – a zip lock bag would be ideal.

Your mobile phone should only be used to contact your instructor during the expedition. You need to save your battery and phone credit. Phone signal may be poor in the expedition area and friends and family may worry if they are expecting you to call them and you cannot.

You should tell friends and family not to call you during the expedition. You need to save your phone battery for emergencies. You may also be in an area with poor phone signal and they may worry if they cannot get hold of you.

If your message is urgent please contact us and we will contact your son or daughters instructor.

Please reassure them, and tell them they need to speak to their instructor who will be able to help. Instructors make regular checks on the groups progress and participants are all given contact numbers for their instructor and A to Z Expeditions HQ. Phone signal may be poor in the expedition areas, so if participants cannot get hold of their instructor they should leave a clear message and send a text giving their location and information about the problem.

If you are concerned please contact us and we will pass a message to your son or daughters instructor.

Please try not to worry, expeditions are challenging and participants may want to call parents if they are tired and upset. They often forget to call you back to tell you that everything is OK later on.

Stay safe

We will try to accommodate your needs wherever possible; however expeditions are very strenuous and often take part in remote areas so we need to consider whether it will be safe for you to take part if you are not fully fit.

It may be possible to apply for an exemption from the DofE 20 conditions so that we can assist you in some way, or we may recommend that you need to undertake further training or wait until you are fully fit before taking part.

Our instructors will be on hand to give you support and first aid. If necessary you will be seen by a medical professional. If you are unable to continue with the expedition then we will contact your DofE leader and/or your parent/guardian to arrange for them to collect you.

Ticks are common in some of the expedition areas. You can prevent tick bites by covering up and using insect repellent. We include Tick removers in our first aid kits, and our instructors will show you how to use these. If you get bitten by a tick during your expedition please let your instructor know. If you find a tick when you get home then you can find advice on safe removal and information on the signs and symptoms of Lyme disease in this leaflet: Just a Tick…

Food & water

Food

Your group will be given a number of trangia stoves – typically 1 for each 3 participants. The stoves are fuelled by gas which is safe and easy to use. Each stove has 2 pans, a lid and a handle, so you will be able to boil or warm food. You will not be able to fry, toast, roast or oven cook food so you need to choose what to bring carefully.

If you are taking part in an expedition with your school, we will cover food during the pre-expedition training day. Whether you are doing an open or an expedition with your school, we will provide you with a copy of our Expedition Preparation Guide, which has detailed information about Expedition Food.

Yes – do not bring any raw meat, poultry or fish. Anything which needs refrigeration should be eaten within 4 hours, so ham sandwiches for lunch on day 1 are probably ok, but after that to avoid food poisoning please eat dried, preserved or long life foods only. If someone in your group has an allergy you should also avoid bringing food they are allergic to, so as to avoid making them ill.

Water

You should carry 2 litres of water with you when walking. But you will need to drink more than this during the day to stay hydrated, so we recommend drinking water in the morning before you start and more when you arrive at your campsite in the evening.

Most campsites will have taps with drinking water. If you are wild camping then we will either deliver a supply of drinking water to you or in more remote locations you will need to purify stream water by boiling it.

In very hot weather we may be able to meet you with a supply of water during the day, but as you need to be self-sufficient you should plan to carry all of the water you will need.

No – at most campsites you will have access to clean drinking water. Where you need to take water from streams we recommend you purify this by boiling rather than using purification tablets. If this is going to be necessary during your expedition our instructors will give you appropriate training on this

These are good as you don’t need to stop and take you bag off to drink, so they can help you to stay hydrated. The downside is that you also can’t easily see how much you’re drinking and it is easy to drink a day’s supply of water in a couple of hours. Hydration systems are also prone to leaking so in addition you should bring a 1 litre water bottle with you too.

At the campsite

As standard we use Vaude Arco tents. These are lightweight and simple to pitch. Each tent can sleep 2 or 3 people and you will be able to choose how many tents your group takes on their expedition.

This will depend on where you are doing your expedition. Occasionally we use commercial campsites, but mostly you will be camping in a farmer’s field or on a scout or guide campsite. On some of our expeditions you may even wild camp. Most campsites do not have showers, some have hot and cold water and flushing loos, but most are very basic with only cold water taps and portaloos. On a wild camp you will not have access to any facilities; if you are going to be wild camping we will cover camp hygiene during the pre-expedition training. At some wild camps we supply clean drinking water, in more remote locations you will need to purify stream water by boiling it.

No – most of the campsites do not have showers. You will be able to wash, athough there is unlikely to be hot water. We suggest either bringing a flannel and small bar of soap or using wet wipes.

Most of the campsites we use will have toilets – some may be proper flushing toilets, others may be more basic portaloos. If you are wild camping then you will not have a toilet, but we will provide you with a trowel and our instructors will discuss camp hygiene with you during the pre-expedition training.

