Day 1, Wednesday 20th September 2017
The excitement began on the morning of Wednesday the 20th of
September, as we all headed to school with our suitcases and backpacks stuffed
with tea bags, milk and sweets galore for good measure. We all piled into the
gym hall to unload our hefty bags. Ms. Ferris and Mr. Brennan already looked
exhausted at the site of a hundred odd teenage girls. Many girls set out to
Supervalu to stock up on pot noodles and chocolate. The enthusiasm was in the
air with high expectations of the ‘greatest trip ever’. At 11:30 we all loaded
up on to the buses with our speakers at the ready and tunes in our heads.
The hope of catching a snooze on the bus was crushed as we
reached Kippure in no time. The constant snacking on the bus was seemingly
insufficient as everyone rushed to get to their house to eat lunch. The
exploration of the houses was cut short by the announcement of our afternoon
activities. Looking up at the dark, cloudy sky, everyone silently prayed they
wouldn't be going kayacking today.
Those who were assigned to go kayacking were hopeful that
the weather would pick up as they hopped back on a bus and travelled to a
nearby lake. Luckily the wetsuits provided were substantially dry which made
the process of changing a lot easier. Time was given to make sure everyone was
aware on what they had to do before we paired up and began kayacking. The rain
and cold weather dampened nobodies spirits as we laughed and had fun, aiming to
not capsize. Ms Moore braved the waters also, not missing the chance to catch
every moment on her go pro.
We were faced with different tasks and challenges while in
the water, one including sitting up and kneeling while continuing to paddle our
way to land. Our team-building skills were needed as we were posed with the
challenge of making a raft with our kayaks while still staying afloat in the
water. We worked together and managed to complete the task successfully. The
bus arrived back in time for a quick but well needed hot shower before dinner
which included delicious choices of lasagna, curry or spring rolls for the
vegetarians.
After dinner we commenced our evening activities. Half the
group went outside to complete team-building activities and the other group
proceeded inside where we were split into smaller groups. Our creativity was
put to the test for these activities as we were to make a "bottle
rocket" suitable to be filled with water and shot into the air. The stakes
were high as a competition was formed to see which teams rocket could fly the
furthest. The time limit put the teams under pressure and caused them to work
swiftly but efficiently. The products produced were quite impressive but team
three were presented with the crown (or bag of jellies in this case) as their
rocket shot the furthest and fastest. Another activity involved dropping an egg
from a height, making sure it didn't crack. Our job was to make a protective
shell for the egg to sit in, however nobody was successful.
Supper was provided and everyone was back in their houses
by 9pm. The nucleated distribution of the houses allowed everyone to easily pop
in on their other friends before bed. The busy day and promise of another one
tomorrow had everyone in bed reasonably early and asleep as soon as their head
hit the pillow.
Day 2, Thursday 21st 2017
We were awoken by our alarms at 8 o’clock, we swiftly got
dressed and ready for the day. We made or way upstairs and exchanged smiles
with our roommates, too tired to talk. At 9 o’clock we walked to breakfast, a
selection of cereals, toast, yoghurts and sausages were available, along with
tea and coffee of course. I took my pick and sat down, we talked about what the
day had in store for us. My group was doing Bush craft in the morning and
orienteering in the afternoon.
At 10 o’clock we walked with our instructors to the forest
where we were to build a shelter, find food, cook the food, then perform a song
and dance for the judges. A daunting task but we got on with it. Three girls
from our teams set off on the task of finding the food whilst the remainder of
us got to building the shelter. I had absolutely no idea how we would go about
it, but luckily a member of our group was a very experienced scout, so she took
initiative and taught us how to build a sound structure. Once the three
scavengers arrived back with the food I took the job of making a decent meal
out of it. We were supplied with some sausages, bacon, a bell pepper, some mushrooms,
a tomato, a serving of pasta and a tortilla. In the end, we had come up with
questionable wrap that I probably wouldn’t have eaten if it was the last thing
on earth. We performed a hastily choreographed rendition of YMCA, but it was
entertaining none the less.
After lunch, which was a delicious chicken burger and
chips, we set off again into the woods on our mission to find all the points on
the map, which was surprisingly difficult as we ended up with only 800 points
out of a possible 10,000. Nothing to be embarrassed by though as it was quickly
forgotten. We came home to a warm roast dinner and team building games
afterwards. At about 8:30 we were called into the marquee and we were told that
in our houses we had to come up with a skit to perform for the teachers. We
were given a list of words to include and a selection of props that needed to
be used. With ½ an hour to come up with something, we ran home as fast as we
could and started brainstorming. We ended up performing a skit about the 2016
Presidential Election, which got a good few laughs but alas didn’t win. We all
went straight to bed that night, exhausted.
Day 3, Friday 22nd September 2017
The next day, the departing blues were starting to set in.
All of us were determined to make the most out of our last activity. My group
were doing the bush craft activity. We all walked into the woods, following our
instructors. We had to complete the tasks of making a waterproof shelter,
constructing a fire, and cooking a meal on it. We got to work straight away and
started gathering branches and leaves to make the best shelter ever. We worked
as a team and made it our mission for our dish to be the best. We chopped up
the ingredients and started using the utensils given to us to fry off the food.
We managed to make a pasta dish with sausages, sweet potato and onions and
peppers. Although it didn’t taste the best, it was the fun making it that
counted. Finally, we had our last meal, and took our big group photo. We said
goodbye to this magical and fantastic trip. It was everything and more than we
expected it to be. By the end of it all, we were all exhausted, and came back
to the school with the memories that we will cherish forever.
The trip was an all round success and we
will all remember it in many years to come!
