Introduction

The Fylde Mountaineering Club was established in 1950. The aim of the club is to promote an facilitate the mountaineering in all its forms and provide opportunities for members of the club to meet and participate together in such activities.

The club currently has around 150 members.

Joining the FMC

Applications to join the Fylde Mountaineering Club are welcome from all adults (aged over 18), who normally reside on or around the Fylde Coast area. Applications can be made using the form on this website or by emailing the membership secretary directly.

How much does it cost?

The club is a non-profit-making organisation. No members profit financially from the club. Any funds generated through the membership subscription and external booking charges are re-invested in the club and it’s properties to maintain the club for future generations.

The annual membership fee for Introductory and Full Members is £35 per annum. This mainly covers club membership of the British Mountaineering Club (BMC), which includes 3rd party liability insurance for members and has some associated discounts with some outdoor retailers. The membership fee also covers costs associated with printing and postage for club magazines and the like.

A Joint Membership is available at £60 per annum. This is available to any two Full Members who reside at the same address. This accounts for the saving on printing and postage for sending out one shared magazine and other documents.

An Associate Membership is available at £10 per annum. This is granted at the committee’s discretion and is intended for long standing members who are no longer able to get out on the hill, but wish to remain active with the club on a social basis. It offers all the rights of Full Membership but without club membership of the BMC.

Charges for using the club huts by members is deliberately kept very low (usually £4 per night, currently FREE)

As club funds allow, we make regular donations to local & Lakeland mountain rescue teams. We would encourage all members to do the same.

The Intro Year

All new members to the club are considered ‘Intro Members’ for the first 12 months of their membership. This period is designed to allow new members to get involved with club activities, meet other members and understand how the club works. It also allows the club to get to know the new member and satisfy that they will be active and competent.

Over the intro year, it is expected that new members will make an active effort to get involved with a variety of club activities and come on some club meets. During the first year, intro members are only permitted to use the club huts on organised club meets or when accompanied by a full member. Intro members are encouraged to attend and contribute to the AGM, but are not permitted to vote.

At the end of the introductory year, intro members are asked to complete a Full Member Application form. This should detail all meets that they have attended. We ask that the application is supported by two Full Members of the club, one of which should be a committee member. Application for full membership will then be considered at the next committee meeting. All being well, the member will then become a Full Member.

Full details of the intro year are included in the Club Rules.

Climbing

The club has a long history of rock climbing. We have members actively climbing at all grades and in all types – trad, sport, indoor, bouldering, alpine, winter & ice climbing.

Weekend Meets

Proper climbing meets at the huts. Lakes & Wales.

Evening Climbing Meets

From April to September the club runs a weekly evening climbing meet to one of the local crags in Lancashire, Yorkshire or South Lakes. The meet schedule is compiled by Martin Dale and take into account travel distance, sunset times, crag conditions and bird nesting restrictions. We also try to rotate the meet day of the week – Tuesdays, Wednesdays & Thursdays to allow those who work shifts and have family commitments to get to some of the meets. Full details on the Evening Climbing Meets Page.

Indoor Climbing

From October – March the club meets weekly on a Thursday night at PrestonWall in West View Leisure Centre in Preston.

We also have an active group of indoor focused climbers who will climb at local walls several times a week. The best place to follow and join in with this activity is in the ‘Indoor Climbing’ Whatsapp Group.

Full details on the Indoor Climbing Page

Walking

Words about walking to go here. Link to walking page.

Caving

Since it’s formation, the FMC has been running caving meets to the local Yorkshire Dales and a far. Caving is usually reserved for the darker winter months when light and weather conditions are not favorable for climbing and walking in the evenings.

The vast majority of FMC cavers were introduced to the sport through the club. If you want to get involved and try caving, there are plenty of opportunities for beginner trips in the Dales. The club has a small amount of spare clothing and kit for members to use.

Full details on the caving page

Club Huts

The club owns two properties in the Lake District for the use of club members. Full details and directions can be found on the huts page.

Availability

The general principle is that a minimum of one of our huts will be available for FMC use on any given weekend. The other hut will be rented out to an external club or group, which generates revenue to help maintain the properties. The current availability can be seen on the hut calendars on this website (Langdale, Stair).

Full members can book in 3 guests

Booking

For organised club meets on the calendar, Intro & Full members should book in with the Meet Coordinator.

All individual member bookings at any other time should be made with the Hut Booking Secretary.

External bookings for exclusive use of the whole hut should also be made with the Hut Booking Secretary.