Yes – you need to be self sufficient. Some campsites do not provide toilet rolls or you may find that other campers have used them before you arrive. We recommend Andrex “on the go” which is a compact, coreless toilet roll or packets of tissues. Remember to protect you loo roll from the elements – it won’t be any use to you if it is soggy.

Expeditions

The expedition programme

You cannot take part in the practice expedition unless you have completed appropriate pre-expedition training. If this happens your DofE leader will discuss the options with you. Alternatively please contact us.

You cannot take part in the qualifying expedition unless you have successfully completed at least one practice expedition. If this happens your DofE leader will discuss the options with you. Alternatively please contact us.

No – a lot of training still takes place on the practice expedition, so it would not be appropriate to include a participant who had not completed a practice expedition in a group who are undertaking an unaccompanied qualifying expedition.

No – payments are non-refundable. We therefore recommend that you take out insurance to cover you for cancellation or curtailment. Suitable travel insurance policies are widely available.

If you do not complete the practice expedition then we cannot sign you off to go forward to the qualifying expedition. You will therefore need to repeat all or part of the practice expedition. On very rare occasions someone may become ill or injured on the final day of a practice expedition. If they have already demonstrated they have acquired all of the necessary skills and are competent we may be able to sign them off.

You will have to repeat the whole expedition.

You cannot fail a DofE Expedition. However at the end of a practice expedition we occasionally have to recommend that some groups undertake further training and practice to ensure that they are fully prepared to safely undertake an unaccompanied qualifying expedition. This isn’t failing, some groups just take longer to pick up the necessary skills.

You cannot fail a DofE Expedition. However not all of the participants who start a qualifying expedition will complete it successfully. If they have not taken care of themselves they may drop out before the end. We also reserve the right to ask a participant to leave an expedition if we believe that they pose a danger to themselves or other members of their group. If you do not complete your qualifying expedition first time, then you can try again at a later date. You have until your 25th Birthday.

At bronze you will need to plan 6 hours of activity each day, 7hours for silver and 8 for gold. This roughly equates to 14km, 17km and 20km per day for walking expeditions.

The fitter you are the more you will enjoy your expedition, walking up hill will not seem so much of a slog and you will be able to enjoy the view rather than puffing and panting. The more training you do before your expedition the better. Expeditions are about endurance rather than speed, so walking is ideal training, you could walk to school or the shops rather than getting a lift or catching the bus. Walking with a rucksack is even better, put some tins of beans in your rucksack and practice walking with it, gradually increase the weight as you get fitter. Don’t forget to wear your boots as this will help to break them in, ensuring they are comfortable for your expedition.

DofE expeditions are supposed to be challenging, so you will find it hard. You may even feel like giving up at some point during your expedition. But you will have your team mates to encourage and help you get through, and at the end the sense of achievement and good memories will definitely outweigh the low points.

Open expeditions

Yes – lots of the people who come on our Open Expeditions are on their own so you will quickly make friends.

Yes – although we will need to see evidence that your training and practice have been signed off. A photo copy of your record book, or print-outs from eDofE will suffice.

Yes – the open practice expedition also includes all of the pre-expedition training and we will send you a joining pack before the expedition with all of the info you need to prepare.

Yes – direct entrants are welcome on our expeditions. However you may find that you have to work harder than other participants to learn lots of new skills.

You need to demonstrate to our instructors that you have acquired all of the necessary skills and are competent to go forward to an unaccompanied qualifying expedition. Most participants are able to do this on their first open practice, however very occasionally we have to recommend further training and practice to ensure that a participant is ready for their qualifying expedition.

When will we get together to plan the routes for the open expedition?

For the first two days we will be based at a bunkhouse so there will be plenty of time to plan your routes before you start walking.

Open participants need to provide all of their food for the duration of the expedition. Information about suitable expedition food and the meals that you should bring food for can be found in the Expedition Preparation Guide that we will send to you.

A bunkhouse is basic accommodation for walkers. The bunkhouses we use have dormitory rooms with bunkbeds (males and females are accommodated in separate dorms), well equipped communal kitchens and a communal living room. They also have hot showers and flushing loos.

Yes – we can store a small bag with kit that you want to use in the bunkhouse but don’t want to take on the expedition. We would suggest you bring a couple of changes of clothing, a towel and some toiletries. Please don’t leave any valuables in your bag.

Yes – we don’t put you into groups, you will be able to pick who you want to walk with at the start of the expedition.

4 weeks before your expedition we will email you a joining pack with directions. We have carefully planned the expeditions so they are accessible by public transport, however the expedition areas are quite remote so you may have a short walk (or taxi if you prefer) to get you to the bunkhouse. You may wish to contact other participants to share transport costs.

Yes – if you are driving to the open expedition you will either be able to leave your car at the bunkhouse or nearby. Cars are parked at the owners risk.