At Camp with 10B

By Richard Roe | Posted: Wednesday April 3, 2019

The young men of 10B wanted a bit of extra challenge for their Mt Aspiring camp last week. They got it in the form of a decent rainfall accurately predicted by the Metservice before we left.

We were able to squeeze in a full day of kayaking and the first half of an overnight expedition before the heavens opened. We awoke on Monday morning to persistent rain and rivers rapidly rising. Fortified by a hearty breakfast of hot baked bean sandwiches cooked on a primus under the staff shelter, we packed up camp and headed back to the Lodge. River crossing practice from the day before came in very handy as each small creek had turned into a river in a very short time.

Table tennis and indoor games were very popular activities for the next couple of days, and there was a lot of wet camping gear to dry out. On Wednesday we were able to venture out again and by the end of the day had been able to reinstate our walking path across the stream bed and replace the plank bridge which had been relocated to somewhere in Lake Wanaka. A warm sunny day for orienteering and dam building on our last full day was a great way to finish off the week.

The camp has been a great opportunity for these young men to learn a little more about themselves and their classmates, plus pick up some useful outdoor skills and awareness. The added bonus of seeing the power of nature and the amazing waterfalls that come with it will surely stick in their memories for some time.

R. Roe

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