Charges

List hut charges to go here

Payments

Payments for hut fees (when applicable) are to be made promptly to the club bank account by BACS, with an appropriate reference.

Hut Rules

There are some basic rules for safety, security and the considersation of other hut users that must be adhered to when using the club huts :

  1. Persons using the huts must sign the overnight book on arrival
  2. Persons using the huts will be responsible for damage or loss occurring during their stay. Breakages must be replaced or paid for
  3. Hut users must keep the huts clean and tidy
  4. No smoking or vaping in the buildings
  5. No animals are allowed at the huts
  6. Quiet should be maintained in the huts when hut users are trying to sleep
  7. In the interests of good relations with the locals excessive noise is forbidden
  8. No fires are to be lit in the grounds unless authorised by the Hut Custodian
  9. Perishable foods are not to be left in the huts when unoccupied
  10. Do not place anything on top of the heaters
  11. Do not block the fire exits

Energy Consumption

One of the club’s largest annual expenses is electricity. Both our huts are not connected to the gas network and have to be heated by electric panel heaters. It is the responsibility of the hut users to set adjust the temperature of the heaters :

  • When the hut is occupied and heating is required the heaters should be set to 18-21 degrees
  • When leaving the hut during the day, please reduce the temperature to, say 15 degrees
  • When leaving the hut unoccupied the heaters must be set to 10 deg. This is to reduce condensation and prevent pipes freezing, whilst keeping electricity consumption as low as possible

Working Weekends

A vital part of the maintenance and cleaning of the huts is carried-out by club members on a volunteer basis. The hut custodians arrange two ‘Working Weekends’ each year for each hut. The idea is that members come on the meet and help out with whatever tasks they are able to do. There will usually be a group meal and often opportunity to get out on the hill too. We would encourage all members to give a bit back to the club and get involved with some of these weekends.

Hut Swaps & Reciprocal Rights

The club has arrangements to use some other clubs huts on a like-for-like full member basis :

  • Chester MC Hut – ‘Pen Ceunant Uchaf’, on the Llanberis path up Yr Wyddfa (Snowden)
  • Oread MC Hut – ‘Tan-yr-Wyddfa’, Rhyd Ddu
  • Oread MC Hut – ‘Heathy Lea, Chatsworth Estate, Peak District

Full details of the arrangements for booking-in to these huts can be found on the Huts page of this website.

We also enjoy an annual Hut Swap, but not full reciprocal rights with the Vagabonds MC :

  • Vagabonds MC – ‘Pant-y-Fron’, Nant Peris

Social Events

The Annual Dinner

The club hosts an Annual Dinner in the run up to Christmas. All members and their guests are welcome and encouraged to come to the dinner. The dinner is generally held in Keswick, close to our hut at Stair. Every 3rd year, the dinner is held on the Fylde cost to offer opportunity for those unable to make it to the Lakes to attend.

Traditionally, the club has awarded ‘Mug of the Year’ to the member who has excelled themselves in ?.

We have recently introduced additional awards for

Winter Socials

From October to March, the club hosts a number of weekday evening events. These are usually held on the 2nd Wednesday of the month and are currently held in the upstairs function room at the Old Town Hall Tavern in Poulton-le-Fylde.

These events often invite an external speaker to come a deliver a slideshow talk on an interesting topic. We have had some excellent speakers in recent years, including James Machaffie, Emma Twyford, Geoff Hibbert, Craig Matheson, Frank Pearson

We often also have slideshows from members chronicling their own adventures in the outdoors.

We usually have a quiz

Photo Competition

Pub Meets

Details about pub meets

Committee and Contacts

The club is administered by a committee of volunteer members. The current committee can be found on the Committee Page

There are some useful contacts in the club who would probably be the best person to contact in the first instance for various things :

  • Simon Fenna – our Membership Secretary. Contact for all things to do with joining the club, applying for full membership and anything related to membership and BMC etc. Experienced climber & caver, been in the club for decades. Lancaster Based.
  • Tony Hulme – our current Chairman. Tony is a good contact for club-wide issues, he usually organises the Christmas Dinner. Sport climbing, longer walks, gravel cycling, Kalymonos trips.
  • Martin Dale – Climbing guru. All things rock climbing, organises our evening meet schedule. Encyclopedic knowledge of real ales and pubs.
  • Nick Hepburn –
  • Jen Chambers – currently our Hut Booking Secretary. Best contact for booking nights at the hut and directing groups to for external booking. Keen indoor climber & fell runner. With Andy, they run some of our family meets with their son.
  • Andy Chambers –