CODE RED for North East on Tuesday 12 Jan

Tuesday 12th Jan has been declared a Code Red (Catastrophic) fire danger rating for the North East Fire District, which includes Falls Creek. The Government's advice on such days is that "If you live in a bushfire prone area the safest option is to leave the night before, or early in the morning".

From Parks Victoria and DSE

Parks Victoria and the Department of Sustainability and Environment (DSE) advise that all national and state parks and forests in the North Country and the North East will be closed tomorrow in the interest of public safety.

“Many of our parks are large, open landscapes surrounding roads and towns, so access cannot be prevented. We can only stress the intense level of fire risk in these bushland areas and close visitor sites wherever possible,” ...

Those who are already in a park or forest area are advised the safest option is to leave tonight or early tomorrow morning. Bushfires which start on a day of CODE RED Fire Danger Rating may be uncontrollable, unpredictable and move quickly.

Parks Victoria and DSE encourage visitors already in these areas to contact the local Visitor Information Centre to find out about alternative tourism opportunities in lower risk areas.

billy carts and other summer fun

Every year there seem to be more summer activities at Falls. This year has plenty lined up.

• Christmas Carols 24/12
• The Summit chair will be running for walkers, sightseers and mountain bikes from 27 Dec to 3 Jan. Day passes $20 adults, $12 kids. Single rides $11 and $7. Kids under 5 are free.
• Cricket Match in the Nordic Bowl 26 Dec
• Kids Club summer activities every day from 27 Dec to 30 Jan. (Kids must be accompained by parent or guardian).
• Outdoor cinema on 27 Dec and Wed nights
  
• celebrate indigenous music and culture at the Big Fella Festival Jan 2
• Billy Cart Derby Jan 9 - cart inspection 9-10, racing from 10:30. Limited numbers so register early.
• Bush Bash Jan 9 in the Village Bowl
• Taste of Falls Creek 16-17 Jan
  
• Dragon Boat Races 23-24 Jan

And not forgetting

• Mountain bike hire from The Board Lounge at St Falls (Quay West)
• Falls Creek Sports sale 27 Dec - 3 Jan
• New Year's Eve parties at various bars and restaurants
• Guided walks, the Alpine Wild Walk shuttle, Sunset tours - for bookings and times call 1800 2 FALLS

More information and Billy Cart Derby entry forms available at http://www.fallscreek.com.au

mountain muster - mingle with the other club lodges

The Falls Creek Alpine Association is organising The Mountain Muster on 16-17th January, the same weekend as Taste of Falls Creek.

It kicks off on Saturday night with a meeting/dinner at the Myrtleford Ski Club (Falls Creek) commencing at 5pm. The guest speaker will be Chris Derrick, General Manager Operations, FCRM.

The meeting will be followed by a BYO meat/salads BBQ. Wine will be provided. 

On Sunday you can join the lodge walk-about. It will commence at 10.00 am at Carey Alpine Club. It's a rare opportunity to look through participating flats/lodges.

RSVP by latest Wednesday 14 January to president(at)fcaa.org.au.

a mystery solved

We're not sure where Pete the Snow Dragon hides during the summer months at Falls Creek, but his friend Samara Tanton spends her time in Niseko's Hanazono resort with 'Kamonohasi' (the ninja platypus).  You can watch a video here.

Samara and Haruka Ito also deliver a clever bilingual Hanazono TV Daily Powder Report on conditions in that part of the Niseko resort.

Resort Management 2010 prices

FCRM have proposed the following prices for Season 2010

Resort Entry	2010 price
Day ticket (per day)	$32
Night entry (per day)	$32
Season’s pass	$270
Early bird season’s pass	$230

These rates require Ministerial approval.

The XC trail fees and oversnow prices have not yet been announced.

memberships available

In 2010 a small number of memberships will be available:

• up to 6 Full Memberships
• up to 8 Intermediate or Junior Memberships

Anyone who wishes to apply for a membership in any category should fill in an application for consideration in February 2010. To download a membership application and get other information about membership of AAC Falls Creek, visit www.aacfallscreek.com

locker policy

A locker policy has been implemented to make best use of the lockers available at the Falls Creek Huette. The next stage in implementing the policy is the introduction of a $10 Locker Fee from 2010. If you have a locker, you can expect an invoice for this fee.

