Hi and welcome to the Ottawa-Gatineau Adventurers Meetup. This meetup, like so many other things in our lives, is primarily about the journey rather than the destination. It is about exploring and enjoying our environment while under our own steam. It is about promoting and appreciating the simple things in life: nature, being active and the outdoors as a social opportunity with potlucks and singalongs and at the same time minimizing our impact to the environment during our passage.

We are an informal group of people with a common interest in outdoor and wilderness activities: from day outings like hiking, cycling, paddling, xc skiing and snowshoeing to multi-day trips like backpacking and canoe camping. All skill levels are welcome to join the group and participate in our events though Hosts may require a certain level of experience, preparedness and fitness for more demanding outings.

Have an idea for an Outing, whether a day trip or multi-day adventure? Anyone can post a day trip by suggesting an event from the main page, though you should have experience with the meetup group and the meetup group should have experience with you before you should post more risky outings (i.e. paddling, scrambling, rock climbing, caving, etc.) or multi-day adventures - but you can still start a thread about it on the discussion board.

Hope to see you all out and about,

Our Meetup Contributors

********************DISCLAIMER OF LIABILITY*******************

All Events, Outings and Activities posted on the Ottawa-Gatineau Adventurers Meetup are entirely at your own risk. They have inherent dangers that may result in extensive costs, serious and life impacting illness(es), serious and life impacting injury(ies) and even death.

The website is simply a means of bringing people of similar interests together and the Hosts are simply looking for people with whom they can share the Events, Outings and Activities they enjoy.

Organizers and Hosts are simply contributors, not professionals, and are simply investing their time to enable and facilitate for their own and the other participants mutual enjoyment. The Ottawa-Gatineau Adventurers Meetup does not check or review their experience, their training, their backgrounds, nor their ability to guide the Outings they post. Hosts only have their own personal experience and training to draw upon with respect to the Outings they post. When a Host posts an event they have only elected to guide the "Gathering of Attendees" through the Outing - they are not assuming responsibility for your health or safety, nor do they necessarily have rescue, first aid, CPR or medical training.

Do not go on an Outing blindly: Read the description and post questions in the discussion. Outings in town, or on official trails in the greenbelt or the Gatineau Park trails accessed out to and around Meech Lake should be of limited risk - though there are risks and dangers in every Outing. You should know and have trust, confidence and respect in your Host before going on more risky or challenging Outings, such as evening, multi-day or those beyond the Greenbelt or the Chelsea exit in the Gatineau Park.

Nor can the Ottawa-Gatineau Adventurers, its Organizers or Hosts, ensure Attendees are capable of or adequately prepared for the Outings and Activities in which they participate, or anticipate everything that might happen or even everything that Attendees might do. Waiting and being prepared for the Host to announce the departure and not racing ahead or lagging behind the "Group of Attendees" is key to your safety, everyone's enjoyment and as a result the success of the Outing. Not respecting these conditions puts your safety and welcome on the Outings posted here at risk. These are the reasons why Attendees assume full responsibility for their own behavior, safety and well being when participating in the Outings and Activities posted here.

Please see the following link with respect to risk and safety in the Ottawa-Gatineau Adventurers Meetup:
http://www.meetup.com/ottawa-backpacking-club/boards/thread/48631839

********************NOTE TO OUTING HOSTS*******************
(i.e. if you post events or participate in the organization of the meetup group itself):

1) You don't have to be an organizer on this site to post an outing. However, if you are added to the organizer list you'll have access to a few more features on this site, like the ability to email everyone who has RSVPed for your trip. If you would like to be added as an Event Organizer or participate in the leadership team let us know.

2) When posting an outing, schedule it for the time people should start collecting at the car pooling location. Then post in the outing description the departure time from this location (10-15 minutes later) and the time you expect to arrive at the outing location. I would also recommend posting a google maps link with the directions from the car-pooling location to where the event will be taking place in the event description.

3) Provide people with some idea of the difficulty and duration of the event so that people know whether it is something of which they are capable and for which they have sufficient time. A 15km hike on predominantly flat terrain is very different from a 15km hike up to the top of a peak and back. If the event requires special gear this should also be included in the description.

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