Last weekend, 14 students from years 9 and 10 undertook their practice Adventurous Journey for their Duke of Edinburgh Awards at Glenworth Valley, close to the Central Coast. Students spent two days learning to survive in the bush. They entered the journey with a sense of excitement and fear, but over the course of the two days this turned into a great adventure. The first day saw students kayaking along the beautiful Popran creek towards the Hawkesbury river. The weather and tides were in our favour as we glided (and crashed) our way for 3 hours improving our kayaking skills and making new friends along the way. We had a beautiful evening by the camp fire where students learned how to set up their tents and light a camp fire from sticks and flint. This was the perfect setting to learn to make dinner using a tiny camp stove and torch light. Surprisingly some tasty meals were produced alongside the pot noodles!

Saturday started with a misty morning in the valley, listening to the sounds of the 250 horses on the property, a fabulous sight first thing in the morning. We journeyed by foot to Emerald pools, but this time with the added challenge of a million leeches and pouring rain. Another chance for the students to learn - this time how to remove leeches and to make sure you put on lots of insect repellent! The best part of the hike was arriving at Emerald pools for a swim and then making it to the top of Mount Olive for the spectacular views.

The energy and enthusiasm from the students over the weekend was just fantastic. I am so proud of all they achieved in the short 24 hours in the bush. For all students it was definitely a challenge but one they are looking forward to repeating in term 4 when they do their Qualifying journey.

A massive thanks to Miss Allen for giving up her personal time to support the students on this journey. I know the students appreciated your presence and advice over the two days.

Mrs Lyons
Duke of Edinburgh Award Leader