1 News : Conservation General International news National news Outreach Properties Rescue & Safety Urgent news (eg security issues) 2 Meets : 1st-Tuesday socials Expedition & Trail offers Friday Socials Midweek Rock Weekend 3 Interests : Buy & sell Fynbos topics Have your say History How to use & FAQ Personalities Photography Rock forum Tailpiece

Welcome to the news section of our website. Listed below are the recent issues of our newsletter, MCSA Connect. On the right are the categories in which past articles are stored. If you are not receiving MCSA Connect, and would like news from us in categories of your choice, please subscribe now.,

Urs Huber invites you to do the Outeniqua trail with him in December 8/25/2010 I have booked the 7 day Outeniqua hiking trail from the 16 Dec 2010 to the 24 Dec 2010. I have 11 places free. The cost per hiker is R664 This is a superb trail in a lovely area. Don't miss it. MCSA CT section 4th Quarter 2010 club meets schedule 8/20/2010 This special Connect mailing contains only the Meets schedule for 4Q sent to those members who have asked to get info on meets. The schedule is attached in MS Word format (.doc), and as a PDF so that members can print out whichever format works best on their computer. MCSA Connect July 2010 7/28/2010 Another month has gone by and, as always, MCSA members have been out there doing stuff! In this newsletter there are: - printable Word docs of third quarter meets and socials; - a successful (and fun) PR exercise; - invitations to the national meet at Towerkop and the Sentinel (Drakensberg) centenary meet; - national and international news; - details of the Green Flag trail accreditation system; - for rock lovers - how to join the Cape Rock News forum; - a number of meet reports, with beautiful slide shows, and - some history, fauna and flora. Dave Orton found a pair of prescription sunglasses on the Chapmans Peak path on 20 July. If you think they're yours, phone Dave on 021-794 1270. Deadline for submissions for next month's Connect: 23 August. Reports / news can be emailed to mcsa.connect@gmail.com. MCSA CT section circular 634-important notices to members 6/7/2010 This special quarterly notification is in addition to the usual monthly Connect newsletter. It contains important information on club matters, and all members are encouraged to please note the contents. Thank you from our Office staff, and the Connect Editorial team. MCSA Connect May 2010 5/26/2010 Putting together a "Connect" newsletter is definitely a challenging, but ultimately rewarding job! As yet another new member of the editorial team (there are now three of us plus Tony), it is my fervent wish that we do just that - connect - with all mountain club members, and that you in turn connect with us. Our club motto is Explore - Discover - Connect - Protect; this newsletter plays an important role in that connection. If you have any queries, suggestions, comments or complaints or would like to contribute in any way, please feel free to email us at mcsa.connect@gmail.com. Have your say and be heard! In this issue: - Lots of interesting national and international news in the National eNews - SACS Mountain Club's 10-Yearly Reunion - A new route on Boskloof Ridge - Rim of Africa - a walk of no ordinary proportion - Meet Reports with great pics and/or slideshows - A trip down memory lane to revisit old first ascents and other challenges and lots more. Jenni Fitzell MCSA Connect June 2010 6/27/2010 Editorial Whilst it is gratifying to hear from so many members that they enjoy all the extra news and articles they read in Connect, and also how useful it is to get the news so regularly and up to date, it is a concern that many members don't even open the newsletter, and those that do, read hardly anything it contains. Please use the 'Your Preferences' facility to specify what items of news you are interested in, so that when Connect arrives in your mailbox, you will hopefully want to read it immediately. Remember also that the MCSA CT section website is YOURS, and we encourage you to please use it as well. That is why often there is a link at the end of an item, and clicking on the link takes you to our website where the full story or extra pages are located. Thank you from your Connect Editorial team. MCSA Connect April 2010 4/21/2010 Hello from a newby on the Connect editorial team. Hopefully I will live up to Tony's (and Mike's) high standard and not let too many gremlins creep into the April newsletter! In this issue: - A message from the new Chairman - An invitation to the Club's annual dinner - Important notification of Montagu crag closures - Look out for these plants and help the Millennium Seed Bank project - Some beautiful slide shows, interesting meet reports, ... and much more Gill Gimberg MCSA Connect August 2010 8/27/2010 We continue to hear from members that they enjoy Connect, and especially the slideshows of club meets. They also comment how useful it is getting much more information and sooner than waiting for a quarterly newsletter. However, we also unfortunately hear that some members experience trouble with Connect getting blocked by Spam filters. In that case, please let Connect or Rose in the office know about it and we will try to help you. Finally, we are sending out the Quarterly meets schedule as a Printable document, separate from the