South Wales October

South Wales, Dan Yr Ogof base camp. Some heavy rain on day 2: micro-navigation training cut short in favour of hot-choccy in the camp site cafe. Bright and breezy conditions on day 3 for the climb over the hills: groups did well with no big navigation errors, except a few groups needed help to find the top of the mountain (TIP: it’s up folks, until you can’t go up anymore!).

Congratulations to all pupils on this trip: you passed with merit and your leaders were pleased with your effort and determination: impressive!

Where did we stay? Dan Yr Ogof: has the biggest collection of life sized MODEL DINOSAURS in the World! Grrrr …

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South Downs Silver qualifying

57 pupils in 10 groups trekked 50km in 3 days from Lewes Station to Amberley Station. Groups did a superb job in great weather: no navigation problems, camp sites kept tidy and individuals in happy spirits (mostly!), despite some really sore feet. All the staff enjoyed helping you complete it. Well done!

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Bronze assessment hike October 8-9

90 pupils completed their qualifying Bronze hike around the North Downs and Mole Valley near Reigate. In unusually warm weather for October, 14 groups navigated well, although several got lost in the usual places which require quite a bit of map skill to negotiate without a hitch (e.g. “Deadly Headley”). All the groups performed well out hiking; camp craft was mostly good too, although leaving “no trace” was not quite achieved by all. Nevertheless, well done everyone!

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