General information
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Frequently Asked Questions
Accommodation?
Activities?
BBQ?
Cell Phones?
Contacts?
Cleaning?
Cooking and eating utensils?
Cooking?
Diesel?
Disabilities?
Driving times to Arthur's Pass?
Drying clothing?
Emergencies, what assistance is available?
First Aid kits?
Food?
Heating?
Location?
Managers role?
Medical assistance?
Milk?
Ovens?
Parent help?
Petrol?
Pillows?
Programme?
Risk management?
Services available at Arthur's Pass?
Snow Chains?
Sandflies, do we need insect repellent?
Snow, what if the road closes?
Television?
Tranz Alpine train?
Videos?
Washing clothing?
Weather?
Accommodation?
The lodge sleeps 45 persons.
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Activities?
The APOEC manager has an established program which they run, with the assistance of the class teacher and parent help. The teacher/parents are responsible for evening activities.
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BBQ?
A gas BBQ is available.
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Bedding?
Bring a pillow or pillow case (to be stuffed with clothing) and warm sleeping bag/blankets.
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Cell phones?
Vodafone phones have reception in the village area. Telecom phones have reception from Arthur's Pass summit to the Bealey Hotel. Cellphones, like video games, are considered an undesirable distraction and we ask that they are not brought on camp by children.
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Contacts (the APOEC manager)?
Phone (03) 318 9249, Fax (03) 318 9269, Email manager@apoec.org.nz.
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Cleaning?
Groups are required to leave the lodge in a clean and tidy state. All cleaning materials are provided.
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Cooking and eating utensils?
Are provided by APOEC.
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Cooking?
Is the responsibility of the visiting group. Food is provided for school groups during term time or by request.
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Diesel, can I refuel in Arthur’s Pass?
Disabilities, what disabilities are provided for?
Guide dogs are permitted in the national park and several local walks are challenging but quite achievable for blind adventurers, the lodge can help provide for diabetic diets, the lodge also has a wheelchair ramp.
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Driving times to Arthur’s Pass?
From Greymouth or Hokitika: 1.5 hours. From Christchurch: 2-2.5 hours.
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Drying clothing?
The APOEC lodge has a large and efficient drying room.
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Emergencies, what assistance is available?
The APOEC manager, Arthur’s Pass Police, Arthur's Pass Rescue, and Arthur's Pass Rural Fire brigade are equipped and experienced to deal with most emergencies. However the village is an hour’s drive from the nearest medical centre so it is important to ensure spare medication is carried for those who need it. The visiting group is responsible for maintaining a list of home contact details and medical/allergies information for all members.
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First aid kits?
APOEC has first aid kits both for the lodge and for outdoor activities.
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Food?
Is provided for school groups during term time or by request.
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Heating?
The lodge has a coal fire in the dining room and heaters in the hallways and bathrooms. The bunkrooms are not heated so that they maintain a comfortable temperature for sleeping. The building is well insulated, and was recently upgraded with wool underfloor insulation.
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Location?
We are easy to find! In the centre of Arthur's Pass Village, the lodge is on the left hand side if travelling from Canterbury, or on the right hand side if driving from Westland. The lodge is signposted, and sits approximately halfway between the DOC Visitor Centre and the Arthur's Pass Store. Note, at the time of writing (6/2010)
the location of most local businesses in Google Maps are incorrect.
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Manager's role?
The APOEC manager assists the teacher/s in the running of daytime outdoor activities for visiting school groups. The manager is experienced in outdoor education, risk management and handling emergencies in the backcountry. The manager is not usually available to run activities on weekends.
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Medical assistance?
The nearest medical centres are at Darfield and Moana, both approximately 1 hours drive. The response time for the Westpac rescue helicopter is usually between 45 minutes and 1 hour, or 1 hour for an ambulance.
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Milk?
Is not provided, but can be purchased through the local store. Phone the Arthur's Pass Store on (03) 318 9235.
Music?
The lodge has a CD and tape player for your use.
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Ovens?
The Lodge has 2 conventional 4 element stove/ovens and a microwave.
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Parent help?
All programme activities require an adult to student ratio of at least 1:8 and a ratio of 1:4 for water activities. Parent helpers assist the Teacher/supervisor and manager with supervision of activities and behavioural management of groups.
Petrol, can I refuel in Arthur’s Pass?
Arthur's Pass Store has 91 octane petrol available.
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Pillows?
Are not provided.
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Programme?
An ecology and bush skills based programme is run by APOEC, primarily aimed at intermediate aged students.
The programme is very flexible to allow for any objectives that the group may have.
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Risk management?
Sound risk management is a cornerstone of the APOEC programme. A copy of APOEC’s risk management policy and RAMMS forms is available.
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Services at Arthur’s Pass?
Store
A shop/cafe with snacks, basic groceries, bottle store, 91 octane unleaded petrol and diesel.
Arthur's
Meals, bar and accommodation.
Wobbly Kea
Meals and bar.
Visitor Centre
Valuable information on tramping and climbing in the area can be obtained here at the headquarters of the department of Conservation for the area. There are also interesting displays and an audio-visual show on the history of the Arthur’s Pass road and railway.
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Snow chains, do we need them?
Chains (check that they fit and that you know how to use them) should be carried from May to September.
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Snow, what if the road closes?
State Highway 73 is occasionally closed by snow in winter and/or flooding at any time of year. These closures are usually less than 12 hours. Carrying chains will mean that you are less likely to be held up by winter conditions. The APOEC lodge maintains sufficient food supplies in the event of a prolonged closure of SH 73 to both the East and West of the village.
Highway reports are available via the Transit New Zealand info line, 0800 444449, or by clicking on
Transit Road Report.
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Sandflies, do we need insect repellent?
We do have sandflies and they can be busy during warmer weather. You can mix 10 parts water, 1 part Dettol and (if you have some) a few drops of Citronella oil. For a more waterproof recipe you can mix 1 part Dettol to 1 part baby or olive oil. Both of these work as well as any commercial mixtures,
though don't last as long between applications. They may also be easier on some children's skin.
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Television?
Reception is not available at the APOEC lodge. However the lodge does have a DVD player and data projector (if bringing a laptop, bring your own data cables, especially if you have a MAC).
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Tranz Alpine train?
Many groups choose to travel to and/or from Arthur's Pass on the Tranz Alpine Train.
Click on the Tranz Scenic link below to visit the Tranz Scenic website or phone them on 0800 87 88 98. Let them know that you are visiting Arthur's Pass Outdoor Education Centre to receive a special discounted fare.
Tranz Scenic
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Videos/DVDs
The APOEC lodge has a video and DVD player for you to use, and a selection of Natural History and Mountain Safety videos/DVDs available.
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Washing clothing?
The APOEC lodge has a large wash tub but no washing machine.
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Weather, what can we expect?
The Annual rainfall is around 4500mm! While this figure makes the area sound rather damp,
the area has a comparable number of sunshine hours to Christchurch. It's just that when it rains,
it really rains! The average maximum temperature for January is 15.2 degrees and the average minimum
is 7.0 degrees. A really hot summer day may get into the low 30s. The average maximum temperature for June is 9.0 degrees and the minimum is 0.4 degrees. A really cold winter day may
dip below minus 10.
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