newsletter so members can print it out if they want to. Failing that, feel free to come and collect a printed copy from the office. Regards from your Editorial team. Lost: a blue metal walking pole, with 'Parque della Cinqueterra' printed on the shaft, lost Feb 2009 (!) near the top of Dark Gully. Owner hopes that someone might have picked it up and still has it. Contact: Penny Brown, tel 021-790-3535, cell 076-191-4119, email penny.brown@mweb.co.za MCSA Connect March 2010 3/17/2010 In this issue, its good to see another two rock climbing articles. Both new routes and old favourites are popular, so do keep them coming. There are also lots of other interesting snippets, library news, great photos of meets, some stunning fynbos 'tours' and more. MCSA Connect Feb 2010 3/2/2010 The newsletter this month has been produced by a panel of authors as part of the Connect training course that is in progress. So a warm welcome to all who have contributed. The articles capture some of the diversity of activities in the club from rock climbing to outreach. In this issue: four articles on trad rock news (for a change!)and several announcements of local and international meets. Muggings on the mountain have unfortunately started again with two hot spots emerging. Do report any incident you experience or hear about. MCSA Connect Jan 2010 2/3/2010 Gencom has decided that the Connect newsletter should publish once a month in 2010. It will normally publish in the last week of the month, so any articles for inclusion should reach the Editor (or Rose) by the 25th of the month. In addition, a short text message will be sent weekly on a Sunday with any urgent items and the current programme listing the meets to be booked by the Monday. This is also to help those who have difficulty accessing the on-line Calendar. It is only sent to those who have requested meets or socials information. MCSA Connect 14 Dec 2009 12/17/2009 Chairman’s message: This is the last issue of MCSA-Connect for 2009. The next issue of Connect will be published in mid-January 2010. It is intended that MCSA-Connect will have a regular frequency of distribution in 2010. This has been the introductory year and up to now the we have been trying different combinations of length and frequency to see what works best. It is summer and therefore it is fire-season. Please note the following extract from the MCSA’s Code of Conduct with respect to fire: - Take all the necessary precautions, especially in the use of stoves; and - Do not make fires unless explicit permission has been obtained from the land owner or the responsible authority. Also please note that toilet paper should be buried and NOT burnt. This summer, there already has been an unfortunate incident above the Du Toits Kloof Hut where a member tried to burn toilet paper, the burning toilet paper set some nearby slangbos on fire and within seconds a veld fire had started. The practice of burning toilet paper seems to have originated from river rafting trips on the Orange River. This is not appropriate behaviour for the mountains of the Western Cape & is not included in the MCSA’s Code of Conduct. The CapeNature Hiking Trail Review Project was successfully completed. Thanks to the project team as well as to the members of the different Sections of the MCSA that participated in this project. The Cape Town Section would like to wish you all a happy Festive Season. Be safe and we hope to see you in the mountains. Stephen Davey Chairman MCSA Connect 7 December 2009 12/17/2009 In this issue: the December edition of the National eNews; an interesting and informative article on Search and Rescue; a book launch on the Top 12 Hiking Trails in the Western Cape; an innovative competition where you can earn up to 21 chances to win a copy of the book; our first online video; and much more. A feature of this issue is many links to relevant articles and websites elsewhere, such as UK Scrambling, UIAA, SA Mountain Sport, and more. This is what the web is all about - seamlessly linking multiple resources from a wide range of sources. MCSA Connect 2 November 2009 12/10/2009 The new look website and newsletter is launched with this issue - please use the Help files or, if you are still unsure, ask the Editor! There are also three profiles, several meet reports (one, a new route), a new social and more. Thanks to all who have submitted articles, but to keep the newsletter to a reasonable length some had to be omitted - my apologies. MCSA Connect 12 October 2009 10/29/2009 In this issue: - Results from the survey last week provide some interesting insights - Three meet reports with stunning pictures - Some rock news - for a change! - And Flowers of the Week are back (missing last week because Connect issued earlier than normal) MCSA Connect 6 October 2009 10/15/2009 This issue has an important survey which all members, new or long serving, are asked to complete - it only takes 2 minutes. Please also note that the Club has also been asked to assist Cape Nature with a survey of a number of hiking trails. This is an important new initiative for the club. MCSA Connect 27 May 2009 6/8/2009 In this issue: an overview of the new MCSA CT strategy; a tribute to Ian Cowburn; profile of Christina Jongens; a report of the opening of a classic new route; and more.

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