The Locker Policy in full:

AAC Falls Creek
Policy : Lockers
Date : November 2009
Objective:
To allow the equitable use of the 98 lockers across the membership and to allow the responsible transfer of use of the lockers as a club asset occupying space in the FC Huette.
In general:

• 1 membership debenture will entitle the debenture holder to a request for 1 locker.
• Lockers will be returned to the club on relinquishing a debenture.
• Lockers will be transferred with the debenture if the debenture is transferred to a family member.

Records:
The committee will maintain a register of lockers with Member Names and Debenture Numbers. To be reviewed annually at the Working B and/or the Committee weekend.
If a locker is unclaimed then it will be reallocated by the locker sub committee or the full committee.
Initial Implementation:
A $50 credit against future locker fees will be attributed to each member holding a locker as at 2000 as per the register held at that time and still a financial member.
Implementation:
From calendar year 2010, additional invoices will be sent to each member for the sum of the “Locker Fee” for each locker held.
As at 2010 the “Locker Fee” is set at $10 p.a.
Review: this policy is subject to Committee review from time to time.

bookings closure over Christmas

Bookings will be closed for AAC Falls Creek from Thursday 24 December, re-opening Monday 4 January

new rates have been set for 2010

The committee has agreed rates for Falls Creek Huette for 2010. As the Treasurer's Report explains, the increase will allow us to start the planned building works.

The new Falls Creek rates can be viewed at the www.aacfallscreek.com website.

Treasurer's Report

The Club has again performed well from a financial standpoint in 2009.Your Committee has taken the view that if we are to have adequate funding to be able to undertake the substantial redevelopment of the lodge that is required for our Lease renewal, the Club had to be able to operate at a recurrent profit for years in advance of major works being undertaken.To this end the rates for subscription, accommodation, both Winter and Summer including guest rates, must increase a little ahead of inflation in order to ensure that we are able to commence the major project that will include the re securing of our Alpine Lease.Occupancy rates are higher now that the "Blog" has been able to show when rooms are available and our Summer bookings are increasing steadily as Falls Creek increases its attractions in the high Summer period.  

The Committee is pleased to advise that the Club has again delivered a strong "cash" profit,  but this will be reduced as a "reported" profit after capital items and depreciation are deducted. However, our bank balance has increased strongly in the year and broadly speaking we are optimistic about the likely financial position for 2010.

DW Stogdale
Treasurer

fox baiting around Falls Creek

Parks Victoria are continuing their programme of fox baiting to protect native fauna, including the mountain pygmy possum. Baits will be laid in the Alpine National Park and some parts of the Alpine Resort area. Of course, dogs are not allowed in the National Park, but anyone with dogs in the area needs to be aware of the risks. Parks Victoria have provided the following information.

• Baiting will continue through to the 30th June 2010. 
• Foxes may sometimes carry  baits to a different location and cache them (store them). These baits are still poisonous.
• 1080 may remain active in poisoned animals and/or baits for several weeks dependent on prevailing environmental conditions.
• Your animals may be poisoned if they eat baits or carcasses of poisoned animals. It is unusual for domestic pets to ravage fox carcasses.
• Steps (eg. muzzling, restraint) need to be taken to ensure that domestic dogs do not gain access to 1080 pest animal baits or poisoned animals.
• Closely monitor the health and behaviour of your domestic pets. If you notice any unusual or uncharacteristic behaviour contact your local veterinarian immediately. Do not disturb sand mounds or bait stations.
• A map of bait stations is also available
  

For more information on fox baiting at Falls Creek, contact Iris Curran from Parks Victoria, Mt Beauty on 03 5754 4693 or Ben Derrick from Resort Management on 03 5758 1235 or benderrick(at)fallscreek.com.au

dragon boat races

Dragon boat racing has been an important summer event at Falls Creek for a few years. It is a fund raiser and awareness raiser for the Cancer Council, as well as being a fun weekend. There are 6 titles up for grabs including the Club Lodge Challenge, Corporate Challenge and Women's Challenge.

If you are interested in an AAC Falls Creek team please reply to aacfallscreek(at)gmail.com You can also download an entry form and more information from Falls Creek website.

booking patterns for 2009

Booking numbers for winter 2009 have been tallied and analysed. This chart shows the weekly occupancy rates during the winter season. Weekends often pushed occupancy higher.

end of winter season resort survey

Falls Creek resort is now conducting a survey on the 2009 winter season. In addition to providing the resort with feedback, there is the incentive of entering a draw to win two five-day Adult lift passes at Falls Creek in 2010. To see or complete the survey, please click here.