We offer exciting Open Silver Walking Expeditions.
In order to complete the Silver Expedition section you first need to complete a programme of training followed by sufficient practice expeditions to hone your skills. Once you have completed all of your training you then need to plan and undertake a 3 day qualifying expedition.
A deposit of £100 per expedition is due when you book; the remaining balance is due 28 days before your expedition.
Pre-expedition information pack with lots of helpful advice, kit lists etc.
Bunkhouse accommodation for the first night of the qualifying expedition.
Camping fees for the expedition, and for the first night of the practice.
Free use of group kit.
Supervision from experienced and helpful instructors.
Accredited Assessors for the qualifying expedition.
We provide the following essential group kit free of charge:
Tents
Stoves, pans and fuel
Group shelters
Group first aid kits
Maps
Our Silver Walking DofE expeditions start and finish at train stations in The Peak District. The start and finish points have been chosen so that arrival and departure by public transport is an option.
The Peak District provides an excellent challenge for the Silver Award – expect hills and tricky navigation in the UK’s oldest national park.
The Peak District
Do I have to make my own way to the expedition?
If you are joining one of our open expeditions, you will need to arrange your own transport to the start and finish. We make this easier by starting and finishing expeditions near to a train station.
The expedition locations are quite remote so you may have a short walk to the start or from the finish. Or you may need to get a taxi. But this means you are not reliant on someone to drive you – you can be independent and use public transport if you wish to.
How far will I have to walk?
Every expedition has to meet criteria set out by DofE – these criteria are known as the 20 Expedition Conditions.
One of these conditions says that on each day of expedition, you must do the minimum hours of planned activity for your DofE level. At Bronze that is 6 hours, for Silver it’s 7 hours and for Gold it’s 8 hours.
All groups move at different speeds so the amount of distance covered does vary. But as a guideline, this roughly equates to 12km at Bronze, 16km at Silver and 20km at Gold.
Will I be allocated a group or can I choose who I’m with?
At the start of the expedition, your instructor will run some activities to help everyone get to know each other. After these activities are done, the instructor will work with you to decide who will be in each group. This isn’t arranged by us before the expedition starts.
I haven’t done any training yet, can I come on an open expedition?
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.
If you are joining an open qualifying expedition, you will need to have completed an appropriate practice beforehand (at the same award level) and be able to send us evidence of that. However, we will also send you a joining pack with lots of info to help you prepare and we will include pre-expedition preparation on the first day of the open, before you set off.
Book your Open Expedition by completing our simple booking form. You will not be required to pay anything at this initial stage, and a member of our team will contact you shortly.
If you have any questions or would like more information before booking, please get in touch.
Call: 01981 550 433
Email: info@azexpeditions.com
