There are no costs for girls participating in journeys. Koha is welcome to help cover costs  – please donate via the ‘Donate’ tab on our website, or directly into Journeys Charitable Trust 03-1733-0110180-000 with reference “Donation”. Please email us if you would like a receipt.

We prefer for girls to bring their own bike, if they have or can borrow one that is suitable for the trails we ride. We will ask that it has a recent safety check done by a bike shop. Otherwise we have some bikes available that we can loan to girls for the season. 

An essential gear list will be emailed out prior to beginning. We do have many items that we can loan or donate to girls if you are missing something. Suitable gear is essential for safety and we are quite particular about making sure the girls all have what they need.

Our Ratio is 1:4 to 1:6, and we usually travel in small groups with two instructors or an instructor and a leader. All of our instructors are women who are passionate about adventuring in the outdoors. Checkout the bio’s on each of our instructors here. 

We will adventure in a variety of local places, generally somewhere different each week. We meet at a designated location in Alexandra and mostly set out on foot or bike from there. On a few occasions we do a short drive in a Bike it Now van or private vehicle to the start of the ride or walk.

We prioritise the safety of participants. We have a planned progression for our girls and instructors pay particular attention to where the limits of each girls’ comfort zone may be for each activity. We start small, and build up – introducing only one or two things each session. If there is a technical section, we stop and look, discuss, and give options. We encourage girls to give things a go but everything is challenge by choice. 

Our instructors are police checked, first aid trained, carry a first aid kit, PLB, and a warm up kit.  They are local women who are familiar with our local wild places and tracks.

We have a thorough system in place to identify hazards and minimise or eliminate them. The instructors meet before each session and discuss the specific route they are planning to do, the weather on the day and how to prioritise safety on that adventure.

We do head out in most conditions, hence the detailed gear list and our time spent checking gear. If the weather is extreme, we may choose to do a special session (e.g. Bike maintenance), or cancel the session for the day. In this case, instructors will contact their group in advance. We use WhatsApp for communication.